Experimental Investigation of Steel Frames Equipped with Dissipative Replaceable Links

In the last decades, high priority has been given to community disaster resilience owing to seismic events with a particular focus on the post-disaster restoration. Therefore, damage reduction of structural and non-structural elements after a disaster is fundamental for costs and for functionality aspects. In this context, the European RFCS project DISSIPABLE was funded with the aim to perform large demonstration tests of steel frames equipped with easily repairable seismic dissipative devices. In this paper, the experimental tests performed according to dynamic substructuring are described. The capacity of withstanding seismic actions as well as the energy dissipation relies on the Dissipative Replaceable Link Frame system, composed of two rigid columns connected by weakened beams. Two different configurations of frames equipped with DRLF systems were tested: i) frames made of only mild steel and ii) frames made of both mild and high-strength steel. Bidimensional frames were tested under different seismic intensity levels: Damage Limitation, Significant Damage and Near Collapse.