Effect of Gaps Between Infill Wall and Reinforced Concrete Frame Under in Plane Loading – A Review

Abstract

The interrelation between the masonry infill wall and the RC frames and the positive or negative consequences of integrating infill walls into a frame is often disregarded for the structural design of the building. The infill partition walls are usually taken into consideration as non-structural elements. Researchers show that an infilled frame structure performs better against earthquakes. The response of the masonry infilled RC frame under lateral force-displacement, is a function of the geometrical and material characteristics of the frame and infill, and the interrelation between them. However, if a gap exists between the masonry infill wall and the RC frame, the phenomenon is different. A review of a study on the effect of gaps between frame and infill under the lateral force-displacement response is presented here, where masonry infilled RC frames having different positions of gaps subjected to lateral in-plane loads from available literature are described with their test and model results. The study showed that the existence of an infill gap does not significantly affect the peak strength of the infilled frame but contributes to a major reduction in the initial stiffness. The side-gapped specimens showed a lower ultimate strength and initial stiffness than the top-gapped specimens with the same size of the gap.