Swiss Code Review

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 2
Provisions related to establishing ductility of timber connections ................................................. 2
SIA 265:2012, Clause 4.6 Earthquake .......................................................................................... 2
General (4.6.1) ......................................................................................................................... 2
Ductile zones in wood structures (4.6.2) ................................................................................. 4
Non-ductile zones in ductile wood structures (4.6.3) ............................................................. 9
Linking connection ductility to system ductility ............................................................................ 10
Additional comments .................................................................................................................... 11
References ..................................................................................................................................... 12

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

Introduction
……………………

Provisions related to establishing ductility of timber connections

SIA 265:2012, Clause 4.6 Earthquake
General (4.6.1)
 Wood structures are to be classified as structure type A, B, C or D according to their
ductility. For structures with different ductility in the two main building directions, a
direction-dependent classification is allowed.
 Behavior factor q=1.5 shall be used for wood structures designed with the non-
ductile structural behavior method. For compression members and connections,
clause 4.6.3.2 is to be respected. This clause states that compression members and
their connections (i.e.: carpenter’s joints) shall be designed to not fail under seismic
loading. In particular, structural integrity shall be ensured by taking into account
possible load-reversal during an earthquake.
 For wood structures designed with the ductile structural behavior method, the
behavior factor q shall be chosen according to structure type. (see Table 1 below)
 Ductile behavior can be taken into account in structural parts only if plastic
deformation, local instabilities, or reactions with hysteresis character do not
influence the general stability of the structure.
 The resulting effects of seismic loads are to be determined using a linear elastic
model with average, short-term stiffness properties for the wood members and
connections.
Table 1 : Ductility – Response factors and classification

Structure Ductility Behavior Classification as a function of Examples of classification

type
A negligible
B small
factor, q effectiveness, quantity, and
distribution of ductile
connection zones
1.5 All structures that cannot - arches
be classified as type B, C, or - moment frames with glued
D. corner joints
- structures with columns
connected rigidly to the
foundations
- structures with shear walls
without mechanical
connections
2.0 Structures with few ductile - structures with few but
connection zones effective ductile zones
- single-storey structures
with columns connected
semi-rigidly to the
foundations

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

 C average 2.5 Structures with different - frames or column-beam
highly-ductile connection structures with semi-rigid
zones connections (connections to
foundations are semi-rigid
or hinged)
- frame and truss structures
with mechanical fasteners in
the frame or truss joints
- structures with shear walls
consisting of glued panels,
provided they are
mechanically connected
with each other
- hybrid structures
consisting of skeleton-type
load-bearing timber frames
with non-load-bearing infill
panels
D high 3.0 Structures with many, -structures with shear walls:
uniformly-distributed, - sheathing
highly- ductile connection mechanically
zones connected to frames
- shear walls
connected together
mechanically
- mechanical
connectors with
degree of ductility
Ds > 3 according to
Clause (see Table 3)

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

Ductile zones in wood structures (4.6.2)
 In general, in timber structures only the connection zones exhibit ductile behavior. For
the timber elements and glued joints the behavior is generally non-ductile.
 The required degree of ductility according to Table 1 is achieved by selecting an
appropriate type of connection based on laterally loaded dowel-type fasteners, if
requirements of Table 2 are fulfilled.
Table 2: Requirements regarding dowel-type fasteners with ductile behavior (softwood)

Structure type Requirements regarding timber Requirements regarding end and

thickness intermediate spacing of fasteners parallel
to grain
B According to Table 3 for Ds > 3 At least the minimum spacing as given
by this standard
C and D According to Table 3 for Ds > 3 At least 1.5 times the minimum
spacing as given by this standard

Table 3: Ductility factor for timber connections

Ductility factor Ds Type of connection

Ds = 1…2 - bearing-type connections (wood-wood and
wood-other materials)
- shear connections with tight-fit pins and
bolts with wood thickness of t1 < t1,erf and
t2 < t2,erf according to Table 4 and of t1 < t1,1
and t2 < t2,2 according to Table 5 and Table 6.
- nailed connections with embedment length
of s < 9d and/or wood thickness of t < 9d
- screwed connections with embedment
length s < 9d or s < serf and wood thickness of
t1 < 9d or t1 < t1,erf
- nails, screws, and glued-in rods in tension
- split rings
- shear plates
- truss plates
- glued connections
Ds > 3 - shear connections with tight-fit pins and
bolts with wood thickness of t1 ≥ t1,erf and
t2 ≥ t2,erf according to Table 4 and of t1 ≥
t1,1 and t2 ≥ t2,2 according to Table 5 and
Table 6
- nailed connections with embedment length
of s ≥ 9d and/or wood thickness of t ≥ 9d
- screwed connections with embedment
length s ≥ 9d or s ≥ serf and wood thickness of
t1 ≥ 9d or t1 ≥ t1,erf

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

  Loosening of the parts of a connection under cyclic loading must be avoided (i.e.: for
timber-timber doweled connections by use of additional bolts, in the case of nailed and
screwed connections by an increased penetration depth). Smooth nails may only be
employed for connections between sheathing and frames.
 Adequate ductility necessitates that there is no premature splitting in the connection
zone. For connections subjected to normal forces parallel to the grain, it is sufficient to
fulfill the requirements regarding splitting according to Table 2. For moment frame
connections, or generally, in the case of connections with bending action, large tension
perpendicular to grain and shear forces occur, which leads to brittle failure. This shall be
prevented by suitable measures.
 Sheathed shear walls may be considered to have ductile behavior without the need for
verification, provided the following conditions are fulfilled:
 Fasteners: diameter d ≤ 3mm
 Sheathing: thickness t ≥ 4d
 Connection: requirements of classes C and D in Table 2
 For other types of connections not treated here (i.e. toothed-plates, various carpenter’s
joints) and especially for different combinations of sheathing material and fasteners, the
ductility shall be determined by means of testing.

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

Table 4: Simplified method - Required wood thickness and values of kβ (kβ per shear plane) (Norm SIA 265 (2012))

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

Table 5 : Precise method - Wood thickness and corresponding values of kβ (kβ per shear plane) for wood-wood and
wood-EWP connections (Norm SIA 265 (2012))

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

Table 6: Precise method - Wood thickness and corresponding values of kβ (kβ per shear plane) for steel-wood
connections (Norm SIA 265 (2012))

Figure 1 : Values of kβ and as a function of wood thickness according to tables above (Norm SIA 265 (2012))

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

In order to help clarify what the above tables present, I have added Figure 2 which corresponds
to Figure 1. The kβ value is simply a factor that is dependent of the failure mode and is used in
the equation that calculates the resistance of dowel-type fasteners.

Figure 2: Failure modes presented as resistance as a function of slenderness (or wood thickness) that correspond to
the calculation of the kβ values (Bernasconi, A (2015))

Non-ductile zones in ductile wood structures (4.6.3)

 To ensure cyclic plastification in the ductile zones, all other structural elements and
connections must exhibit a sufficiently large structural resistance, in general over-
dimensioned by 20%. This applies particularly to:
 Anchors and other connections to solid parts
 Connections between diaphragms and shear walls resisting lateral
forces
 Compression members and their connections (i.e.: carpenter’s joints) shall be designed
to not fail under seismic loading. In particular, structural integrity shall be ensured by
taking into account possible load-reversal during an earthquake.

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

Linking connection ductility to system ductility
There is no direct guidance/information on how to link connection ductility to system ductility in
the standard, but there are handbooks and a course being offered at the Biel University of
Applied Sciences that covers the topic.

The equation given is

µφ = φu/φy > µΔ = Δu/Δy

where

µΔ = global ductility

µφ = Ds = local ductility

This is illustrated in Figure 3 : Relation between local ductility (connections) and global ductility
(Brunner, R. et al (2010)Figure 3.

Figure 3 : Relation between local ductility (connections) and global ductility (Brunner, R. et al (2010))

By using this principle, and with the Ds value known, it is possible to build two models:

 one model to calculate the elastic deformation, which includes connection deformation
using Kser values
 the second model to calculate the total deformation, which includes connection
deformation using Kser values multiplied with corresponding Ds-values

These resulting deformation of model two is divided by the resulting deformation of model one
to get the global ductility µΔ. This value can then be compared q·1.5:

 If µΔ ≥ q·1.5, system is assumed to be ductile enough and the behavior factor q can be
left as is, or possibly even increased.
 If µΔ < q·1.5, system is assumed not to be ductile enough and the behavior factor q
needs to be reduced, or the connections needs to be modified.

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

Additional comments
 There is currently work being done on the over-strength value because there is no
specific reason or justification of using 1.2. It was apparently adopted years ago and left
as is. According to some discussions I had, this value will be adjusted and documented in
the very near future. At the moment a suggested approach is to take into account the
distribution of the failure mode of both the ductile (95th percentile) and the brittle (5th
percentile) parts of the connection which could lead to over-strength values that are
much higher than 1.2:

Figure 4 : Recommendation for over-strength factor (Geiser, M. (2016))

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25

References

Bernasconi, A (2015): Holztragwerke und Erdbeben, Berner Fachhochschule, Bern

Brunner, R. et al (2010): Technische Dokumentation der Lignum, Erdbebengerechte

mehrgeschossige Holzbauten, Lignum, Zürich

Geiser, M. (2016): Ingenieurholzbau 5 – Erdbebengerechtes Bauen mit Holz, Berner

Fachhochschule, Bern

Norm SIA 265 (2012) Holzbau, Schweizerischer Ingenieur- und Architektenverein, Zürich

Mathias Oberholzer, Montreal, 2016-11-25