ABSTRACT
The precasting of concrete offers a wide variety of fabrication and assembly options. Economical seismic solutions are, to a large extent, dependent on the fabricator’s capabilities and the contractor’s comfort with the manner in which a particular precast component or system is integrated into the building. As a consequence, innovation is the key to creating a successful solution because the options are many. From a design perspective, options can be placed in two categories: those that emulate cast-in-place concrete construction and those that provide connections between components that are capable of sustaining post-yield deformations. We will refer to these design alternatives as emulative and yielding, respectively. The term jointed precast is also used to identify precast concrete elements designed to yield at the precast interface (Ghosh and Hawkins, 2001). These two approaches are shown in Figure 34.1. Systems a, b, and d of Figure 34.1 are emulative, for post-yield rotations are expected to occur in the concrete beam away from the point at which precast members are connected. Yielding systems similar to that described in Figure 34.1c are the exclusive focus of this chapter.
