Experimental studies of full-scale self-centering beam-to-column exterior connection

Traditional steel moment frames use welded beam-column connections, which are susceptible to brittle fracture and commonly have large residual deformation after the earthquakes. A novel beam-to-column connection for steel moment frame is proposed. Four full-scale new connections and two connections without self-centering capacity were tested under cyclic lateral load, the connections' strength property, energy-dissipation capacity, seismic behavior of hysteresis loops as well as angles and posttensioning strands' behavior are investigated. The results show that the connection's prestressing forces determine the connection's self-centering capacity, and angles are important for energy dissipation. Under 5% drift, the columns and beams remain elastic while the angles sustain inelastic deformations. After the loading, the connections have zero deformation. The connection can restore to the original position.