Airborne sound insulation performance of wall assemblies is a critical aspect which is directly associated with the comfort level of the occupants, which in turn affects the market acceptance. In single-family and low-rise residential buildings, the partition walls, whether loadbearing or non-loadbearing, are commonly framed with studs of solid sawn lumber of 2x4, 2x6, and 2x8. In commercial buildings and multi-storey residential buildings, the partition walls are commonly framed using light-gauge steel studs.
The shortcomings of solid sawn lumber studs form the motivation for this project to develop wood studs that would address these shortcomings to promote greater wood use in partition walls.
The conceptual design and fabrication work and the preliminary test results have shown that are partition-wall stud made out of composite wood material could have the same or better airborne sound insulation performance as compared to the 25 gauge steel stud. The concept is promising, with a manufacturing process and fabrication that would work and be practical.
Hybrid composite glulam timber reinforced using deformed steel bars and epoxy resin adhesive (RGTSB), was significantly developed in Kagoshima University. In this paper, a beam-to-beam connection for RGTSB and experimental data on the connection are presented...
Hybrid composite glulam timber reinforced using deformed steel bars and epoxy resin adhesive (RGTSB), was significantly developed in Kagoshima University. A long term laboratory investigation on a 4.5-meter-span hybrid timber beam and a non-hybrid timber beam was started from August 2011. The beam was made of RGTSB and another was of conventional glulam timber...
In this paper, bending behaviours in hybrid composite glulam timbers reinforced using deformed steel bars and epoxy resin adhesives (RGTSB) are presented. The technique RGTSB was developed in order to improve flexural stiffness and strength in glulam timbers...
This literature review aims to provide a general picture of retrofit needs, markets, and commonly used strategies and measures to reduce building energy consumption, and is primarily focused on energy retrofit of the building envelope. Improving airtightness and thermal performance are the two key aspects...
This study aims to develop an improved understanding of the interfacial bond behavior of softwood glulam joints with bonded-in threaded steel rod. A total of 39 glulam joints with bonded-in single-threaded steel rods were tested to failure in the pull-pu...
Advanced sustainable lateral load resisting systems that combine ductile and recyclable materials offer a viable solution to resist seismic load effects in environmentally responsible ways. This paper presents the seismic response of a post-tensioned timber-steel hybrid braced frame. This hybrid system combines glulam frame with steel braces to improve lateral stiffness while providing self-centreing capability under seismic loads. The proposed system is first presented. A detailed numerical model of the proposed system is then developed with emphasis on the connections and inelastic response of bracing members. Various types of braced frames including diagonal, cross and chevron configurations are numerically examined to assess the viability of the proposed concept and to confirm the efficiency of the system. A summary of initial findings is presented to demonstrate usefulness of the hybrid system. The results demonstrate that the proposed system increases overall lateral stiffness and ductility while still being able to achieve self-centring. Some additional information on connection details are provided for implementation in practical structures. The braced-frame solution is expected to widen options for lateral load resisting systems for mid-to-high-rise buildings.
Recent interests in adopting sustainable materials and developments in construction technology have created a trend of aiming for greater heights with timber buildings. With the increased height these buildings are subjected to higher level of lateral load demand. A common and efficient way to increase capacity is to use shearwalls, which can resist significant part of the load on the structures. Prefabricated mass timber panels such as those made of Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) can be used to form the shearwalls. But due to relatively low stiffness value of timber it is often difficult to keep the maximum drifts within acceptable limit prescribed by building codes. It becomes necessary to either increase wall sizes to beyond available panel dimensions or use multiple or groups of walls spread over different locations over the floor plan. Both of the options are problematic from the economic and functional point of view. One possible alternative is to adopt a Hybrid system, using Steel Plate Shear Walls (SPSW) with timber moment frames. The SPSW has much higher stiffness and combined with timber frames it can reduce overall building drifts significantly. Frames with prefabricated timber members have considerable lateral load capacity. For structures located in seismic regions the system possesses excellent energy dissipation ability with combination of ductile SPSW and yielding elements within the frames. This paper investigates combination of SPSW with timber frames for seismic applications. Numerical model of the system has been developed to examine the interaction between the frames and shear walls under extreme lateral load conditions. Arrangements of different geometries of frames and shear walls are evaluated to determine their compatibility and efficiency in sharing lateral loads. Recommendations are presented for optimum solutions as well as practical limits of applications.
