Mass timber braced frame systems achieve their ductility through the brace connections. Canadian design standards currently lack guidance on how to detail bolted brace connections to achieve a target system-level ductility as defined in the National Building Code of Canada. The objective of this research is to develop guidelines on how to detail bolted glulam timber brace connections to achieve moderate or limited ductility. To accomplish this objective, a 4-storey prototype building was designed to determine realistic brace design forces as well as investigate how different parameters (e.g., fastener diameter and number of slotted-in plates) can impact the design of a timber braced frame. Based on the prototype structure, a connection with two internal steel plates was designed and detailed, which included consideration for the fastener slenderness and spacing to achieve ductile behaviour. To validate the performance of the proposed connection, full-scale testing under monotonic and cyclic loading was conducted. This paper discusses the results of the experimental testing, including connection stiffness, strength, ductility, as well as its energy dissipation capacity.
