Title: Design, detailing, and analysis of short-grouted ductile reinforcing bar connections for special precast concrete shear walls, part 1
Date Published: May - June 2026
Volume: 71
Issue: 3
Page Numbers: 55 - 77
Authors: Baha’a Al-Khateeb, Jon Mohle, and Yahya C. Kurama
https://doi.org/10.15554/pcij71.3-02

Abstract

This paper presents design, detailing, and analysis recommendations for nonproprietary short-grouted ductile energy-dissipation bar connections in special seismic precast concrete shear walls. The performance of the connections was experimentally validated based on previous testing of six shear wall specimens in accordance with ACI 550.6-19. Vertical, transverse, and longitudinal tie reinforcing bars were designed for the connections to transfer the energy-dissipation-bar forces into the precast concrete components. A strut-and-tie model was developed and validated to design the tie reinforcement and connection length of the energy-dissipation bars to meet the specified performance objectives. Simplified equations are pre-sented in this paper for practicing engineers to design precast concrete components that use these connections without going into the details of the strut-and-tie model. Conventional closed-form section analysis procedures to predict the nominal and probable axial-flexural strengths of walls using short-grouted energy-dissipation bar connections are presented and validated against the measured behaviors of the tested specimens. In addition, results from nonlinear fiber-element analyses are compared with the experimental data to demonstrate that precast concrete walls with short-grouted connections can be simulated numerically using techniques commonly adopted for reinforced concrete shear walls. The connection design procedure is demonstrated on numerical examples of realistic wall cross sections covering a wide range of properties in an accompanying article.