Abstract
A capstone 10-story cold-formed steel (CFS) building is under construction at the large-high performance outdoor shake table at UC San Diego (NHERI@UC San Diego). Coined CFS10, this unique building specimen is designed beyond current code-limits with advances in steel sheathed shear walls and heavy chord stud details proofed in complementary component test programs. This landmark test specimen embraces a variety of construction modalities including 2D panelized and 3D volumetric construction methods. The program is a component of the CFS-NHERI project funded by the National Science Foundation to develop methods to advance CFS use in taller building construction in seismic zones. Testing at the NHERI@UC San Diego shake table will involve a suite of increasing intensity multi-directional earthquake scenarios followed by execution of live fire compartment tests. While the earthquake test phase will inform regarding the cumulation of damage to the building specimen during realistic seismic scenarios; the live fire following earthquake (FFE) tests will aid in understanding thermal, flame, and smoke spread and the ensuing fire performance of compartments. Each of these experimental phases will contribute to advancing numerical modeling and design tools in building design using CFS construction. At the time of writing, the specimen was nearing construction completion, with instrumentation and test protocol development and execution to follow. At the time of the conference the authors envision presenting initial observations and results from this unique multi-hazard test program.
Type
Publication
2025 SEAOC Convention, San Diego, CA.