Failure Pattern of Prefabricated Foam Concrete as Infill Wall Under In-Plane Lateral Loading
Abstract
Many areas in Indonesia are located directly above earthquake faults, making the areas have a relatively high earthquake vulnerability. The occurrence of many shallow earthquakes is associated with the faults. In Indonesia, masonry infill walls are used as exterior walls and interior partitions in a typical residential house. There are several types of residential houses in Indonesia, such as one-story, two-story houses in rural and urban residential areas, or mixed-use commercial buildings from two to four floors in urban commercial areas. This research is experimental laboratory research. With two test objects were produced. The first one was a bare RC frame, and the second one was an RC frame infilled with prefabricated foam concrete blocks. This study aimed to determine the rate and pattern of failure of the two specimens as a function of the level of lateral strength. The load given was a cyclic load that represents the earthquake load. The test was carried out using the displacement control method, which refers to the ASTM E2126-11 test standard. The test results showed prefabricated foam concrete blocks could be employed as a filling material of reinforced concrete frame structure instead of bust clay bricks and autoclaved lightweight concrete (ALC) blocks of reinforced concrete frame structure. The bare RC frame experiences flexural cracks that spread and enlarge until spalling occured. In the RC frame infilled with prefabricated foam concrete block, shear crack failure that spreads and enlarges until spalling occurs was observed in the RC frame, and the prefabricated foam concrete was damaged with failure patterns in the form of corner crushing, diagonal compression, sliding shear, and diagonal cracking. RC frame that use prefabricated foam concrete blocks as infill walls had a more excellent in-plane lateral loading capability than bare RC frame at the damage levels of Operational Limit State (OLS), Damage Limit State (DLS) and Life Safety Limit (ULS).
