In-plane stiffness of timber floors strengthened with CLT

2015-05-01

Branco, Jorge M.; Kekeliak, Milos; Lourenço, Paulo B.

Timber structures; CLT; Strengthening; In-plane stiffness

Five full-scale timber floors were tested inorder to analyse the in-plane behaviour of these structuralsystems. The main objective was an assessment of the effectivenessof in-plane strengthening using cross-laminatedtimber (CLT). To this end, one unstrengthened specimen(original), one specimen strengthened with a second layerof floorboards, two specimens strengthened with three CLTpanels, and one specimen strengthened with two CLTpanels, were tested. A numerical analysis was then performedin order to analyse the composite behaviour of thetimber floors in more detail. Due to its importance as regardscomposite behaviour, the first phase of the experimentalprogramme was composed of push-out tests onspecimens representing the shear connection between thetimber beams and the CLT panels. This paper describes thetests performed and the numerical modelling applied toevaluate the composite behaviour of the strengthenedtimber floors. The use of CLT panels is revealed to be aneffective way to increase the in-plane stiffness of timberfloors, through which the behaviour of the compositestructure can be significantly changed, depending on theconnection applied, or modified as required.