Seismic analysis design of frames with viscoelastic connections

A new viscoelastic-type connection isolator (damper), made of elastomeric material, is presented in this paper. Based on experimental results, a Kelvin-Voigt-type model was developed to simulate the behavior of the connection. By comparing the stress-strain curves of the model with those obtained from the tests, it was found that the durometer of the elastomeric is the predominant material parameter. An analytical method for the analysis of unbraced- and braced-frame structures equipped with those viscoelastic-type connections is presented. The effectiveness of these isolation connections (dampers) is studied numerically by comparing the responses to various dynamic excitations of structures equipped with these dampers with the responses of structures without isolation. The results of these comparisons show that the isolation connections provide significant improvement by reducing the lateral displacement of the structures.