STRUCTURAL-ANALYSIS MODEL FOR STATIC LOADS ON TIMBER SHEAR WALLS

A numerical modeling procedure for the nonlinear analysis of timber shear walls is presented. The model includes the nonlinear behavior of the connectors between the sheathing and framing, bearing effects between adjacent sheathing panels, and the effects of out-of-plane bending of the sheathing elements. The ability of the numerical model to accurately predict the nonlinear behavior of timber shear walls is examined in detail. Comparisons with an experimental investigation, consisting of seven static shear wall tests, are made to show that both the stiffness and ultimate load capacity of the shear walls are modeled accurately. Corrections, based on recent test results, have been made to the test data used to verify the numerical accuracy of the model.