Analytical study on seismic force modification factors for cross-laminated timber buildings

With two producers in operation and over 20 buildings already constructed or in planning process, use of cross-laminated timber (CLT) is gaining popularity in Canada. Since CLT as a structural system is currently not included in the National Building Code of Canada (NBCC), one of the most important issues are the values for the force modification factors for seismic design of CLT structures when NBCC equivalent static force procedure is used. In this study, a test-calibrated numerical model for CLT shear walls was applied to develop the design resistances for typical CLT wall configurations. An estimation of a possible range of R-d-factors was obtained by developing design variations for three multi-storey CLT apartment buildings. By specifying the desired seismic performance in terms of inter-storey drift, it is concluded that an Rd-factor of 2.0 will likely provide desirable building performance during the design earthquake level event in Vancouver, B.C.