Experimental Study on the Hysteretic Behavior of Replaceable Mild Steel Dissipaters Under Cyclic Tensile–Compression Loading

The energy-dissipation mechanism of an external replaceable mild steel energy dissipater suitable for self-centering hybrid connections under repeated tensile and compressive loads was investigated. The effects of the slenderness ratio and energy consumption section diameter on the bearing ability, energy-dissipation capacity, displacement ductility and stiffness degradation of the dissipater were also evaluated. The research results showed that when the hysteretic curve of the energy-dissipation device is full, the slenderness ratio has a great influence on the overall performance of the energy-dissipation device. The ratio of the end diameter of the dissipater to the weakening section should not be less than 4/3. The energy-consuming devices have good-displacement ductility, up to 4.97. Simplified models of the dissipater-force mechanism were established. Two stress stages of the replaceable mild steel energy dissipater under cyclic tension–compression loading were defined. A parametric model of the hysteresis curve under cyclic tension–compression loading was established via theoretical calculations and experiments.