Seismic Characteristics of Cold-Formed and Hot-Rolled Steel Hybrid Modular Wall Panels with Opening

Cold-formed Steel (CFS) frame wall panel systems find their applications widely as they cater to modular, light-weight, and rapid construction solutions. Innovative CFS-based hybrid wall panels have started emerging with better seismic characteristics than the conventional standalone CFS systems, allowing them to be used as promising Lateral Force Resisting Systems (LFRS) in the mid-rise construction domain. In this study, two Modular Wall Panel (MWP) systems with the hot-rolled steel Square Hollow Section (SHS) frame members added with the core CFS studs and tracks with fibre-board sheathing, are experimentally tested under cyclic lateral loading to evaluate their seismic performance. The failure modes of the tested MWP specimens and their hysteresis behavior, energy dissipation, strength, and stiffness degradation are observed and analyzed. Experimental results show that the inclusion of SHS members in the specimen enhance the seismic performance of the wall panels resulting in higher shear capacity and stable hysteresis behaviour. It is also evident from the results that the connections between SHS members in the MWP specimens directly impact the seismic characteristics of the system as they have the vital importance of the shear distribution to the base without affecting the CFS studs and tracks. The effect of opening within the wall panel and its influence on the overall seismic behaviour of the system is also analysed.