Numerical modelling and validation of lateral behavior of masonry-infilled RC frame focusing sliding failure of infill panel

Masonry infilled RC frames are commonly employed in developing countries due to the availability of materials and cheaper clay bricks. The influence of masonry infill on structural performance has been recognized in recent earthquakes. Masonry infilled RC frame poses different strength, ductility, and failure mechanism depending on the frame to the infill relative strength. Most numerical models suggested in prior studies have taken diagonal compression failure into account. However, masonry-infilled RC frames may collapse owing to shear sliding failure, which is prevalent in developing countries due to low-strength mortar utilization. Therefore, masonry-infilled RC frames need to model for shear sliding failure when the expected failure mechanism is sliding. Based on the past experimental results, this study proposed and numerically simulated the lateral behavior of masonry-infilled RC frames with an emphasis on sliding shear failure of infill masonry. The numerical modelling exhibits adequate conformity with the experimental results. Again, the proposed numerical modelling depicts the identical initial stiffness and conservative prediction of lateral strength and ductility for the masonry-infilled RC frame. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.