STATIC ANALYSIS OF SHEAR WALLS USING FINITE ELEMENT METHOD

Shear wall is an important member resisting the lateral forces such as wind and
earthquakes forces in the high rise buildings. Different structural models were used
for the analysis of shear walls in building. The simplest model for the shear wall is a
frame structure using beam/column element. FEM is widely used for analyzing
complicated structural systems. The selected structural model must be simple,
produce accurate result and be economical. The presence of the opening in shear wall
structure further complicated the analysis of this structure and required a special
attention. This study covers static structural analysis of solid shear wall as well as
shear walls with different opening arrangements. The shear walls were modeled using
beam/column and different F.E meshes. The study focuses on the accuracy and
effectiveness of different structural models for analyzing shear wall structure. The
structural behavior in terms of deformation and stresses distribution are presented and
discussed.