Ultra-Low Cycle Fatigue Fracture Life of a Type of Buckling Restrained Brace

Buckling restrained braced frames (BRBFs) are considered as popular seismic-resistant structural systems. A BRB sustains large plastic deformations without brace buckling. The core of a buckling restrained brace is prone to fatigue fracture under cyclic loading. The earthquake induced fracture type of the core plate in a buckling restrained brace can be categorized as ultra-low cycle fatigue fracture. This paper investigates the ultra-low cycle fatigue fracture life of a type of composite buckling restrained brace previously tested. The newly developed cyclic void growth model was adopted to theoretically predict the fracture and crack initiation in the core. In addition, the Coffin-Manson fatigue damage model was applied to estimate the fracture life of the brace. A FEM model of the BRB developed in ABAQUS was used to evaluate the fatigue life. The analysis results showed that the cyclic void growth model is capable to nearly predict the fracture life of the core in buckling restrained brace.