Full-scale testing of space steel frame subjected to proportional loads

Although a number of large-scale frame tests have been conducted in the past 30 years, the majority of those are of only two-dimensional frames. Two-dimensional frames are not a realistic representative model of the behavior of real structures. The aim of this paper is to conduct three-dimensional full-scale frame testing. Three two-story, single-bay, and sway allowed frames subjected to proportional vertical and horizontal loads were tested. The details of the test frames, test instruments, set-up procedures, and test procedures are presented. The load–displacement curves of the test frames are provided. The experiment results are useful data for verification of the three-dimensional analytical models. It was observed that the load carrying capacities calculated by the AISC–LRFD method was 25%, conservative when compared with those of the experiment. This difference is attributed to the fact that the AISC–LRFD approach does not consider the inelastic moment redistribution but the experiment includes the inelastic redistribution effect.