Shear resistance of masonry panel in infilled RC frames

The shear capacity of masonry-infilled reinforced concrete (RC) frames is determined experimentally by testing of five 2/3 scale, one story, one bay infilled RC frame specimens with varying degrees of separation between upper and lower portions of the masonry infill panel. The main premise of this experimental study was to find the contribution of masonry panel in global resistance of infilled RC frames versus shear force. Based on the experimental results, a new method is proposed for the determination of the shear resistance and the contribution of the masonry infill panel is derived. Comparisons of experimental and analytical results show that the proposed method for evaluating the shear resistance of the masonry panels offers a promising approach for the design of infilled RC frames. Furthermore, the results of this study indicate that the shear resistance of masonry panel in infilled RC frames is strongly influenced by the stiffness and lateral resistance of the RC frame.