SHEAR WALL

CONSTRUCTION

INTRODUCTION:
In structural engineering, a shear wall is a structural system composed of
braced panels (also known as shear panels) to counter the effects of lateral
load acting on a structure.
Wind and seismic loads are the most common loads that shear walls are
designed to carry. Under several building codes, including the International
Building Code (where it is called a braced wall line) and Uniform Building
Code, all exterior wall lines in wood or steel frame construction must be
braced.
Depending on the size of the building some interior walls must be braced
as well.
A structure of shear walls in the center of a large building often
encasing an elevator shaft or stairwell form a shear core.
A more traditional method is to use let-in diagonal wood bracing
throughout the wall line, and a newer alternative is let-in metal T bracing,
but these methods may not be adequate for buildings with many door and
window openings or seismic or high wind conditions.
Such walls can be either load bearing or non-load bearing.
Shear walls resist in-plane loads that are applied along its height.

They are built in wood, concrete, and CMU(masonry).

Plywood is the conventional material used in shear walls, but with advances in
technology and modern building methods, other prefabricated options have made it
possible to inject shear assemblies into narrow walls that fall at either side of an
opening.
Sheet steel and steel-backed shear panels in the place of structural plywood in
shear walls has proved to provide stronger seismic resistance.

on-planar Shear Walls

Due to functional requirements, the designer may choose non planar sections like
C,L as opposed to the
planar sections like rectangular/bar bell sections.
Non-planar sections require 3D analysis and are a research area.

Methods of Analysis
1. Finite element method
2. Stringer panel model

A shear wall is a wall that is designed to resist shear, the lateral force that causes
the bulk of damage in earthquakes.
Many building codes mandate the use of such walls to make homes safer and more
stable, and learning about them is an important part of an architectural
education.
Architects are obliged to think about these and other safety features when they
design a structure so that they can accommodate the walls to make the structure
sound while also aesthetically pleasing.
When a shear wall is built, it is constructed in the form of a line of heavily braced
and reinforced panels.
In some regions, they are known as braced wall lines for this very reason. The wall
ideally connects two exterior walls, and also braces other shear walls in the
structure. Bracing is accomplished with metal brackets and heavy timbers or
support beams that keep the wall strong and sturdy.
An effective wall of this type is both stiff and strong. Stiffness alone will not be
enough, as the stiffer something is, the more brittle is becomes; a cracker, for
example, is stiff, but no one would rely on it in an earthquake. Strength alone is also
not sufficient, because objects can be extremely strong, but still very giving.
A stiff, strong wall, on the other hand, resists lateral forces while providing support.

Architectural Aspects of Shear Walls

Most RC buildings with shear walls also have columns; these columns primarily
carry gravity loads(i.e., those due to self-weight and contents of building).
Shear walls provide large strength and stiffness to buildings in the direction of their
orientation, which significantly reduces lateral sway of the building and thereby
reduces damage to structure and its contents.
Since shear walls carry large horizontal earthquake forces, the overturning effects
on them are large.
Shear walls should be provided along preferably both length and width.
However, if they are provided along only one direction, a proper grid of beams and
columns in the vertical plane (called a moment-resistant frame) must be provided
along the other direction to resist strong earthquake effects.
Door or window openings can be provided in shear walls, but their size must be
small to ensure least interruption to force flow through walls.
Moreover, openings should be symmetrically located.
Special design checks are required to ensure that the net cross-sectional area of a
wall at an opening is sufficient to carry the horizontal earthquake force.
Shear walls in buildings must be symmetrically located in plan to reduce ill-effects
of twist in buildings
They could be placed symmetrically along one or both directions in plan. Shear
walls are more effective when located along exterior perimeter of the building
such a layout increases resistance of the building to twisting.