THE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG

M.SC.(ENG.) EXAMINATION

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

TALL BUILDING STRUCTURES (CI\TL6045)

Date: December 18, 2003 Time (2 hrs): 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.

Open book examination.

Answer any THREE questions.

All questions carry equal marks.

Use of Electronic Calculators:

Candidates may use any calculator which fulfils the following criteria:
(a) it should be self-contained, silent, battery-operated and pocket-sized~ and
(b) it should have nutneral-display facilities only and should be used only for the purpose
of calculation.
It is the candidate's responsibility to ensure that the calculator operates satisfactorily and
the candidate must record the name and type of the calculator on the front page of the
examination scripts. Lists of permitted/prohibited calculators will not be made available
to candidates for reference, and the onus will be on the candidate to ensure that the
calculator used will not be in violation of the criteria listed above.

l. (a) Outline briefly how the continuous connection method can be used to analyse a
two-dimensional coupled shear wall structure. Discuss the advantages and
disadvantages of this method. Based on the analytical solution of the
continuous connection method, derive a structural parameter that may be
interpreted as a measure of the degree of coupling of a coupled shear wall
structure. (16 marks)

(b) Two shear walls, both having an overall height of 72.0 m and a thickness of 0. 5
m, are coupled by spandrel beams of 0.5 m breadth x 0.9 m depth at 4.0 m
intervals, as shown in Figure Q1. The coupled shear wall structure is subjected
to a unifonnly distributed load of 80 kN/m in the in-plane direction of the walls.
Both shear walls may be assumed to be rigidly fixed at their bases. Using the
continuous connection method,
(i) evaluate the bending moment in each wall at the base~ and (9 marks)
(ii) determine the tnaximum shear force in the coupling beams. (9 marks)

2. (a) When the frame method is applied to analyse coupled shear wall structures, it is
a common practice to allow for the finite widths of the shear walls by adding
horizontal rigid arms to the beam eletnents that model the coupling beams. In
effect, the beam-wall joint rotations are implicitly defined as the rotations of the
horizontal rigid arms. Discuss whether such a practice is appropriate in the

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 cases of two-dimensional and three-dimensional structures, respectively. If this
practice is not appropriate, what changes should be made in order to resolve
the problem? (17 marks)

(b) Explain the difficulties with the finite element analysis of coupled shear/core
wall structures. Outline the required qualities of a good finite element for
modelling shear/core walls. When the finite element method is applied to
analyse coupled shear/core wall structures, how should the local deformations
at the beam-wall joints be allowed for? (17 marks)

3. (a) Wall-frame structures, framed tube structures and outriggers have their
respective merits and limitations. Discuss their merits/demerits in respect of the
followings:
(i) framing layout;
(ii) building height and width;
(iii) construction materials and their quality control~
(iv) buildability and speed of construction. (16 marks)

(b) A 40-storey framed tube structure with an overall height of 160 n1 is shown in
Figure Q3. All the beams and columns are of size 0.8 m x 0.8 m. The height
of each storey is 4.0 m and the centre-to-centre spacing of the columns is 4.0
m. The Young's and shear modulus of the materials are 20 kN/mrn2 and 8
kN/mrn2 , respectively. A uniformly distributed wind load of 3.0 kPa is applied
to the building as shown in the figure. Using the membrane analogy and
assuming that the framed tube is fixed at the base,
(i) evaluate the degrees of shear lag (i.e., a and ~) in the web and flange
panels at the base of the framed tube structure; (12 marks)
(ii) determine the maximum axial stress at the base of the structure. ( 6 marks)

4. (a) Explain why a wall-frame structure is more effective in resisting wind load than
the wall structure alone. Illustrate the effects of wall-frame interaction with
typical graphs of deflection, bending moment and shear, and discuss the
significance of such effects when applied to practical design of a wall-frame
structure. ( 18 marks)

(b) The floor plan of a 25-storey composite shear wall-frame building is shown in
Figure Q4. The storey height is 3 m and the total height of the building is 80
m. A uniformly distributed load of 150 kN/m is applied to the building in the y-
direction. Taking the modulus of elasticity of the materials to be 20 kN/mrn2,
(i) find the maximum deflection of the building;
(ii) evaluate the proportion of the bending moment taken by the fi·ame part of
the building at the base. (16 marks)

-END OF PAPER-

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Figure Ql

3
 Load 2 /
3.0 kN/m

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Figure Q3

4
 0.6m 0.6m

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Note: All columns are of size 0.7 m x 0.7 m~ and

all beams are of size 0.5 m x 0.5 m.

Figure Q4