Pin-Fuse Joint Final

MEGHNAD SAHA INSTITUTE OF
TECHNOLOGY
PIN-FUSE JOINT
NAME : SHREYA BAGCHI
STREAM : CIVIL ENGINEERING (B)
CLASS ROLL NO. : 15
UNIVERSITY ROLL NO. : 14201314075
YEAR : 3RD SEMESTER: 6TH

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to take this opportunity to thank
 Mr. Sanjoy Das Neogi, Professor from Department of Civil Engineering
 Mr. Jayanta Maity, Head of the Department
 My parents
ABSTRACT
Construction of structures in earthquake-prone areas involves consideration of both

normal as well as seismic loading conditions on the structures while designing.
Normally, in such structures, the beams are directly connected to the columns with
the help of bolted and welded connections. But these connections are inelastic in
nature and lack ductility which lead to widespread damage of the structures during
earthquakes. This joint ductility can be increased by using pin-fuse joints to
connect the beams and columns together. Pin-fuse joints help to reduce the effect
of seismic forces on the joints and therefore decrease damage to the entire structure
due to seismic activity.
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 1
REQUIREMENT OF PIN-FUSE JOINT 1
MECHANISM OF PIN-FUSE JOINT 2
DESIGN CONSIDERATION OF PIN-FUSE JOINT 4
ADVANTAGES OF PIN-FUSE JOINT 4
DISADVANTAGES OF PIN-FUSE JOINT 5
CONCLUSION 5
INTRODUCTION
Pin-fuse joints, designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, are a type of joint used in
beam-to-column joint assemblies subjected to extreme seismic loading. This type
of joint resists shear forces and bending moments generated by seismic loads.
Pin-fuse joints are generally made up of standard structural steel building
materials. However, they can also be made out of materials such as reinforced
concrete or composite materials (a combination of structural steel and reinforced
concrete) etc.
The pin-fuse joint is designed to be incorporated into the frame of a building or

other structure subject to seismic activity and to improve a structure's dynamic
characteristics by allowing the joint to slip under extreme loads. This slippage
changes the structures dynamic characteristics by lengthening the structures
fundamental period and essentially softening the structure, allowing the structure
to exhibit elastic properties during seismic events.
REQUIREMENT OF PIN-FUSE JOINT

During designing of structures in areas subject to extreme seismic conditions, the
frames of the structures must be designed taking into consideration not just the
normal loading conditions, but also the seismic loading conditions. Frame joints
are typically subject to cyclic motions during seismic events. To withstand such
loading conditions, structures subject to seismic activity must behave with
ductility to allow for the dissipation of energy under these extreme loads.
In the past, most frame joints subject to seismic loads have been designed with
the beam flanges connected directly to the column flanges via full penetration
welds and with the beam webs either bolted or welded to the columns. While this
sort of beam-column joint was successful in preventing the collapse of buildings
under seismic loads, they still suffered local connection failures due to insufficient
joint ductility.
Unlike in the case of directly connected beam-column joints, pin-fuse joints when
used in structures provide sufficient joint ductility to reduce the effect of the
seismic forces on the joints and also prevent structural damages. So they are an
important component in earthquake-resistant structures.
MECHANISM OF PIN-FUSE JOINT

A pin-fuse joint is generally employed near the end of a beam, where the beam
attaches to a column. Rather than forming a direct connection to the column, a
plate assembly is welded to the column which in turn is attached to the beam.
The attachment of the plate assembly to the beam creates the pin-fuse joint.
The plate assembly and the end of the beam are held together by a pin assembly
extending through the web of the beam and through connection plates that
extend outward from the plate assembly. The end of the plate assembly has a
curved flange end connector which abuts against an opposing curved flange end
connector located at the end of the beam. The curved flange end connectors of
the plate assembly and the beam are secured together by high-strength steel
bolts which allow the curved flange end connector of the beam to slip relative to
the curved flange end connector of the plate assembly when subjected to
extreme seismic loads without a significant loss in clamping force. The movement
in the joint is further restricted by treating the faying surfaces of the curved flange
end connectors of the plate assembly and the beam with brass. The brass shims
used within the connection possess a well-defined load-displacement behavior
and excellent cyclic attributes.
The friction developed from the clamping force of the bolted flange end
connection and the brass shims against the steel surface of the curved flange end
connectors prevents the joint from slipping under most service loading
conditions, such as those imposed by wind, gravity, and moderate seismic events.
High-strength bolts are torqued to provide a slip resistant connection by
developing friction between the connected surfaces. However, under extreme
seismic loading conditions, the level of force applied to the curved flange ends
exceeds the product of the coefficient of friction times the normal bolt clamping
force, which causes the joint to rotate while maintaining connectivity.
The rotation of the joint during seismic events causes the transfer of shear forces
and bending moment from the structural steel beams to the structural steel
columns. This rotation dissipates energy, known as fusing. This energy dissipation
reduces potential damage to the structure due to seismic activity.
DESIGN CONSIDERATION OF PIN-FUSE JOINT
Design consideration of pin-fuse joints involve taking into account the effective
and efficient functioning of the joint. The structures are subjected to tension,
compression, shear, torsion, bending etc. These loads are required to be
calculated considering their behavior under service conditions. Locations of
critical loads must also be determined so that the designed structure can handle
the loads without failure. The type of materials used in the structure should also
be determined based on the strength and ductility requirements.
ADVANTAGES OF PIN-FUSE JOINT

Utilizing the pin-fuse joint eliminates the necessity to use frame members as large
as typically used for a similar sized structures to withstand an extreme seismic
event, thereby reducing overall building costs.
Pin-fuse joints have higher joint-ductility as compared to typical beam-column

joints which allows them to provide better support to the structure during an
earthquake by reducing the effect of seismic forces on the moment-resisting
frame and transferring the shear forces and bending moments from the beams to
the columns without causing any significant damage to the structure.
Although the pin-fuse joints tend to slip under extreme seismic loads to dissipate
the energy, they remain elastic due to their construction. Also, none of the
components of the joint becomes plastic or yields when subjected to the loading
and the slip. This allows a moment-resisting frame utilizing the joint to remain
serviceable even after enduring a seismic event and resist further seismic activity.
DISADVANTAGES OF PIN-FUSE JOINT
While pin-fuse joints have been successful in increasing the ductility of the
structure, these modified joints still show inelasticity to withstand extreme
seismic loading. This inelasticity leads to joint failure and in many cases causes the
joint to sustain significant damage. Although the amount of dissipated energy is
increased by increasing the ductility, the currently designed joints still tend to
become plastic or yield when subjected to extreme seismic loading.
Although current joint designs may be able to withstand a seismic event, the
damage caused by the joints' inability to function elastically makes it unclear
whether currently designed structures can remain in service after enduring
seismic events. A need therefore exists for a moment resisting frame that can
withstand a seismic event without experiencing significant joint failure so that the
integrity of the structure remains relatively undisturbed even after being
subjected to extreme seismic activity.
CONCLUSION
Although pin-fuse joints significantly reduce the amount of damage sustained by a
structure subjected to seismic activity, they cannot completely prevent the
destructive effects of a severe earthquake. This is because these joints, although
comparatively ductile, cannot resist very strong seismic forces. So structures
consisting of these joints do not collapse easily and can regain their serviceability
after repairing and maintenance.
REFERENCE
www.google.com/patents/US20040010992
www.architectmagazine.com/awards/r-d-awards/pin-fuse-joint_o
archello.com/en/project/pin-fuse-joint

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MEGHNAD SAHA INSTITUTE OF

NAME : SHREYA BAGCHI

STREAM : CIVIL ENGINEERING (B)

CLASS ROLL NO. : 15

UNIVERSITY ROLL NO. : 14201314075

YEAR : 3RD SEMESTER: 6TH

I would like to take this opportunity to thank

 Mr. Sanjoy Das Neogi, Professor from Department of Civil Engineering

 Mr. Jayanta Maity, Head of the Department

Construction of structures in earthquake-prone areas involves consideration of both

REQUIREMENT OF PIN-FUSE JOINT 1

MECHANISM OF PIN-FUSE JOINT 2

DESIGN CONSIDERATION OF PIN-FUSE JOINT 4

ADVANTAGES OF PIN-FUSE JOINT 4

DISADVANTAGES OF PIN-FUSE JOINT 5

The pin-fuse joint is designed to be incorporated into the frame of a building or

REQUIREMENT OF PIN-FUSE JOINT

MECHANISM OF PIN-FUSE JOINT

ADVANTAGES OF PIN-FUSE JOINT

Pin-fuse joints have higher joint-ductility as compared to typical beam-column

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