PSI - Issue 78

Roberto Nascimbene et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 78 (2026) 193–198

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As expected (Figure 5), a separation between the beam and the grout layer was observed at approximately 0.8% drift, indicating that the connection behaves more appropriately as a semi-rigid joint rather than a fully fixed one. Concurrently, following the onset of damage in the grout layer, the beam experienced relative displacement significant enough to induce notable sliding of the threaded bars crossing the beam-to-grout interface. These bars underwent a maximum horizontal displacement of approximately 20 mm over a vertical extension of about 200 mm, ranging from the column–grout interface to roughly 100 mm inside the beam end. As a result of this relative movement and the opening of the crack at the interface, the bars exhibited local bending, particularly within the grout layer zone. The deformation was concentrated in the region of partial embedment, where the opening width increased with the drift demand. Despite this progressive damage, no significant loss of load-bearing capacity was observed up to a drift level of 4%, at which point one of the bars failed due to combined tension and bending. References Belleri, A., Brunesi, E., Nascimbene, R., Pagani, M., 2015. Seismic performance of precast industrial facilities following major earthquakes in the Italian territory, J. Perform. Constr. Facil. 29 (5), Article Number 04014135, https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CF.1943-5509.0000617. Bellotti, D., Cavalieri, F., Nascimbene, R., 2025. Classification of Italian precast concrete structures. Journal of Building Engineering 108, Article Number 112787, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2025.112787. Bosio, M., Di Salvatore, C., Bellotti, D., Capacci, L., Belleri, A., Piccolo, V., Cavalieri, F., Dal Lago, B., Riva, P., Magliulo, G., Nascimbene, R., Biondini, F., 2023. Modelling and seismic response analysis of non-residential single-storey existing precast buildings in Italy, J. Earthq. Eng. 27 (4), 1047–1068, https://doi.org/10.1080/ 13632469.2022.2033364. Bournas, DA., Negro, P., Taucer, FF., 2014. Performance of industrial buildings during the Emilia earthquakes in Northern Italy and recommendations for their strengthening, Bull. Earthq. Eng. 12, 2383–2404, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10518-013-9466-z. Cavalieri, F., Bellotti, D., Caruso, M., Nascimbene, R., 2023a. Comparative evaluation of seismic performance and environmental impact of traditional and dissipation-based retrofitting solutions for precast structures. Journal of Building Engineering, 79, Article Number 107918, DOI: 10.1016/j.jobe.2023.107918 Cavalieri, F., Bellotti, D., Nascimbene, R., 2023b. Seismic vulnerability of existing precast buildings with frictional beam-to-column connections, including treatment of epistemic uncertainty. Bulletin of Earthquake Engineering, 21 (2), pp. 1117 - 1138, DOI: 10.1007/s10518-022-01574-x Deyanova, M., Bellotti, D., Nascimbene, R., Pampanin, S., 2023. Performance-based assessment of slender reinforced concrete columns typical of precast industrial buildings, Bull. Earthq. Eng. 21, 433–471, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10518-022-01542-5. Fischinger, M., Zoubek, B., Isakovic, T., 2014. Seismic response of precast industrial buildings, in: A. Ansal (Ed.), Perspectives on European Earthquake Engineering and Seismology. Geotechnical, Geological and Earthquake Engineering, vol. 34, Springer, Cham, Switzerland, 2014, pp. 131–177, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3- 319-07118-3_4. Magliulo, G., Ercolino, M., Petrone, C., Coppola, O., Manfredi, G., 2014. The Emilia earthquake: seismic performance of precast reinforced concrete buildings, Earthq. Spectra 30 (2), 891–912, https://doi.org/10.1193/091012EQS285M. Nascimbene, R., 2013. An arbitrary cross section, locking free shear-flexible curved beam finite element. International Journal for Computational Methods in Engineering Science and Mechanics, 14 (2), pp. 90 - 103, DOI: 10.1080/15502287.2012.698706 Nascimbene, R., 2024. Investigation of seismic damage to existing buildings by using remotely observed images, Eng. Fail. Anal. 161, Article Number 108282, https://doi.org/ 10.1016/j.engfailanal.2024.108282. Nascimbene, R., Bianco, L., 2021. Cyclic response of column to foundation connections of reinforced concrete precast structures: Numerical and experimental comparisons. Engineering Structures, 247, Article Number 113214, DOI: 10.1016/j.engstruct.2021.113214 Nascimbene, R., Brunesi, E., Sisti, A., 2024. Expeditious numerical capacity assessment in precast structures via inelastic performance-based spectra, Heliyon, Article Open Access, DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e39729 Savoia, M., Buratti, N., Vincenzi, L., 2017. Damage and collapses in industrial precast buildings after the 2012 Emilia earthquake, Eng. Struct. 137, 162–180, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.engstruct.2017.01.059.