PSI - Issue 78

Yangwen Zhang et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 78 (2026) 1008–1015

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Fig. 8. Maximum Fed reduction due to fatigue.

Fig. 9. Dissipated energy at each cycle.

5. Conclusion

This study provides a comprehensive low-cycle fatigue (LCF) analysis of the Maurer SHARK ® hysteretic damper. The strain-based fatigue analysis using FEM successfully predicted crack initiation at the 85th cycle under 100% design displacement ( d bd ), with only a 5.6% deviation from the experimental result of 90 cycles. This close agreement validates the reliability of the simulation method and indicates a conservative fatigue prediction. Notably, experimental data show that after 70 cycles of 100% d bd cyclic loading, the damper’s performance re mains very stable, retaining over 95% of its capacity. After more than 90 cycles, low-cycle fatigue-induced cracks gradually become visible to the naked eye, and a slightly faster decline in maximum reaction force and energy dissi pation capacity is observed. However, the damper still maintains over 70% of its functionality up to the 100th cycle, providing the continued protection to the primary structure during earthquake. According to the Chinese specification (JGJ (2013)), metallic hysteretic dampers are required to withstand more than 30 hysteretic cycles at their design displacement. The tested SHARK ® hysteretic damper demonstrated outstanding performance by withstanding more than three times this requirement, highlighting its excellent low-cycle fatigue resistance and superior durability under repeated seismic loading. Based on the findings of this study, the SHARK ® Hysteretic Damper proves to be a highly durable, reliable, and cost-e ff ective solution for seismic energy dissipation. It can endure numerous full-amplitude loading cycles without significant performance degradation. These results confirm its e ff ectiveness in preserving structural integrity during major earthquakes and potential aftershocks, making it a resilient and dependable solution for protecting critical buildings and infrastructure against seismic events.