Investigation of seismic response of rocking column with a novel mechanical connection device

<p>The rocking column is a kind of excellent seismic-resistant and resilient structure. However, during the rocking process, local pressure on the rocking interface may result in spalling and crushing of concrete at the toe. In order to reduce the local damage of the rocking interface, as well as accelerate the connection between prefabricated column and footing, a kind of mechanical connection device (MCD) was proposed in this research. The MCD is used at the bottom of column and ofters rapid connection of the column to the footing. The recentering force of MCD column is provided by PT strands and axial force of superstructure, and the energy dissipation is provided by U-shaped dissipaters. A simplified analytical method based on interface section analysis is proposed to study the hysteretic behavior of column with MCD. The results suggest that the MCD column has stable hysteretic behavior and can achieve small residual drift after earthquakes by appropriate design.</p>