Investigation of the performance of a novel ductile connection within bare-steel and composite frames in fire

In order to improve the performance of connections and enhance the robustness of structures in fire, a novel, axially ductile connection has been proposed. The component-based models of bare-steel ductile connection and composite ductile connection have been proposed, and incorporated into the software Vulcan to facilitate global frame analysis. These component-based models are validated against detailed Abaqus FE models. A series of 2-D bare-steel frame models and composite frame models with ductile connections, rigid connections, and pinned connections, have been created using Vulcan to compare the fire performance of ductile connection with other connection types in bare-steel and composite structures.