Tenso-deformative behaviour of lightly reinforced precast concrete - polystyrene sandwich panels

In order to comprehend the actual seismic behaviour of structures realized with new constructive technologies, a wide experimental campaign has been carried out on lightly reinforced precast concrete - polystyrene sandwich panels, composed of a sheet of structural expanded polystyrene 160 mm thick inserted between two grids of galvanized and electro welded steel wire, completed by spraying concrete to form a composite structure. Experimental tests have been carried out on 16 panels set in vertical position, in-plane loaded by constant vertical loads and at the same time put through cyclic horizontal concentred load. Results allowed the following parameters to be determined: first cracking horizontal load, load-displacement hysteretic curve, collapse lateral displacement, resisting shear at the bottom, resisting moment considering P-Δ effect, equivalent viscous damping coefficients.