Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Shear
wall
F
IGURE
1.9
Shear wall construction
Steel framework
F
IGURE
1.10
Sectional
plan of core wall and
steel structure
Three cell concrete core wall
where the frame is stiffened in a direction parallel to its shortest horizontal dimension
by a shear wall which would normally be of reinforced concrete.
Alternatively a lift shaft or service duct is used as the main horizontal load carrying
member; this is known as a core wall. An example of core wall construction in a tower
block is shown in cross section in Fig. 1.10. The three cell concrete core supports a
suspended steel framework and houses a number of ancillary services in the outer cells
while the central cell contains stairs, lifts and a central landing or hall. In this particular
case the core wall not only resists horizontal wind loads but also vertical loads due to
its self-weight and the suspended steel framework.
A shear or core wall may be analysed as a very large, vertical, cantilever beam (see
Fig. 1.15). A problem can arise, however, if there are openings in the walls, say, of a
core wall which there would be, of course, if the core was a lift shaft. In such a situation
a computer-based method of analysis would probably be used.
