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Abstract

Eccentrically braced frames are used to resist earthquakes as they have the capacity to maintain sufficient stiffness during moderate earthquakes and to absorb and dissipate a large amount of the energy released due to severe earthquakes. The usual steel framing systems; the moment frames require larger member sections to satisfy stiffness requirements and have large ductility capacity, the concentrically braced frames satisfy stiffness on the expense of ductility requirements, resulting in poor energy dissipation. This study deals with the eccentrically Braced Steel Frames (EBF). EBF configuration is similar to traditional braced frames with the exception that at least one end of each brace must be eccentrically connected to the frame. The energy dissipation is achieved through the yielding of a beam segment called the link, while the other frame members, including outer beam segments, braces and columns, should remain essentially elastic. The study incorporates conducting nonlinear finite element analysis to study the effect of the link length and link section on the behavior of D types EBF systems. The study involves material and geometric nonlinearities.