Analytical Prediction and Finite-Element Simulation

of the Lateral Response of Rocking Steel Bridge Piers

with Energy-Dissipating Steel Bars
Ahmad Rahmzadeh 1; M. Shahria Alam, M.ASCE 2; and Robert Tremblay 3
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.

Abstract: This paper presents the extension of controlled rocking technology to steel bridge piers through analytical expression and finite-
element (FE) simulation. As an outcome of the rocking behavior, the seismic damage is prevented due to reduced flexural stresses in the
columns. However, local buckling can happen if the column wall thickness is too thin, which has detrimental impacts, including the loss of
self-centering ability and reduced lateral load/deformation capacity. A simple analytical method is proposed to predict the monotonic rocking
response for preliminary design purposes. When using more-detailed models and FE analysis, it is shown that localized inelastic deformations
of the column can occur upon rocking and the simple force distribution at the column base can cause an overestimation of lateral load
capacity. The use of a base plate can lead to a higher lateral load capacity and less damage to the column by improving the stress distribution
at the base of the column. To account for the base plate, previously proposed modified monolithic beam analogy (MBA) was expanded in this
study, referenced as extended MBA (EMBA) to predict the rocking column lateral load-displacement response. An optimized design can be
achieved with a lighter cross section in the upper part of the column where longitudinal straining is limited. Different axially yielding elements
comprised of tension-only, tension-compression, and buckling-restrained energy dissipators (EDs) are investigated. For EDs with comparable
force capacities, the study indicates that energy dissipation is increased from the former to the latter dissipator type, while the lateral load
capacity of the system remains almost the same. The proposed pier exhibits recentering capability, high ductility, and stable hysteretic re-
sponse with the majority of damage confined within external sacrificial elements. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)ST.1943-541X.0002216. © 2018
American Society of Civil Engineers.
Author keywords: Seismic; Steel bridge pier; Post-tensioned element; Rocking; Self-centering; Finite element (FE); Local buckling;
Energy dissipator.

Introduction obtained. Structures using this type of connection sway under

As performance-based earthquake engineering finds its way into
conventional design practice, financial considerations related to dif-
ferent levels of structural damage, which disturb the functionality
of a structure, have become of paramount importance (Bozorgnia
and Bertero 2004). As a response to this, extensive research has
been conducted in recent years to develop higher-performance
structural material (Alam et al. 2007) or systems with the capability
of minimizing damage (Ricles et al. 2002; Tremblay et al. 2008).
In rocking systems, unbonded post-tensioned tendons are used to
assemble the structural elements. Gap opening and closing, as a
result of the rocking mechanism at the connection interface, pro-
vides substantial deformation capacity under lateral loading. When
combined with supplemental energy-dissipating elements, a hybrid
system with a characteristic flag-shaped hysteresis behavior is
1
Ph.D. Student, School of Engineering, Univ. of British Columbia,
Kelowna, BC, Canada V1V 1V7. Email: a.rahmzadeh@ubc.ca
2
Associate Professor, School of Engineering, Univ. of British Columbia,
Kelowna, BC, Canada V1V 1V7 (corresponding author). Email: shahria
.alam@ubc.ca
3
Professor and Canada Research Chair in Earthquake Engineering,
Dept. of Civil, Geological, and Mining Engineering, Ecole Polytechnique
de Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada H3C 3A7. Email: robert
.tremblay@polymtl.ca
Note. This manuscript was submitted on January 4, 2018; approved on
June 5, 2018; published online on September 11, 2018. Discussion period
open until February 11, 2019; separate discussions must be submitted
for individual papers. This paper is part of the Journal of Structural
Engineering, © ASCE, ISSN 0733-9445.
lateral load and return to their original positions afterward.
Recent earthquakes have shown that conventional bridges de-
signed based on current seismic codes are still susceptible to dam-
age (Aydan 2008; Elnashai et al. 2010). An earthquake of moderate
intensity can result in extensive damage and the potential collapse
of bridges. Since any damage to the transportation system could
have significant impacts on society, the need for the design and
development of new bridge components and systems with damage
avoidance mechanisms has been increasingly highlighted over
recent years. Moreover, there has been a growing interest in accel-
erated bridge construction with the objectives of reducing vehicular
traffic congestion and weather-related postponements as conse-
quences of on-site construction (FHWA 2011). One strategy to
meet these objectives is to utilize rocking bridge piers, the compo-
nents of which can be built off of or near the construction site.
Prior Research
The rocking behavior was studied as early as 1963 by Housner
(1963) after some observation in the 1952 Arvin-Tehachapi and
1960 Chilean earthquakes wherein seemingly unstable structures,
which had been unintentionally designed to rock, survived, while
more stable structures were severely damaged. The application of
unbonded post-tensioned tendons in building and bridge compo-
nents has been investigated since the mid-1990s. Studies by Cheok
and Lew (1991) and Priestley and Tao (1993) showed that utilizing
unbonded tendons in precast concrete beam-column connections
leads to less damage and residual displacement than a reinforced

© ASCE 04018210-1 J. Struct. Eng.

J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210

 cast-in-situ connection. Since the rocking mechanism causes the
crushing of beams in the outer edges (Stone et al. 1995), the
use of steel elements has been suggested to reinforce the connection
interface (Li et al. 2008; Rodgers et al. 2012). Subsequently, the
post-tensioning concept was extended to steel moment-resisting
frames (Ricles et al. 2001). In order to improve the energy dissi-
pation property of such systems, various types of energy dissipators
(EDs), including bolted top and seat angles (Ricles et al. 2002),
buckling restrained steel bars (Christopoulos et al. 2002), beam
flange frictional energy-dissipating devices (Christopoulos et al.
2008; Wolski et al. 2009), and hourglass-shaped steel cylindrical
pins (Vasdravellis et al. 2013) have been used.
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.
A similar technique was adapted to concrete bridge piers
(Mander and Cheng 1997). To mitigate damage at the rocking inter-
face, researchers have proposed using steel (Hewes and Priestley
2002; Guerrini et al. 2015; Thonstad et al. 2017) or fiber-reinforced
plastic (ElGawady and Sha’lan 2011; White and Palermo 2016)
confinements, a steel armored interface (Palermo et al. 2007;
Solberg et al. 2009), and fiber-reinforced concrete at potential
plastic hinging locations (Billington and Yoon 2004; Trono
et al. 2015).
A large number of old and new steel bridge piers suffered dam-
age during the 1995 Kobe earthquake in Japan (Bruneau et al.
1996). Since then, numerous studies have been done to improve
the behavior of this type of pier. Following the extensive cyclic tests
carried out by the Public Work Research Institute of Japan
(Nishikawa et al. 1996) on steel bridge columns with different con-
figurations, the Japan Design Specification of Highway Bridges
(JRA 2000) was revised. MacRae and Kawashima (2001) tested
24 large-scale steel piers with stiffened hollow and concrete-
filled sections. Permanent residual displacements, global or local
buckling in hollow sections, and low deformation capacity in
concrete-filled sections due to the concentration of plasticity in
a short length were stated as defects of such piers (MacRae and
Kawashima 2001). Aoki and Susantha (2005) investigated the ef-
fect of cross-sectional aspect ratios on the behavior of rectangular
steel piers through an experimental work, in which failure was de-
scribed as progressive buckling at the base of all seven specimens
(Aoki and Susantha 2005). Failure due to local buckling has also
Fig. 1. (a) Schematic of test specimens; (b) final configuration of Specimen no. 8 at the end of the test; and (c) final configuration of Specimen no. 8 at
the end of the FE analysis. [Reprinted (a and b) from Nishikawa et al. 1996, with permission.]
© ASCE
J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210
been reported in linearly tapered (Susantha et al. 2006) and thick-
walled steel bridge piers (Ge et al. 2012).
This paper contributes further to the development of rocking
systems by proposing a new rocking steel bridge pier that consists
of a tubular steel column, a post-tensioned tendon, and supplemen-
tal energy-dissipative elements. The system is developed to be able
to undergo large lateral displacements and revert to its upright
position after being exposed to lateral loads without experiencing
significant damages, as opposed to its traditional counterpart. To
prove the concept, the FE method is employed for constructing
three-dimensional continuum models of the conventional and pro-
posed bridge piers. After a validation study, the FE models of
the rocking pier are developed and analyzed under lateral cyclic
loading with a focus on the recentering and damage-avoidance
behaviors. Stress concentrations, localized deformations, and local
buckling of the tube wall near the rocking interface are studied. The
influence of adding three different yielding energy-dissipating el-
ements at the rocking interface is examined. A description of the
mechanics of the proposed pier along with the analytical methods
to predict the monotonic behavior is also presented.
Validation Study
The objective of the validation study presented herein is to verify
the capacity of the numerical model to adequately predict the yield-
ing and local buckling response of circular tubular steel columns
with large diameter-to-thickness ratios.
Description of the Benchmark Experiment
In order to validate FE models, two tested specimens (no. 6 and
no. 8) from the study done by Nishikawa et al. (1996) were chosen.
The schematic presentation of the experimental setup used by
Nishikawa et al. (1996) is depicted in Fig. 1(a). The specimens
consisted of a hollow circular section with an outer diameter
of 900 mm and a wall thickness of 16.1 and 8.7 mm for Specimens
no. 6 and no. 8, respectively. The height of the column, from
the fixed base to the top of the cap plate, was 3,173 mm. In
04018210-2 J. Struct. Eng.
 Table 1. The Chaboche nonlinear model parameters
Parameter SM490 SS400
σy;c 344.3 290
C1 , C2 , C3 0.075Ec , 0.04Ec , 1,500 0.01875Ec , 0.00625Ec , 700
γ1 , γ2 , γ3 160, 80, 0 100, 40, 0
Note: Ec ¼ 206 GPa.
Specimen no. 8, three annular transverse stiffeners (diaphragms) were
placed at an equal distance of 900 mm starting from the base. The con-
stant vertical and quasistatic lateral loads were applied using an actua-
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.
tor positioned at a height of 3,403 mm from the base. SM490 steel
with a yield strength of 344.3 MPa and SS400 steel with a yield
strength of 290 MPa, both having a Young’s modulus of 206 GPa,
were selected as the material for Specimen no. 6 and no. 8, respectively.
Finite-Element Modeling Procedure
To simulate the cyclic behavior of the specimens, three-
dimensional FE models were developed using ANSYS Mechanical
APDL (ANSYS 2017). A detailed explanation of the generation
and analysis of the FE models, including material model, initial
imperfection, element mesh, contacts, and analysis is provided
in the following sections. It should be mentioned that residual
stresses due to the welding and fabrication processes were ne-
glected in the FE simulations.
Kinematic hardening models are used to consider the
Bauschinger effect—the fact that the elastic region in the uniaxial
stress-strain behavior of a metal specimen is equal to twice the
initial yield stress. Since the strain in the plastic hinge region is
expected to grow largely, a nonlinear kinematic hardening model
(the Chaboche model) suitable for large strains was chosen. Based
on this model, the yield surface moves nonlinearly until it reaches a
limiting surface, after which the behavior becomes perfectly plas-
tic. Herein, the Chaboche kinematic hardening model with three
back stresses was used. The required parameters, including material
constants (Ci ) and the rate of decrease of hardening modulus (γ i ),
are listed in Table 1.
The three-dimensional SOLID185 element, which has eight no-
des, each having three transitional degrees of freedom, was used to
mesh the piers. The FE models were generated utilizing a mapped
mesh. In order to introduce initial imperfections in the FE simula-
tions and trigger the potentiality of local buckling, small initial
out-of-plane deformations are imposed either by applying small
Fig. 2. Effect of initial out of roundness on the response of (a) Specimen no. 6; and (b) Specimen no. 8.
© ASCE 04018210-3
J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210
perturbation loads or updating the geometry of the FE model to
the shape of primary buckling modes (ANSYS 2017). Here, the
second approach was used. To that aim, a full-length model was
developed to consider both symmetric and antisymmetric buckling
modes. A preliminary linear buckling analysis was done. Then, the
perturbed geometry was established by adding a sum of the first
10 mode shapes, including axisymmetric and nonaxisymmetric
eigenmodes that were extracted in the preliminary buckling analysis.
A reduction factor of 0.2 was used when seeding the imperfections
to the geometry. This procedure induced a maximum out-of-plane
deformation of 1.7 mm, which is equal to 0.38% of the cross-
section radius. Although buckling of a cylinder can be imperfection
sensitive, for moderately thick cylinders with diameter-to-thickness
ratios less than 180, axisymmetric bulging due to Poisson’s effect
and radial end restraint is more significant than random imperfec-
tions. When buckling occurs at stresses above the yield strength,
such cylinders are not significantly affected by initial imperfections
(Bushnell 1989). For the columns studied herein, additional analy-
ses performed with two times the imperfection amplitude showed
that this change had no effect on the cyclic inelastic response
(Fig. 2).
A mesh refinement study was conducted to select the sizes of
elements. It was observed that the response of the piers is highly
dependent on the number of divisions along the height in the plastic
hinge region (nd ). Fig. 3 shows the results of the mesh sensitivity
analysis in which the convergence of the mesh density is based
upon the relative variation of the buckling load as the mesh is
refined. The predicted buckling loads are higher than those of
the experiments, owing to the fact that the incremental (flow)
theory of plasticity, based on which the nonlinear solution of
ANSYS (2017) is programmed, overestimates the plastic buckling
stress (Jones 2009). Considering the performed refinement study,
along the height, fine elements with an approximate length of 15
and 10 mm were used near the base for Specimen no. 6 and no. 8,
respectively, and gradually increased in length to 75 mm near the
cap plate. The circular section of the specimens was divided into
160 segments along its circumference.
To model contacts, four-node surface-to-surface contact ele-
ments (CONTA173), which transmit pressures between surface
Gauss points, were used. TARGE170 elements were used to
specify target surfaces. Since the components of the considered
piers are welded together, the contact behavior was set to Bonded,
in which the target and contact surfaces are glued to each other
when contact occurs.
J. Struct. Eng.

Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.
Fig. 3. Relationship of mesh density to estimated buckling load.
To apply loads, LINK180 elements with a rigid behavior were
used to connect the point of loading to the top nodes of the cap
plate. The amount of vertical load, as reported by Nishikawa et al.
(1996), was 0.138 and 0.124 of the axial yield load of the section
for Specimens no. 6 and no. 8, respectively. As in the actual test, the
cyclic lateral loading was applied as a multiple of yield displace-
ment, which increased step by step. For the boundary condition, the
displacement and rotation of the nodes at the base of the pier were
constrained to be zero in all directions.
In the first stages of lateral loading of a traditional steel bridge
pier, since the specimen is fixed to its base, plasticity evolves in the
plastic hinge region. If buckling is prevented, the plasticity contin-
ues to grow until fracture happens. Global buckling can be avoided
by limiting the height-to-diameter ratio of the column. Local buck-
ling is controlled by the diameter-to-thickness ratio. However, be-
yond yield, besides the diameter-to-thickness ratio, the buckling
strength depends on the material behavior, which is usually repre-
sented by the secant modulus (Jones 2006). As the material goes
into nonlinearity, the cylindrical column becomes more susceptible
Fig. 4. Experimental and FE analysis load-displacement hysteretic curves for (a) Specimen no. 6; and (b) Specimen no. 8.
© ASCE 04018210-4
J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210
to local buckling. Hence, local buckling, either elastic or plastic,
eventually occurs and limits the ductility of the pier. If local elastic
buckling is prevented by limiting the diameter-to-thickness ratio,
the plastic hinge forms near the base and the pier keeps taking force
by virtue of its material hardening up to the occurrence of the local
plastic buckling.
Depending on its length, a cylinder under compression shows
two different local buckling shapes. For short cylinders, the shell
buckles into inward and outward rings along its height, known as
the ring buckling mode. For moderately long cylinders, the shell
takes the form of waves along the cylinder axis and its circumfer-
ence with a pattern of depressions and bulges over the surface,
known as the chessboard buckling mode (Ivanyi and Skaloud
1992). For a cylindrical steel bridge pier under vertical and lateral
loads, compressive stresses are maximum at the column base where
they can trigger local buckling of the column section. Therefore,
only a short length of the cylinder near the base is susceptible
to buckling and the probable local buckling shape is similar to that
of the short cylinders, with the ring shapes. Buckling in such piers
involves significant stretching of the wall due to the Poisson expan-
sion, which finally develops into a state called elephant foot bulge
[Figs. 1(b and c)].
Comparison of the hysteresis responses obtained from the FE
analyses and tests are shown in Fig. 4. As can be seen in these
figures, the diameter-to- thickness ratio plays a great role not only
in the lateral load capacity but also in the displacement ductility
capacity. However, both specimens were damaged extensively
due to the local buckling development, resulting in high residual
displacements.
Prediction of Rocking Steel Bridge Pier Response
When bonded to its base, lateral deformation of a steel bridge pier is
mostly provided by the plastic straining extended throughout the
plastic hinge, which inevitably leads to nonrecoverable damage.
Deformation can be concentrated at the connection interface by
separating the column from the base and allowing it to rock. To
keep structural integrity, and control the rocking behavior by restor-
ing forces, the components of such a pier can be post-tensioned
together. Energy-dissipative elements can be added to increase en-
ergy absorption capability and prevent excessive uplifting of the
column. Using this technique, the residual displacements following
J. Struct. Eng.
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.

Fig. 5. Typical response of a rocking steel bridge pier under half-cycle lateral loading.

a seismic event can be minimized while damage is mostly confined Single-Point Rocking Method
within the EDs.
Before uplifting, the column behaves as a fixed-base column. After
Fig. 5 illustrates the typical response of a rocking steel bridge
uplifting, the lateral load-displacement behavior can be easily
pier. Since the column is compressed due to the gravity and post- determined at each drift, provided that the compressive forces are
tensioning forces, initially the pier behaves similar to a fixed base concentrated at the edge of the column, as illustrated in Fig. 6(a).
pier and deforms elastically under lateral load. With increasing lat- By taking the single-point contact as the pivot, lateral load V is
eral load, overturning moments generated at the base reduces these obtained as follows:
compressive forces until decompression occurs at the farthermost
fiber of the column. After this point, the pier begins to uplift and a
T pt d2c þ Wðd2c − ht ðθel þ θgap ÞÞ
gap opens at the rocking interface. The formation of the gap softens V¼ ð1Þ
the lateral stiffness and at the same time activates the EDs. After ht
unloading, the restoring forces close the gap and the pier returns to
its original position with the majority of damage localized in where T pt = post-tensioning force; W = total gravity loads; θgap =
the EDs. rotation due to gap opening; θel = rotation due to initial elastic
In deriving analytical equations for predicting the response of deformation before uplifting; dc = section depth of the column;
the rocking systems, the force distribution at the rocking interface and ht = distance of the rocking interface to the centroid of the
is unknown and cannot be determined using the strain compati- superstructure mass. Post-tensioning force T pt can be estimated
bility assumption, since it is not valid at the section level due using the following formula:
to the gap opening. However, if the compressive forces are as-
0.5dc θgap
sumed to be concentrated at the edge of the rocking element, T pt ¼ T 0 þ Ept Apt ð2Þ
the response can be achieved using the global equilibrium. This hc
approach is referred to herein as the single-point rocking (SPR)
method. In the case of considering distributed forces at the rocking where T 0 = initial post-tensioning force; Ept = Young’s modulus;
interface, the strain/stress profile in the compressed region can be Apt = cross-sectional area of the cable; and hc = distance of the
obtained through a member compatibility concept, known as a rocking interface to the top of the cap plate. With the assumption
monolithic beam analogy (MBA), which was first proposed by that gravity loads are applied after the initial post-tensioning, a
Pampanin et al. (2001). In this method, the strain/stress distribu- more precise equation can be derived for T pt by accounting for
tion is calculated based on an analogy between the rocking the column shortening, as follows:
element and an equivalent element with fixed ends. In the follow-
  
0.5dc θgap Ept Apt W
ing sections, the aforementioned methods are applied to the rock- T pt ¼ T 0 þ 1− − E A ð3Þ
ing steel bridge piers. hc Ec A c Ec Ac pt pt

© ASCE 04018210-5 J. Struct. Eng.

J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210

Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.

Fig. 6. Deformation of a rocking bridge pier based on (a) single-point rocking; and (b) monolithic beam analogy methods.

where Ec and Ac = Young’s modulus and cross-sectional area of the Δp;fixed end ¼ ðϕ − ϕy;c Þðht − 0.5Lp;c ÞLp;c ð9Þ
column, respectively. By substituting θgap ¼ 0 in Eq. (1) and ne-
glecting P-delta effects before uplifting, the lateral load required where ϕy;c = yield curvature of the column and Lp;c = plastic hinge
to uplift the column, V up , can be approximated as follows: length. Substituting Eq. (9) into Eq. (8) and solving for ϕ gives the
maximum compressive strain εmax in the column at the rocking in-
ðT pt þ WÞdc terface as follows:
V up ≃ ð4Þ
2ht  
ht θgap
εmax ¼ ϕc ¼ þ ϕy;c c ð10Þ
where T pt can be calculated using either Eq. (2) or (3). Compres- ðht − 0.5Lp;c ÞLp;c
sive force Fc at the base of the column can be obtained from the
vertical equilibrium as follows: where c = length of the region under compression and
 
Fc ¼ W þ T pt ð5Þ Mp;c Zc σy;c W þ T0
ϕy;c ¼ ¼ 1− ð11Þ
Ec I c Ec I c Py;c
The above equation implies that compressive force Fc is only
limited by yielding of the cable since the material nonlinearity of where M p;c = section plastic moment; Zc = plastic section modulus;
the column is not considered in developing this method. σy;c = yield stress; I c = second moment of area; and Py;c = axial
The column does not slide as long as the following equation is yield force of the column.
satisfied: After choosing a stress-strain relationship for the column
material, the stress distribution at the connection interface can be
V ≤ μðW þ T pt Þ ð6Þ determined and the section equilibrium can be achieved by using
Eq. (5), wherein compressive force Fc can be calculated by
where μ = static coefficient of friction between the column and its
Z c
underlying surface.
Fc ¼ σc ðεmax ÞdA ð12Þ
0

Monolithic Beam Analogy Method T pt is subjected to increase due to elongation and decrease due
Fig. 6(b) demonstrates two bridge piers, one of which has a fixed to column shortening, as follows:
base and the other is the same, except it is unbonded at the base. If
  
an equal displacement is applied at their top nodes, the pier with the ð0.5dc − cÞθgap Ept Apt W
T pt ¼ T 0 þ 1− − E A
fixed-base boundary condition deforms elastically first, and then hc Ec A c Ec Ac pt pt
plastically due to the plastic hinge formation, while in the un- ð13Þ
bonded pier, a gap opens instead of the plastic hinge formation.
For each case, the applied equal displacement can be divided into This equation is the same as Eq. (3) except that the distance
two parts as follows: 0.5dc is replaced by 0.5dc − c when determining the tendon
elongation.
Δel;fixed end þ Δp;fixed end ¼ Δel;rocking þ Δgap;rocking ð7Þ

wherein the plastic and gap opening deformations are significantly
greater than the elastic one. Assuming the elastic deformation of the
two piers is equal, then
Δp;fixed end ≈ Δgap;rocking ¼ ht θgap
in which
Modified MBA Method
The assumption that the elastic deformation of the rocking and
fixed-base piers is equal leads to achieving a higher initial stiffness
ð8Þ for the response of the rocking pier, since the gap opening in the
rocking pier occurs before the formation of the plastic hinge in the
fixed base pier. The MBA method was modified by Palermo (2004)

© ASCE 04018210-6 J. Struct. Eng.

J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210

 to better predict the rocking pier behavior at the initial stages of
lateral deformation. In this method, the deformation of the rocking
and fixed-base piers is broken into three ranges:
1. Before decompression (0 ≤ θ < θdec ).
Before the decompression point, the rocking pier can be
assumed as a fixed base. Hence
H local bending of the tube wall that may lead to localized yielding
Δtot ðrockingÞ ¼ Δtot ðfixed endÞ ¼ ϕ
ht
where H ¼ h3c =3 þ h2t hc − ht h2c is the height parameter.
2. Between decompression and yielding rotations (θdec ≤ θ < θy ).
In this range, the fixed base pier remains elastic, while the
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.
gap opening occurs in the rocking column. Thus
H
Δtot ðfixed endÞ ¼ ϕ
ht
H method is further amended, hereinafter referred to as extended
Δtot ðrockingÞ ¼ ht θgap þ ϕdec ð16Þ
ht
Equating the above equations yields a formula for the maxi-
mum normal strain in the column at the rocking interface as
follows:
 2  linear herein, beginning just after the compressive region and end-
ht
εmax ¼ ϕc ¼ θgap þ ϕdec c ð17Þ
H
where ϕdec ¼ 2ðW þ T 0 Þ=Ec Ac dc is the decompression curva-
ture obtained by using the Euler-Bernoulli beam theory.
3. Beyond yielding rotation (θy ≤ θ).
In this range, the plastic hinge forms in the fixed-base pier.
Therefore
 
H Lp;c
Δtot ðfixed endÞ ¼ ϕy;c þ ðϕ − ϕy;c ÞLp;c ht − ð18Þ
ht 2 where T bp = tension forces that the base plate exerts on the column
Equating the above equation to Eq. (16) gives the maximum
normal strain at the rocking interface as follows:
 
ht θgap − ðϕy;c − ϕdec Þ hHt
εmax ¼ ϕc ¼ L þ ϕy;c c ð19Þ
Lp;c ðht − 2p;c Þ
The steps involved in calculating the load-displacement re-
sponse are the same as the MBA, except that the maximum com-
pressive strain corresponding to θgap is determined based on
Eq. (17) or (19).
d c 
T pt 2 þ ccent − c þ W d2c þ ccent − c − ht ðθgap þ θel Þ þ T bp ðccent þ tcent Þ
V¼
where ccent and tcent = centroids of the compressive and tensile
stresses, respectively. Assuming the compressive forces are local-
ized at the edge of the column (c ¼ ccent ), the above equation is
equal to Eq. (1) when there is no base plate.
The steps required to obtain the lateral load-displacement
response are
1. Impose rotation θgap at the rocking interface.
2. Assume an initial value for the length of the compression zone.
3. Compute the resulting compressive stresses using Eq. (10)
(MBA) or Eq. (17) or (19) (modified MBA) and the assumed
material model for the column.
© ASCE
J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210
Extended MBA Method
The previous equations imply that as the lateral load increases, a
smaller compressive zone is subjected to increasing normal forces.
Consequently, a horizontal reaction due to frictional resistance at
the column base is generated over a short compressive length. This
reaction force, which acts normal to the column wall, can cause
ð14Þ of the wall at the rocking interface. By utilizing a base plate that is
welded to the column, horizontal shearing forces can be distributed
over the whole section rather than a small region. In this way, the
shearing stresses at the base of the column are significantly
reduced. Furthermore, the base plate will also serve as a diaphragm,
preventing the out-of-plane deformation of the column near the
rocking interface.
ð15Þ When having a base plate, the modified MBA method cannot be
used because the base plate is under flexural instead of axial strain-
ing. Therefore, to account for the presence of the base plate, the
MBA (EMBA). Fig. 7 illustrates the free body diagram of a rocking
steel pier with the base plate. At the column–base plate interface,
the stress distribution in the compressive zone can be obtained
using either MBA or modified MBA. After gap opening, the base
plate exerts tensile stresses on the column, which is assumed as
ing at the farthermost column fiber. Since the base plate is under
bending in this region, at each imposed rotation, the amount of ten-
sile stresses can be determined through the moment-rotation analy-
sis of a cantilever beam having the same properties of the base plate
in the tension part. Then section equilibrium is checked using the
following formula:
Fc ¼ W þ T pt þ T bp ð20Þ
and can be obtained by
Z
dc
T bp ¼ σt dA ð21Þ
c
It should be noted that the variation of the length of the com-
pressive region along the base plate height is neglected. By taking
the moment about the centroid of the compressive forces, lateral
load V is obtained as follows:
ð22Þ
ht − tbp
4. In the case of having a base plate, compute the resulting tensile
stresses by performing a moment-rotation analysis of an
equivalent cantilever beam to the base plate and calculating
the required tensile stresses for the imposed rotation.
5. Compute the corresponding normal forces by integrating the
normal stresses over the respective areas, i.e., using Eqs. (12)
and (21).
6. Compute the cable force using Eq. (13).
7. Check for the section equilibrium using Eq. (5) or (20).
8. Iterate over the compression zone length c by returning to
Step 2 until the section equilibrium is satisfied.
04018210-7 J. Struct. Eng.

Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.
Fig. 7. (a) Free body diagram of the column and base plate; and
(b) assuming the base plate as a cantilever beam in the tension part.
9. Calculate the corresponding lateral load using Eq. (22).
10. Increase the imposed rotation and repeat Steps 1–10 until the
target drift is reached.
Development of FE Models
The previously validated specimens were used as the basis for de-
veloping the FE models of the rocking steel bridge piers. In order to
do so, the column was placed on a plate that is anchored to the base
foundation. A high-strength cable that runs through the holes made
in the cap and foundation plates was placed at the axis of radial
symmetry, anchored at the base, and then post-tensioned. To des-
ignate the specimens, a letter suffix R, which stands for rocking,
was added to each specimen label. In the case of having a base
plate, a BP suffix is appended as well. For instance, Specimen
no. 6-R-BP is the rocking Specimen no. 6 with a base plate.
A trilinear kinematic model with a strain-hardening ratio of 5%
and a cutoff value at the ultimate strength was chosen for the cable.
The considered modulus of elasticity and tensile strength of the
cable, in accordance to ASTM 416 (ASTM 2017), are 199 GPa
and 1,860 MPa for Grade 270, respectively. Also, yield strength
was assumed to be 70% of the tensile strength. Then, the added
components in the FE models were meshed using the SOLID185
elements.
Contacts were defined between the cable nut and cap plate and
the interface between the column and foundation plate. Also, ini-
tially open contacts were modeled between the cable and the inner
surfaces of the cap and foundation plate holes to consider the pos-
sibility of encountering each other at large drifts. Since the tangen-
tial and normal characteristics of these surfaces involve friction and
closing/opening, their behaviors were set to Standard. A unified
friction coefficient of 0.33, as suggested by Kulak et al. (2001),
was considered here. All contacts were initially adjusted by utiliz-
ing available options in ANSYS (2017) (ICONT and CNOF) to
eliminate unwanted small gaps or penetrations emerging from
numerical round-off during mesh generation.
© ASCE 04018210-8
J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210
To apply the post-tensioning force to the cable, first, the
PSMESH command was used to create a pretension section. This
command splits the meshed body of the cable into two parts, nor-
mal to the post-tensioning load direction, and then connects them
by the PRETS179 elements. Then, the SLOAD command was used
to apply the force to the previously generated pretension section. A
similar technique was used in validating the FE simulation of post-
tensioned steel beam-column connections by Moradi and Alam
(2016), which was modified by Rahmzadeh and Alam (2017).
The initial imperfections were introduced as discussed earlier.
The amount of the gravity loads for both specimens was con-
sidered as 0.15 of their axial yield force. To ensure recentering
capability in the rocking pier, the cable should remain elastic
throughout cyclic loading. Hence, based on the initial analytical
studies, a cable comprised of 10 strands according to ASTM 416
(ASTM 2017) and having a total steel area of 1,900 mm2 was
chosen and post-tensioned up to 30% and 20% of its ultimate
strength for Specimen no. 6-R and no. 8-R, respectively. This
amount of post-tensioning force increases the axial force ratio of
the column from 0.15 to 0.22 and 0.25 for Specimen no. 6-R
and no. 8-R, respectively. For the lateral loading protocol, a
drift-based reversed cyclic loading consisting of cycles with ampli-
tudes of 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5% of the total height was adopted.
Specimens without Base Plate
The lateral load-displacement response of Specimen no. 6-R is
shown in Fig. 8, along with the analytical predictions based on
MBA and modified MBA. The backbone curve from the SPR
method is also given for comparison. The specimen exhibits a
flag-shaped behavior, capable of recentering up to a drift of 5%
(170 mm) with no elephant foot buckling as observed in the
fixed-base specimens. The dissipated energy can be attributed to
the yielding of the outer edges of the column cross section due
to normal straining, as well as local bending of the tube due to
the horizontal reaction concentrated at the rocking interface
[Fig. 9(a)].
In the analytical models, a bilinear model with a 5% strain-
hardening ratio for the cable was considered. To model the material
nonlinearity of the column in MBA/modified MBA, a trilinear
stress-strain relationship including an elastic portion, linear part
with a 2% strain-hardening ratio, and horizontal line after the ulti-
mate strength was used. As can be seen in Fig. 8, the initial stiffness
is overestimated by the MBA method, whereas it is well predicted
by the modified MBA method. In the SPR method, the lateral load
upon rocking is only controlled by the cable force. Furthermore,
localizing forces at a single point results in a larger arm lever of
the cable force, which leads to the faster elongation of the cable.
Thus, the lateral load increases with a steeper slope until the cable
yields, after which the response degrades. The results show that the
SPR method can be used as an upper bound for MBA/modified
MBA, provided that the column remains elastic at the rocking inter-
face. That is, if the column is assumed to be elastic, the resultant of
the distributed forces in MBA/modified MBA moves toward the
column edge with increasing drift. However, the yielding of the
column limits the generated compressive forces, softens the rocking
interface, and prevents the forces from accumulating at a single
point at large drifts. Since Eq. (19) gradually converges to
Eq. (10) in relatively large drifts, the MBA and modified MBA
methods yield the same results, except for the initial part.
The normal strain distribution at 5% drift based on the FE and
modified MBA is compared in Fig. 9(b). Owing to the fact that the
Chaboche material model used in the FE simulation has a memory
term, a pushover analysis was performed for this comparison to
J. Struct. Eng.
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.

Fig. 8. Force-displacement response of Specimen no. 6-R based on the FE and analytical methods.

Fig. 9. (a) Accumulated plastic strain in Specimen no. 6-R; and (b) comparison between normal strain distribution based on the FE and analytical
methods.

eliminate the cyclic degradation effects. The compressive region

has a length of 115 and 170.2 mm with a maximum compressive
strain of 0.0224 and 0.0195 based on the FE and modified MBA,
respectively. The difference arises from the different material mod-
els utilized, which result in parabola and piecewise linear stress dis-
tributions for the FE and modified MBA, respectively. Moreover,
modified MBA is a function of the assumed plastic hinge length,
herein taken as half of the section depth. Although satisfactory re-
sults can be obtained for the lateral load-displacement response, the
strain distribution cannot be well predicted using modified MBA.
Since a concentrated plasticity model was utilized in determining a
relationship between the maximum strain and length in the com-
pressive region, the resulting maximum compressive strain is
highly sensitive to the assumed plastic hinge length, as indicated
by Eq. (19). The effect of the plastic hinge length on the response
of modified MBA is shown in Fig. 10. For a plastic hinge length of
0.75dc , 0.5dc , and 0.25dc , the maximum strain at the largest drift
increases from 0.0147 to 0.0195 and then 0.0319, respectively,
Fig. 10. Effect of assumed plastic hinge length on the modified MBA
while the change in the lateral load-displacement response is not
response.
as significant as the strain.

© ASCE 04018210-9 J. Struct. Eng.

J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210

 In order to examine the effect of diaphragms on the buckling
behavior, the differential equation for deflection of a cylindrical
shell under compression is considered as follows (Jones 2006):
E c tc ∂ 4 w ∂2w
D∇8 w þ 4 2 4
þ σtc ∇4 2 ¼ 0 ð23Þ
ðdc − tc Þ ∂y ∂y
where the x-axis and y-axis are oriented along the circumference
and height of the shell, respectively; D ¼ Ec t3c =12ð1 − ν 2 Þ is the
flexural rigidity of the wall; σ = axial compression stress; and
ν = Poisson’s ratio.
Of interest here is the ring buckling mode with the following
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.
profile (Ivanyi and Skaloud 1992):
2πy
w ¼ w0 sin ð24Þ
λy
where w0 = amplitude of the buckling waves; and λy = wavelength
along the cylinder axis. Substituting Eq. (24) into Eq. (23) and min-
imizing σ yields the following equation for the wavelength:
sffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
4 t2c d2c
λy ≃ π ð25Þ
3ð1 − ν 2 Þ
The above equation gives λy equal to 215 mm for Specimen no.
8-R, suggesting that diaphragms should be placed with a distance
less than 215 mm to improve buckling strength. Hence, the arrange-
ment of diaphragms in Fig. 1(a), with the first diaphragm placed at
900 mm from the base, has no major effect on the buckling behav-
ior of Specimen no. 8-R.
Fig. 11 shows the comparison between the force-displacement
behavior of Specimen no. 8-R with and without diaphragms, as
well as the analytical model predictions. As expected, the effect
of diaphragms is negligible and local buckling developed near
the rocking interface, regardless of having diaphragms. The length
of the bulge due to local buckling near the base, given by the FE
analysis, is approximately 230 mm, which is close to the value pre-
dicted with Eq. (25). Before the occurrence of local buckling, the
specimen exhibits a self-centering behavior up to 2% drift (68 mm),
whereas its fixed-base counterpart (Specimen no. 8) had a residual
displacement of 50 mm at the same amount of drift. Because it
Fig. 11. Cyclic response of Specimen no. 8-R with and without
diaphragm.
© ASCE 04018210-10
J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210
neglects the column material nonlinearity and fast straining of the
cable, the SPR method overestimated the capacity of the specimen.
Modified MBA yielded relatively good results up to the buckling
point. However, it failed to predict the initiation of buckling and post-
buckling response since it is unable to capture the point at which the
primary form of equilibrium becomes unstable and the tube wall
starts to buckle. After this point, the tube wall under compression
ceases to carry loads, while modified MBA follows the stress path
in the assumed material model and keeps taking loads.
A more practical approach rather than utilizing closely spaced
diaphragms to prevent buckling of the column in such cases could
be the use of a thicker wall column segment at the bottom that is
welded to the thinner wall column by a complete joint penetration
weld [Fig. 12(a)]. To avoid local buckling, the strain in the thinner
wall can be limited through section analysis. The expected maxi-
mum lateral load and cable force at the target drift can be obtained
by using the analytical model, then the length l [in Fig. 12(a)] is
specified so that the maximum compressive strain is limited to εlim .
For this specimen, choosing εlim as 0.0014 and 0.002 results in l
equal to 1,895 and 2,427 mm, respectively, for a target drift of 5%.
In the former case, the upper segment was kept elastic while in the
latter, limited yielding was allowed. In the FE model, a thickness of
16.1 mm was used for a height of 1,500 and 1,000 mm from the
base of the column for the first and second cases, respectively. The
thickness was selected the same as Specimen no. 6-R which could
recenter up to 5% drift without local buckling. The lateral load dis-
placement of the reinforced specimens is shown in Fig. 12(b),
which illustrates a self-centering behavior up to 5% drift. As indi-
cated by this figure, limited yielding of the extreme fibers of the
upper segment has no effect on the response. The maximum lateral
load is higher than that predicted by modified MBA in Fig. 11,
owing to the increased wall thickness at the rocking interface.
Specimens with Base Plate
As discussed earlier, a base plate can be welded to the column to
protect the column from the shearing forces at the rocking interface.
A circular base plate with a diameter of 1,000 and a thickness of
60 mm is chosen herein. The dimension of the base plate was se-
lected based on initial studies such that it has enough space for
welding requirements and does not experience severe plastic strains
at large drifts. In the FE model, the base plate was mapped meshed
using the SOLID185 elements, and the same material was used as
the column. Contacts were defined between the underlying plate
and base plate, and the base plate and column with standard
and bonded behaviors, respectively.
Fig. 13 illustrates the cyclic response of Specimen no. 6-R-BP in
addition to the analytical model predictions. The dissipated energy
can be ascribed to the yielding of the column extreme fibers due to
normal straining, as well as yielding of the base plate. Comparing
Fig. 14 with Fig. 9(a) indicates that in this case the total plastic
strain is less, owing to the protective effect of the base plate. Fur-
thermore, the maximum lateral load increased from 479 to 564 kN.
This is caused by lengthening of the compressive zone as implied
by Eq. (20). As can be observed in Fig. 13, the prediction of the
EMBA method is in good agreement with the FE results, whereas
the SPR method overpredicted the lateral load capacity for the same
aforementioned reasons.
Specimens with Base Plate and Yielding
Energy-Dissipating Elements
In order to enhance the energy-dissipation property of the speci-
men, different types of replaceable energy-dissipating elements
J. Struct. Eng.
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.

Fig. 12. (a) Limiting strain in thinner wall; and (b) cyclic response of reinforced Specimen no. 8-R.

including tension-only (TO), tension-compression (TC), and
buckling-restrained (BR) bars are considered. Four bars are placed
at a 45° angle from the loading direction. A diameter of 30 mm,
fused down to 22 mm in the fuse length, was selected for the bars.
Based on the previous analytical results, the minimum length of the
compressive zone is 195 mm, suggesting that the bars would be
stretched about 30 mm at 5% drift. A fuse length of 150 mm based
on the maximum 20% elongation was chosen, with the assumption
that the straining only occurs in the fuse length. The same material
as the column was selected, which for each ED results in a tensile
yield load and strength of 131 and 209 kN, respectively. The
bars are fastened to the column through connections depicted in
Fig. 15(a). As force-controlled components, the connections were
designed based on capacity design principles to remain elastic. The
connections are welded to the column as well as the base plate.
To anchor the bars at the base, the base plate is cut inside the
connections with a smooth curve to avoid stress concentration
in its inner edges.
In the FE model, the added elements were mapped meshed
using the SOLID185 elements. Contacts were defined between
the ED chairs, column and base plate, and also between the EDs
and chairs. It should be noted that the threads in the bars were not
considered in the FE models. Fig. 15(b) displays the FE model of a
specimen with energy dissipating elements.
The tension-only ED involves tensile straining in its fuse length.
Fig. 16(a) shows the cyclic response of Specimen no. 6-R-BP in-
corporated such EDs along with the results of the EMBA method.
In the first cycles of loading, the plasticity spreads in the fuse length
and following that the bar elongates. Due to the elongation, the
bar loses its connection with the chair at the beginning of the

Fig. 13. Force-displacement response of Specimen no. 6-R-BP based

on the FE and analytical methods. Fig. 14. Accumulated plastic strain in Specimen no. 6-R-BP.

© ASCE 04018210-11 J. Struct. Eng.

J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210

Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.

Fig. 15. (a) Details of ED chair; and (b) Specimen no. 6-R-BP with external EDs.

Fig. 16. Response of specimens: (a) no. 6-R-BP-TO; (b) no. 6-R-BP-TC; and (c) no. 6-R-BP-BR.

subsequent cycle. By increasing displacement, the elongated bar
reconnects to the chair and contributes to load carrying again. This
might become problematic when the pier is exposed to pulse-type
ground motions. In that case, if the pier experiences large amplitude
displacements at the beginning, the bars do not participate in load
carrying afterward, unless a larger displacement is applied on
the pier.
The results of FE and analytical methods for Specimen no.
6-R-BP with tension-compression EDs are shown in Fig. 16(b).
The tension-compression ED experiences limited compressive
stresses in addition to tensile stresses since it remains connected
to its chair throughout the loading. Similar to the previous case,
plasticity spreads in the fuse length and the bar elongates in the
first cycles. However, while the gap is being closed at the rocking
interface, the elongated bar takes limited compressive forces, after
which it buckles, since it is not constrained.
The buckling-restrained ED is the same as the tension-
compression ED except that it is constrained against buckling
and, thereby, can yield both in tension and compression. Herein,
the bar is confined within a tube having an outer and inner diameter
of 48.3 and 40.3 mm, respectively. The gap between the tube and
bar is filled with high strength grout having 50-MPa compressive
strength. In the FE model, the tube was mapped meshed as before.
The degradation in the grout material behavior after the maximum
compressive stress was neglected and an elastic–perfectly plastic
stress-strain relationship was adopted in the FE simulation. Then,
the filler material was free meshed by using the SOLID285
elements.
The results show that the type of ED has a negligible effect on
the maximum lateral load capacity. This stems from the fact that the
contribution of EDs in the lateral load capacity is mainly related to
their tensile rather than compressive forces. Since the tensile capac-
ity of the bar in all three types of EDs was fully mobilized, the
whole system showed a maximum lateral load of about 650 kN
in each case. The ED type affects the unloading part of the force-
displacement behavior as is evident in Fig. 16. While unloading,
the elastic strain in the elongated bar is recovered, and depending
on the ED type, it takes some level of compression and dissipates
more energy.
Fig. 17 illustrates the cumulative dissipated energy throughout
the loading cycles for the specimens equipped with three different
types of EDs. In the first two cycles in which the energy-dissipating
elements are not fully involved, the difference between the dissi-
pated energy is negligible. In the next cycles, as the plasticity ex-
tends over the fuse length of the EDs, the dissipated energy of the
specimens with tension-compression and buckling-restrained EDs

© ASCE 04018210-12 J. Struct. Eng.

J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210


Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.
Fig. 17. Accumulated dissipated energy in specimens with EDs.
starts to deviate from the specimens with tension-only EDs due to
compressive stressing of the bars, and the difference increases as
the EDs become more involved. The occurrence of buckling in the
fuse length of the tension-compression EDs reduces its energy ab-
sorption ability, while the compressive strength of the bar is fully
utilized in the buckling-restrained EDs.
Although the gravity loads have a recentering impact up to cer-
tain drifts, they could overturn the pier and cause the lateral insta-
bility at large drifts due to the P-delta effects. If other sources of
residual displacements, i.e., the local buckling, are prevented, the
post-tensioned cable must remain elastic to ensure that the pier fully
self-centers. Fig. 18 shows the cable force in Specimen no. 6-R-
BP-BR. Assuming the yield strength of the cable material is 70% of
its ultimate strength, the yield force of the cable is 2,474 kN.
Although the maximum post-tensioning force (2,330 kN) is less
than the yielding force of the cable (2,474 kN), the cable experi-
enced some plastification at the anchorage location at the base due
to stress concentration, causing a noticeable loss in the initial post-
tensioning force as can be seen in Fig. 18. This suggests that a safer
margin should be considered when designing the post-tensioned
cable. It should be noted that according to Eq. (6), none of the
specimens experienced sliding.
Fig. 18. Force-displacement response of the cable in Specimen
no. 6-R-BP-BR.
© ASCE 04018210-13
J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210
Conclusion
An unbounded post-tensioned steel bridge pier has been studied
analytically and numerically. The proposed steel bridge pier incor-
porates a post-tensioned high-strength tendon to increase the recen-
tering response from gravity load along with sacrificial elements to
dissipate energy. To verify the FE models, two conventional steel
piers, which had been experimentally tested, were modeled and
validated. A detailed explanation of the modeling procedure, in-
cluding material modeling, mesh generation, defining contacts, and
introducing initial imperfections, was provided. The models pro-
duced good predictions of the results of the experimental tests.
A simple single-point rocking (SPR) analytical method based on
a concentrated force at the rocking interface was developed,
wherein the column material nonlinearity was neglected. Using
the monolithic beam analogy (MBA), more refined methods were
established to account for a distributed force at the base of the col-
umn as well as the material nonlinearity. A comparison between
these methods demonstrated that the inelastic straining of the col-
umn has a major effect on the forces at the rocking interface. By
assuming an elastic column, as in the SPR method, the load capac-
ity of the system was overestimated, whereas the modified MBA
method well predicted the lateral load-displacement response.
However, an investigation of the strain distribution showed the high
sensitivity of the maximum compressive strain to the critical
assumption made in developing modified MBA, i.e., the assumed
plastic hinge length.
Modified MBA uses the normal strain distribution at the gap
opening/closing interface to predict the lateral response of a rock-
ing element. Hence, it cannot be utilized in a base-plated rocking
column, wherein the base plate is essentially under the flexural
strains near the rocking interface. To account for the presence of
the base plate, modified MBA was expanded in this study, refer-
enced as extended MBA (EMBA). The base plate was considered
as a cantilever beam, under the column, and its effect was incorpo-
rated into the stress distribution at the base of the column. It was
shown that satisfactory predictions of the lateral load-displacement
behavior can be achieved using the EMBA method.
The validated FE models were transformed to their corre-
sponding rocking piers by unbounding the column from the base
and assembling the components by means of a post-tensioned
cable. The results of the FE analyses threw light upon the effects
of utilizing a base plate and diaphragm. By using a base plate,
the shear stresses at the column base are reduced due to the dis-
tribution of the shearing forces over a larger area. Moreover, the
base plate acts as a diaphragm and prevents the possible ovali-
zation of the column. An examination of the effect of a dia-
phragm showed that several closely spaced diaphragms should
be placed near the rocking interface to improve the buckling
capacity. It was illustrated that local buckling could be more ef-
ficiently prevented by thickening the column wall in the bottom
region with high strains.
Higher lateral strength and energy dissipation capacity were
achieved by using axially yielding steel bars as energy-dissipative
elements. An investigation of the cyclic behavior provided prom-
ising approval of the improved performance of the rocking steel
bridge pier when compared to its traditional counterpart. Stable
hysteresis response, high ductility capacity, and negligible residual
drift, mainly attributed to the gap opening/closing mechanism,
without developing local buckling, are the key advantages of the
proposed pier.
Further investigations are required to gain more insight on the
seismic behavior of the proposed steel pier in this study. The FE
simulation technique used in this paper should be validated for the
J. Struct. Eng.
 proposed rocking pier through physical testing, with focus on stress
distribution and local buckling of the column near the rocking
interface, and the benefits resulting from a base plate. The
diameter-to-thickness ratio requirements in the seismic codes are
meant to postpone the plastic buckling in the conventional steel
bridge piers, wherein ductility is provided through plastic straining.
Relaxation of these limits is expected for rocking piers because in
such cases the gap opening provides nonlinear deformation capac-
ity with limited plastic straining. Thus, further studies are needed to
specify the minimum required thickness of the wall for a given
diameter of the column. Numerical studies presented in this paper
should be extended to investigate piers with different heights and
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.
slenderness ratios. Modified MBA requires more refinement to
have a better prediction of the actual strain. A parametric study
is required to determine the appropriate values of plastic hinge
length as the input for modified MBA.
Acknowledgments
The research reported herein was funded by Natural Sciences and
Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) under Engage
and Collaborative Research and Development (CRD) grants. A
financial contribution from Canadian Institute of Steel Construction
(CISC) through a Research Grant is also acknowledged. The
authors would like to acknowledge CMC Microsystems for the pro-
vision of products and services that facilitated this research, includ-
ing ANSYS Multiphysics. The support provided by WestGrid and
Compute Canada is also gratefully acknowledged.
References
Alam, M. S., M. A. Youssef, and M. Nehdi. 2007. “Utilizing shape memory
alloys to enhance the performance and safety of civil infrastructure:
A review.” Can. J. Civ. Eng. 34 (9): 1075–1086. https://doi.org/10
.1139/l07-038.
ANSYS. 2017. ANSYS Multiphysics v18.2. Canonsburg, PA: ANSYS.
Aoki, T., and K. Susantha. 2005. “Seismic performance of rectangular-
shaped steel piers under cyclic loading.” J. Struct. Eng. 131 (2): 14–32.
https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9445(2005)131:2(240).
ASTM. 2017. Standard specification for low-relaxation, seven-wire steel
strand for prestressed concrete. ASTM Designation No. A416/A416M.
West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
Aydan, O. 2008. A reconnaissance report on 2008 Wenchuan earthquake.
Tokyo: Japan Society of Civil Engineers.
Billington, S. L., and J. K. Yoon. 2004. “Cyclic response of unbonded post-
tensioned precast columns with ductile fiber-reinforced concrete.”
J. Bridge Eng. 9 (4): 353–363. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1084
-0702(2004)9:4(353).
Bozorgnia, Y., and V. Bertero. 2004. Earthquake engineering: From engi-
neering seismology to performance-based engineering. Boca Raton,
FL: CRC Press.
Bruneau, M., J. C. Wilson, and R. Tremblay. 1996. “Performance of steel
bridges during the 1995 Hyogo-ken Nanbu (Kobe, Japan) earthquake.”
Can. J. Civ. Eng. 23 (3): 678–713. https://doi.org/10.1139/l96-883.
Bushnell, D. 1989. Computerized buckling analysis of shells. Dordrecht,
Netherlands: Springer.
Cheok, G. S., and H. Lew. 1991. “Performance of precast concrete beam-
to-column connections subject to cyclic loading.” PCI J. 36 (3): 56–67.
https://doi.org/10.15554/pcij.05011991.56.67.
Christopoulos, C., A. Filiatrault, C.-M. Uang, and B. Folz. 2002. “Postten-
sioned energy dissipating connections for moment-resisting steel
frames.” J. Struct. Eng. 128 (9): 1111–1120. https://doi.org/10.1061
/(ASCE)0733-9445(2002)128:9(1111).
Christopoulos, C., R. Tremblay, H.-J. Kim, and M. Lacerte. 2008.
“Self-centering energy dissipative bracing system for the seismic
resistance of structures: Development and validation.” J. Struct. Eng.
© ASCE 04018210-14
J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210
134 (1): 96–107. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9445(2008)134:
1(96).
ElGawady, M. A., and A. Sha’lan. 2011. “Seismic behavior of self-
centering precast segmental bridge bents.” J. Bridge Eng. 16 (3):
328–339. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)BE.1943-5592.0000174.
Elnashai, A., B. Gencturk, O. Kwon, I. Al-Qadi, Y. Hashash, J. Roesler,
S. Kim, S. Jeong, J. Dukes, and A. Valdivia. 2010. The maule (Chile)
earthquake of February 27, 2010. MAE Center Rep. No. 10-04.
Urbana, IL: Mid-America Earthquake Center.
FHWA (Federal Highway Administration). 2011. Accelerated bridge
construction: Experience in design, fabrication and erection of prefab-
ricated bridge elements and systems. HIF-12-013. Washington, DC:
FHWA.
Ge, H., L. Kang, and Y. Tsumura. 2012. “Extremely low-cycle fatigue tests
of thick-walled steel bridge piers.” J. Bridge Eng. 18 (9): 858–870.
https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)BE.1943-5592.0000429.
Guerrini, G., J. I. Restrepo, M. Massari, and A. Vervelidis. 2015. “Seismic
behavior of posttensioned self-centering precast concrete dual-shell
steel columns.” J. Struct. Eng. 141 (4): 04014115. https://doi.org/10
.1061/(ASCE)ST.1943-541X.0001054.
Hewes, J. T., and M. J. N. Priestley. 2002. Seismic design and performance
of precast concrete segmental bridge columns. UCSD/SSRP-2001/25.
San Diego: Univ. of California.
Housner, G. W. 1963. “The behavior of inverted pendulum structures
during earthquakes.” Bull. Seismol. Soc. Am. 53 (2): 403–417.
Ivanyi, M., and M. Skaloud. 1992. Stability problems of steel structures.
Berlin: Springer.
Jones, R. M. 2006. Buckling of bars, plates, and shells. Blacksburg, VA:
Bull Ridge Publishing.
Jones, R. M. 2009. Deformation theory of plasticity. Blacksburg, VA: Bull
Ridge Publishing.
JRA (Japan Road Association). 2000. Specifications for highway bridges.
Part V: Seismic design. Tokyo: JRA.
Kulak, G., J. Fisher, and J. Struik. 2001. Guide to design criteria for bolted
and riveted joints. Chicago: AISC.
Li, L., J. B. Mander, and R. P. Dhakal. 2008. “Bidirectional cyclic loading
experiment on a 3D beam-column joint designed for damage avoid-
ance.” J. Struct. Eng. 134 (11): 1733–1742. https://doi.org/10.1061
/(ASCE)0733-9445(2008)134:11(1733).
MacRae, G., and K. Kawashima. 2001. “Seismic behavior of hollow stiff-
ened steel bridge columns.” J. Bridge Eng. 6 (2): 110–119. https://doi
.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1084-0702(2001)6:2(110).
Mander, J., and C. Cheng. 1997. Seismic resistance of bridge piers based
on damage avoidance design. Technical Rep. No. NCEER-97-0014.
New York: Univ. of Buffalo.
Moradi, S., and M. S. Alam. 2016. “Finite-element simulation of postten-
sioned steel connections with bolted angles under cyclic loading.”
J. Struct. Eng. 142 (1): 04015075. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)ST
.1943-541X.0001336.
Nishikawa, K., S. Yamamoto, T. Natori, K. Terao, H. Yasunarni, and
M. Terada. 1996. “An experimental study on improvement of seismic
performance of existing steel bridge piers.” [In Japanese.] J. Struct. Eng.
42 (3): 975–986.
Palermo, A. 2004. “Use of controlled rocking in the seismic design of
bridges.” Ph.D. thesis, Technical Institute of Milan.
Palermo, A., S. Pampanin, and D. Marriott. 2007. “Design, modeling, and
experimental response of seismic resistant bridge piers with postten-
sioned dissipating connections.” J. Struct. Eng. 133 (11): 1648–1661.
https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9445(2007)133:11(1648).
Pampanin, S., M. J. N. Priestley, and S. Sritharan. 2001. “Analytical mod-
elling of the seismic behavior of precast concrete frames designed with
ductile connections.” J. Earthquake Eng. 5 (3): 329–367. https://doi.org
/10.1080/13632460109350397.
Priestley, M. N., and J. R. Tao. 1993. “Seismic response of precast pre-
stressed concrete frames with partially debonded tendons.” PCI J.
38 (1): 58–69. https://doi.org/10.15554/pcij.01011993.58.69.
Rahmzadeh, A., and M. S. Alam. 2017. “Cyclic behavior of post-tensioned
steel connections with shape memory alloy angles.” In Proc., 6th Int.
Conf. on Engineering Mechanics and Materials. Vancouver, BC,
Canada: Canadian Society for Civil Engineering.
J. Struct. Eng.
 Ricles, J. M., R. Sause, M. M. Garlock, and C. Zhao. 2001. “Posttensioned
seismic-resistant connections for steel frames.” J. Struct. Eng.
127 (2): 113–121. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9445(2001)
127:2(113).
Ricles, J. M., R. Sause, S. W. Peng, and L. W. Lu. 2002. “Experimental
evaluation of earthquake resistant posttensioned steel connections.”
J. Struct. Eng. 128 (7): 850–859. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733
-9445(2002)128:7(850).
Rodgers, G. W., K. M. Solberg, J. B. Mander, J. G. Chase, B. A. Bradley,
and R. P. Dhakal. 2012. “High-force-to-volume seismic dissipators
embedded in a jointed precast concrete frame.” J. Struct. Eng.
138 (3): 375–386. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)ST.1943-541X
.0000329.
Solberg, K., N. Mashiko, J. Mander, and R. Dhakal. 2009. “Performance
Downloaded from ascelibrary.org by University Of British Columbia on 04/12/19. Copyright ASCE. For personal use only; all rights reserved.
of a damage-protected highway bridge pier subjected to bidirectional
earthquake attack.” J. Struct. Eng. 135 (5): 469–478. https://doi.org/10
.1061/(ASCE)0733-9445(2009)135:5(469).
Stone, W. C., G. S. Cheok, and F. S. John. 1995. “Performance of hybrid
moment-resisting precast beam-column concrete connections subjected
to cyclic loading.” Struct. J. 92 (2): 229–249. https://doi.org/10.14359
/1145.
Susantha, K., T. Aoki, and T. Kumano. 2006. “Strength and ductility evalu-
ation of steel bridge piers with linearly tapered plates.” J. Constr. Steel
Res. 62 (9): 906–916. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcsr.2005.11.006.
© ASCE 04018210-15
J. Struct. Eng., 2018, 144(11): 04018210
Thonstad, T., B. J. Kennedy, J. A. Schaefer, M. O. Eberhard, and J. F.
Stanton. 2017. “Cyclic tests of precast pretensioned rocking bridge-
column subassemblies.” J. Struct. Eng. 143 (9): 04017094. https://doi
.org/10.1061/(ASCE)ST.1943-541X.0001823.
Tremblay, R., M. Lacerte, and C. Christopoulos. 2008. “Seismic response
of multistory buildings with self-centering energy dissipative steel
braces.” J. Struct. Eng. 134 (1): 108–120. https://doi.org/10.1061
/(ASCE)0733-9445(2008)134:1(108).
Trono, W., G. Jen, M. Panagiotou, M. Schoettler, and C. P. Ostertag. 2015.
“Seismic response of a damage-resistant recentering posttensioned-
HYFRC bridge column.” J. Bridge Eng. 20 (7): 04014096. https://doi
.org/10.1061/(ASCE)BE.1943-5592.0000692.
Vasdravellis, G., T. L. Karavasilis, and B. Uy. 2013. “Large-scale exper-
imental validation of steel posttensioned connections with web hour-
glass pins.” J. Struct. Eng. 139 (6): 1033–1042. https://doi.org/10.1061
/(ASCE)ST.1943-541X.0000696.
White, S., and A. Palermo. 2016. “Quasi-static testing of posttensioned
nonemulative column-footing connections for bridge piers.” J. Bridge
Eng. 21 (6): 04016025. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)BE.1943-5592
.0000872.
Wolski, M., J. M. Ricles, and R. Sause. 2009. “Experimental study of a self-
centering beam-column connection with bottom flange friction device.”
J. Struct. Eng. 135 (5): 479–488. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)ST
.1943-541X.0000006.
J. Struct. Eng.