Mass Timber Hybrid Diaphragms

Steel / Mass Timber Hybrid Diaphragms and Vibration

RGA #04-23 aims to investigate the diaphragm and vibration behavior of steel-cross laminated timber (CLT) floors through experimental testing and numerical simulations.

Goal: This research will catalyze innovation within the building construction field by enabling efficient and effective designs of steel-CLT floors. There is growing interest in using mass timber products in buildings. One ideal combination of building materials is steel and mass timber, as they uniquely complement each other with sustainability benefits, the ability to span longer distances with steel beams, and a high-degree of prefabrication that has the potential to increase the speed of construction.

Industry need: Steel-CLT buildings are currently being constructed throughout the US. However, the existing design guides for diaphragm and vibration design have not been developed through experimental data. Therefore, the design of steel-CLT buildings may be overly conservative. This research will perform experimental investigations on steel-CLT diaphragm performance and vibration behavior to understand the behavior of steel-CLT diaphragms and develop design guidance for practicing structural engineers.

• Grant Details

  Project

  Steel / Mass Timber Hybrid Diaphragms and Vibration

  Grantee

  Oregon State University

  Category

  Mass Timber

  Grant #

  04-23

  Award Amount

  $400,000

  Grant Period

  11 October 2023 to 30 June 2026

  Grant Status

  Active

  Principal Investigators

  Erica Fischer, Oregon State University, and Adam Phillips, Virginia Tech

  Industry Champions

  Ron Klemencic, MKA, and Emily Guglielmo, Martin / Martin

  Supporters

  American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), Magnusson Klemencic Associates Foundation (MKAF), Softwood Lumber Board, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Martin / Martin, DCI Engineers, Holmes, ARUP, Metals Fab, KPFF Consulting Engineers

• Resources / Downloads

  In Development