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Experimental studies on rolling Shear Strength properties of Douglas fir CLT and Monotonic Behaviour of Dowelled Connections

By Minghao Li, Justin Brown and Wenchen Dong, June 2018.

Download SWP-T053 (pdf)

Executive summary

Cross laminated timber (CLT) production and research in NZ is currently dominated by Radiata pine. However, there is a significant resource of Douglas-fir (D. fir) available in NZ, not widely processed on-shore. CLT is a potential high-value building product for the D.Fir resource but some important mechanical properties of D.Fir CLT and the associated connection behaviour remain largely unknown. Thus, there is a need to establish a comprehensive database of the mechanical properties and connection behavior of D.Fir CLT in order for designers to specify D.Fir CLT in building design.

In this project, two important design properties for D.Fir CLT, i.e., rolling shear (RS) strength and embedment strength, were evaluated by short-span bending tests and embedment tests following standard test methods. Commonly used dowelled hold-down connections in CLT buildings were also tested to evaluate the critical connection behavior in terms of strength, stiffness, and ductility. The test results showed that the D.Fir CLT specimens demonstrated good RS and embedment properties and the dowelled connections also showed reliable behaviour with high strength and stiffness and superior ductility. 

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