Revisiting the Versatility of Seismic Load-enabled Reinforced Concrete Beam Column Linkage

Abstract

In the seismic load-facilitated (vertical and lateral) reinforced concrete beam-column (RCBC), strong linkages are
vital to protect the integrity of any civil structure foundation. Compared to other structural components, these joints
often collapse during an earthquake in the seismic locations due to plastic-hinge zone mechanism. Most of the
earlier reports on these issues mainly focused on two-dimensional RCBC joints and seldom emphasized on the need
of three-dimensional RCBC linkages. Based on this fact, we critically overviewed several recent-state-of-the-art
studies carried out on the improvement of RCBC linkages subjected to seismic loading. A careful evaluation of
these articles revealed that the factors like shear strength (SS), failure, processing and selection of materials, as well
as methods of strengthening (MS) of these RCBC joints are responsible for the collapse. It is established that for low
axial load the ductility and bending resistance of the column must be enhanced to strengthen the RCBC links,
enabling the diagonal strips or bars more robust than vertical ones and vice versa. Briefly, this article may provide
the taxonomy for navigating the researchers into this field, leading to future sustainable development in the civil
engineering construction sectors.