Shear response of isolated angle brackets for cross-laminated timber buildings

In cross-laminated timber (CLT) buildings, acoustic behaviour presents a major concern due to low frequency noise transmission. To reduce the disturbing sound transmission over the flanking parts, special elastic layers with fine celled structure are being used between the CLT wall and CLT slab together with insulated angle bracket connections. However, the seismic response of the developed isolated connection and the influence of insulation bedding on the seismic response of CLT structures have not yet been studied.
In the paper, shear tests on small specimens of CLT panels placed on polyurethane elastomer insulation bedding and fastened to CLT floor with innovative insulated steel angle bracket are presented. Altogether 5 monotonic and 10 cyclic shear tests were performed. Specimens with four types of bedding material varying in stiffness and compression load were tested and compared with tests on specimens of panels and floors connected with uninsulated steel bracket without any bedding. The experiments have shown that insulation bedding does not have much influence on the load-bearing capacity and the ductility of the system; however insulation bedding changes the stiffness characteristics of the system which may be important when designing the structures.