This thesis is concerned with the behaviour of prestressed concrete framed structures under earthquake loading.

An experimental programme investigated the performance of four full-size, precast, prestressed concrete beam-column assemblies under high intensity cyclic load, and in particular studied the energy dissipation and ductility characteristics of the members.

Theoretical methods for predicting the moment-curvature characteristics of prestressed concrete members are developed and compared with experimental results. A monotonic loading analysis is utilised to show the effect of a number of practical section variables on ductility for seismic design. A further analysis to determine moment-curvature curves for cyclic loading of a general prestressed concrete section showed good correlation with experiment, including the behaviour subsequent to crushing of the cover concrete. An idealization of the moment-curvature characteristics is also presented for use in seismic response analyses.

A study is made of the relative earthquake responses of comparable prestressed concrete and reinforced concrete single-degree-of-freedom structures. On the basis of the greater response displacements indicated for prestressed concrete structures, a small increase in the seismic load factor for ultimate strength design of prestressed concrete structures over that for reinforced concrete structures is recommended.