Design equations for moment strength of RBS-B connections

Reduced Beam Section (RBS) moment connections are newly developed connections for Special Moment Resisting Frames (SMRF). This study focuses on Reduced Beam Section with Bolted web connections (RBS-B). Several experiments have demonstrated that some RBS-B connection specimens failed prior to reaching the plastic moment capacity of the reduced beam sections: this may be attributed to insufficient moment strength in the RBS-B connections. This study proposes a new procedure for accurately computing the moment strength for ensuring that a plastic hinge forms in the reduced-section region of the beam, as intended by design.