Modular building system with rocking cross-laminated timber panels for reusable construction: Experimental seismic assessment

This paper presents a novel modular building system that employs cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels, advancing sustainable and adaptable construction practices. The timber modules are interconnected through metallic friction-based damper devices (FDDs), forming easy-to-assemble connections and enhancing seismicperformance by concentrating deformations in low-cost, replaceable components. The system’s response mechanism is characterised by rocking motion, with gravity loads from the floors providing re-centring and limiting residual drifts after earthquakes. Comprehensive testing was conducted on a full-scale building specimen at the European Laboratory for Structural Assessment (ELSA) to assess the seismic performance of the proposed system. The experiments included cumulative hybrid earthquake tests, subjecting the structure to a sequence of ground motions with increasing intensity using the pseudodynamic (PsD) testing method. The system withstood high-intensity seismic inputs while maintaining structural integrity and self-centring capability. Under the most demanding input, corresponding to a collapse-prevention-level ground motion scaled to 180 %, peak inter-storey drift ratios remained below about 1.6 %, residual drifts at the end of the record did not exceed 0.04 %, and no damage was observed in the CLT panels, with inelastic deformations confined to the FDDs. Designed for efficient transport, rapid assembly and disassembly, the system adopts a design-for deconstruction (DfD) philosophy that minimises construction waste and facilitates component reuse. Its modularity makes it suitable for rapid deployment in post-disaster scenarios and temporary infrastructures for major events, allowing the same structural components to serve multiple successive building lifecycles. The results support the wider use of masstimber rocking systems in seismic-prone regions and provide valuable insights for developing resilient and sustainable building solutions.

KALLIORAS Stylianos;  LAMPERTI TORNAGHI Marco;  BOURNAS Dionysios;  PELOSO Simone;  MOLINA Francisco Javier; 

2026-03-27

ELSEVIER SCI LTD

JRC143097

1873-7323 (online),   

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0141029626000362?via%3Dihub,    https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC143097,   

10.1016/j.engstruct.2026.122124 (online),