In reinforced concrete structures under seismic loading, concrete is subjected to compressive cyclic stress. Although cyclic stress–strain response has been described before, the cyclic behavior of strains in the direction orthogonal to loading has not been characterized yet. Such behavior can be of great importance for evaluating the efficiency of the confinement under cyclic loading. For this purpose an experimental program on cylindrical specimens of concrete strength from 35 to 80 MPa subjected to uniaxial cyclic compression was carried out. Stress versus longitudinal and lateral strains curves have been obtained both for the hardening and softening branches under monotonic and cyclic loading. Governing parameters of the lateral behavior are identified and correlated to describe the response of the lateral strain. Additionally, an analytical model to obtain the lateral deformations of concrete under cyclic uniaxial compression has been formulated and verified experimentally. Finally, some examples are presented in order to illustrate the applicability of the proposed model and its possible incorporation into a 3D constitutive cyclic model.

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