Standard installation methods in Japan for non-load-bearing walls made of AAC panels

摘要

Ever since AAC was introduced in Japan in 1962, original installation methods suitable for the Japanese environment have been developed. Furthermore, the demand for high-resistance walls which can withstand seismic action has been rising, especially after the great Hanshin-Awaji earthquake disaster of 1995. AAC manufacturers in Japan have been promoting the "vertical-wall rocking method," which gives excellent earthquake resistance. The rocking method is now used almost everywhere in Japan, and the conventional "vertical-wall reinforcing-bar insertion method" is no longer a standard method. In the rocking method, the AAC panel is fixed onto an exclusive metal plate with an anchor installed in the longitudinal direction at both ends of the AAC panel; the metal plate is in turn fixed into the building's steel frame with bolts. During an earthquake, each panel becomes slightly rotated due to storey drift. Cracks were observed at 1/300 rad of the storey drift angle with the reinforcing-bar insertion method, but were not observed even at 1/60 rad with the rocking method.