## 6 Discussion on the Results
The hysteresis loops produced during these experiments were particularly tight and non-symmetric, reflecting a critically diminished capacity for energy dissipation. Notably, one specimen featuring a deficient column lap splice exhibited an anomalously asymmetric response, wherein the splice failure in a unidirectional loading scenario triggered a significant reduction in strength during that half-cycle. These experimental findings are relatively uncommon and serve to underline how the interplay of multiple detailing inadequacies, such as deficient lap splices combined with inadequate joint ties, can result in complex hysteretic degradation. Collectively, the joint testing results consistently indicate that insufficient joint and core detailing contributes to rapid degradation of stiffness and poor energy dissipation, positioning these joints as a critical weakness in older structural frameworks. [PERSON] and [PERSON] [70] emphasized that significant structural damage results from a high capacity for energy absorption. This leads to the inference that a substantial area under the story shear-inter-story drift curves--representing total absorbed energy--inevitably results in excessive damage and permanent deformation. Furthermore, hysteretic energy is defined as that part of the mechanical energy absorbed by a structure during a cycle of loading which is not recovered during the cycle of unloading. It is the area inside a plot of load versus displacement that depicts the loading and unloading cycle of a system. Hysteretic energy is known to be dissipated in a material when it is subjected to loading and unloading conditions. While many models have been developed to portray the complex behavior of materials and structures under cyclic loading, few are capable of describing adequately the deterioration of mechanical properties of materials subjected to low cycle (frequency) fatigue [71]. The analysis presented in Figure 11, which vividly illustrates the hysteretic response of the tested specimens, provides an invaluable qualitative insight into the energy dissipation mechanisms and stiffness degradation phenomena that underpin the seismic behavior of the RC frames. This figure graphically depicts the progressive evolution of hysteresis loops, thereby capturing the cyclic deterioration of structural performance, as manifested in the gradual degradation of the restoring forces. However, while Figure 12 effectively conveys the visual narrative of damage through the widening and pinching of hysteresis loops, it stops short of offering a direct, quantitative measure of damage. To bridge this gap, we have employed the Park-Ang damage index [72] (D), which is a seminal quantitative measure in seismic engineering that synthesizes both the displacement demand and the energy dissipation capacity of a structure under cyclic loading. This integration of displacement and energy parameters facilitates a more nuanced and objective quantification of structural damage, thereby complementing the qualitative assessments  
Figure 12: Hysteretic response of the specimens. derived from Figure 12. The Park-Ang damage index values for the three specific scenarios, specifically Specim 1 subjected to 0.35 g, Specim 2 also subjected to 0.35 g, and Specim 2 under 1 g, were determined to be 0.89, 0.03, and 0.34, respectively. When these quantitative indices are compared with the qualitative observations derived from Figure 11, a coherent correlation emerges. Specim 1 under 0.35 g excitation exhibits a pronounced hysteretic response with extensive energy dissipation and significant displacement, which is consistent with its high damage index (D \(\approx\) 0.89). In stark contrast, the retrofitted frame, Specim 2, displays negligible hysteretic activity and minimal displacement at low seismic levels (0.35 g), as reflected in an exceptionally low damage index (D \(\approx\) 0.03).