Solid Walls

Solid wall panel simply refers to walls being made of solid concrete as opposed to
including integral insulation. These wall systems require some form of insulation
and an interior wall/finishing system to complete the building enclosures.
Typical widths: 4 to 15 ft.
Typical heights: 10 to 50 ft.
Typical thicknesses: 4 to 12 in.

Sandwich Walls
Insulated sandwich wall panels can be strictly architectural, strictly structural, or a
combination of both. The difference between typical panels and insulated sandwich
wall panels is that the latter are cast with rigid insulation "sandwiched" between two
layers, or wythes, of concrete. The insulation thickness can vary to create the
desired thermal insulating property ("R" value) for the wall.
The structural behavior is either:
Composite in which the wythes are connected using ties through the insulation
that fully transfer loads. The structural performance is then based on the full
thickness of the panel; or
Non-Composite in which the wythes are connected using ties through the
insulation, which limits performance to the individual capacities of each wythe.

Thin-Shell and GFRC

Thin-shell wall panels consist of a thin, outer-wythe of concrete typically ranging
between 1.5 and 3 inches in thickness. This is connected to a "back-up" system,
usually constructed of steel framing or studs, or sometimes concrete. The back-up
system is what connects the wall panel to the structural system of the building and
often provides the furring for interior finishes, such as drywall to be attached. Many
of these systems can also incorporate a layer of rigid insulation between the
exterior wythe of concrete and the back-up system.
Glass Fiber Reinforced Concrete (GFRC) is a thin-shell system where the
exterior wythe of concrete contains alkali-resistant glass fibers that is typically
sprayed into forms. The fibers increase tensile, flexural and impact strengths.
Both thin-shell systems reduce the weight of the panels relative to other precast
wall systems. Some can also be designed as load-bearing.
Typical shapes: Rectangular with rectangular openings to create openness
Typical sizes: 12 to 16 in. in width greater than the stem-to-stem spacing of the
supported double tees

Lite Walls
Light or "lite" walls are shear walls used in parking structures cast with an opening
in their center to provide visual continuity and to allow daylight or artificial
illumination to penetrate deeper into an interior. The components provide openness
and a feeling of security. These components should not be confused with "light
wells," which are internal, open courtyards designed to provide daylight to the
center of parking structures and other buildings.

As with other types of shear walls, lite walls serve as the lateral force-resisting
systems in the structure. They act as cantilever beams, transferring lateral forces
acting parallel to the face of the wall, from the superstructure to the foundation