• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.983-1000
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• 2016

To date the engineering community has seen facade systems as non-structural elements with high aesthetic value and a barrier between the outdoor and indoor environments. The role of facades in energy use in a building has also been recognized and the industry is also witnessing the emergence of many energy efficient facade systems. This paper will focus on using exterior skin of the double skin facade system as a dissipative movable element during earthquake excitation. The main aim of this study is to investigate the potential of the facade system to act as a damper system to reduce earthquake-induced vibration of the primary structure. Unlike traditional mass dampers, which are usually placed at the top level of structures, the movable/smart double skin facade systems are distributed throughout the entire height of building structures. The outer skin is moveable and can act as a multi tuned mass dampers (MTMDs) that move and dissipate energy during strong earthquake motions. In this paper, using a three dimensional 10-storey building structure as the example, it is shown that with optimal choice of materials for stiffness and damping of brackets connecting the two skins, a substantial portion of earthquake induced vibration energy can be dissipated which leads to avoiding expensive ductile seismic designs. It is shown that the engineering demand parameters (EDPs) for a low-rise building structures subjected to moderate to severe earthquakes can be substantially reduced by introduction of a smart designed double skin system.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.1-12
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• 2023

Structures of high-rise buildings are less prone to earthquake damage. This is because the response acceleration of high-rise buildings appears to be small by generally occurring short-period ground motions. However, due to the increased construction volume of high-rise buildings and concerns about large earthquakes, long-period ground motions have begun to be recognized as a risk factor for high-rise buildings. Ground motion observed on each floor of the building is affected by the eigenmode of the building because the ground motion input to the building is amplified in the frequency range corresponding to the building's natural frequency. In addition, long-period components of ground motion are more easily transmitted to the floor or attached components of the building than short-period components. As such, high-rise buildings and non-structural components pose concerns about long-period ground motion. However, the criteria (ASCE 7-22) underestimate the acceleration response of buildings and non-structural components caused by long-period ground motion. Therefore, the characteristics of buildings' acceleration response amplification ratio and non-structural components were reviewed in this study through shake table tests considering long-period ground motions.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.177-193
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• 2017

The accelerated development of new materials, technologies and construction processes, in parallel with advances in computational algorithms and ever growing computational power, is leading to more daring and innovative architectural and structural designs. The search for non-regular building shapes and slender structures, as alternative to the traditional architectural forms that have been prevailing in the building sector, poses important engineering challenges in the assessment of the strength and mechanical stability of non-conventional structures and systems, namely against highly variable actions as wind and seismic forces. In case of complex structures, laboratory experiments are a widely used methodology for strength assessment and loading characterization. Nevertheless, powerful numerical tools providing reliable results are also available today and able to compete with the experimental approach. In this paper the wind action on a free-form complex thin shell is investigated through 3D-CFD simulation in terms of the pressure coefficients and global forces generated. All the modelling aspects and calibrating process are described. The results obtained showed that the CFD technique is effective in the study of the wind effects on complex-shaped structures.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Building Construction Conference
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• 2023.11a
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• pp.255-256
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• 2023

The purpose of this study is to confirm the feasibility of exploring the location of reinforcing bars using the resistivity method in concrete structures.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.275-281
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• 2019

The paper presents a generalization of existing analytical approaches to determine the across-wind aerodynamic damping of tall structures through the quasi-steady theory. The theory takes into account the nature of non-uniform wind, structural mode shapes and the variation of structural parameters. Numerical applications on a prototype high-rise building and a real sculptural tower point out that the common approach may be over simplified, giving rise to inappropriate predictions of the aerodynamic damping. The role of the structural mode shapes, usually being neglected for uniform structures, is then highlighted.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.66-74
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• 2017

Masonry walls which are commonly used for partitions in low-rise reinforced concrete (RC) structures, can be easily exposed to high risks under strong earthquakes. Since the strength degradations cannot be protected under the ground motions, their applications cannot be recommended for building structures which are designed to possess high seismic performances. However, masonry-infilled walls are typically considered as non-structural elements in evaluating the seismic performance of building structures. In order to figure out this problem, this study performed experiments using two specimens-only RC frame and RC frame infilled with masonry walls- under static loading. Also, the study established analytical models representing fully infilled frames and bare frame, and compared their structural behavior with test results. In addition, analytical model representing partially infilled frames was established and analyzed. Test results indicated that strength and energy dissipating capacity were increased for IW-RN(fully infilled frames) compared to the NW(bare frame). The nonlinear static analysis of the three specimens was also conducted using the inelastic plastic hinge frame element and diagonal strut models, and the analytical results successfully simulated the nonlinear behaviour of the specimens in accordance with the test results.

• Journal of Korean Association for Spatial Structures
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.6-13
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• 2020

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.157-179
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• 2013

Vulnerability studies on the existing building stock require that a large number of buildings is analyzed to obtain statistically significant evaluations of the seismic performance. Therefore, analytical evaluation methods need to be based on simplified methodologies of analysis which can afford the treatment of a large building population with a reasonable computational effort. Simplified Pushover-Based Earthquake Loss Assessment approach (SP-BELA), where a simplified methodology to identify the structural capacity of the building through the definition of a pushover curve is adopted, was developed on these bases. Main objective of the research work presented in this paper is to validate the simplified methodology implemented in SP-BELA against the results of more sophisticated nonlinear dynamic analyses (NLDAs). The comparison is performed for RC buildings designed only to vertical loads, representative of the "as built" in Italy and in Mediterranean countries with a building stock very similar to the Italian one. In NLDAs the non linear and degrading behaviour, typical of the structures under consideration when subjected to high seismic loads, is evaluated using models able to capture, with adequate accuracy, the non linear behaviour of RC structural elements taking into account stiffness degradation, strength deterioration, and pinching effect. Results show when simplified analyses are in good agreement with NLDAs. As a consequence, unsatisfactory results from simplified analysis are pointed out to address their current applicability limits.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.89-97
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• 2019

The non-linear equations governing wind-induced internal pressures for a two-compartment building with background leakage are linearized based on some reasonable assumptions. The explicit admittance functions for both building compartments are derived, and the equivalent damping coefficients of the coupling internal pressure system are iteratively obtained. The RMS values of the internal pressure coefficients calculated from the non-linear equations and linearized equations are compared. Results indicate that the linearized equations generally have good calculation precision when the porosity ratio is less than 20%. Parameters are analyzed on the explicit admittance functions. Results show that the peaks of the internal pressure in the compartment without an external opening (Compartment 2) are higher than that in the compartment with an external opening (Compartment 1) at lower Helmholtz frequency. By contrast, the resonance peak of the internal pressure in compartment 2 is lower than that in compartment 1 at higher Helmholtz frequencies.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.85-108
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• 2013

The research presented in this paper deals with the seismic protection of existing frame structures by means of passive energy dissipation. A displacement-based procedure to design dissipative bracings for the seismic protection of frame structures is proposed and some applications are discussed. The procedure is based on the displacement based design using the capacity spectrum method, no dynamic non linear analyses are needed. Two performance objective have been considered developing the procedure: protect the structure against structural damage or collapse and avoid non-structural damage as well as excessive base shear. The compliance is obtained dimensioning dissipative braces to limit global displacements and interstorey drifts. Reference is made to BRB braces, but the procedure can easily be extended to any typology of dissipative brace. The procedure has been validated through a comparison with nonlinear dynamic response of two 2D r.c. frames, one bare and one infilled. Finally a real application, on an existing 3D building where dissipative braces available on market are used, is discussed.