• Earthquakes and Structures
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• 제14권4호
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• pp.337-347
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• 2018

This paper presents some shaking table tests conducted on a 1/4-scaled model with 5-story steel reinforced concrete (SRC) spatial frame with irregular section columns under a series of base excitations with gradually increasing acceleration peaks. The test frame was subjected to a sequence of seismic simulation tests including 10 white noise vibrations and 51 seismic simulations. Each seismic simulation was associated with a different level of seismic disaster. Dynamic characteristic, strain response, acceleration response, displacement response, base shear and hysteretic behavior were analyzed. The test results demonstrate that at the end of the loading process, the failure mechanism of SRC frame with irregular section columns is the beam-hinged failure mechanism, which satisfies the seismic code of "strong column-weak beam". With the increase of acceleration peaks, accumulated damage of the frame increases gradually, which induces that the intrinsic frequency decreases whereas the damping ratio increases, and the peaks of acceleration and displacement occur later. During the loading process, torsion deformation appears and the base shear grows fast firstly and then slowly. The hysteretic curves are symmetric and plump, which shows a good capacity of energy dissipation. In summary, SRC frame with irregular section columns can satisfy the seismic requirements of "no collapse under seldom earthquake", which indicates that this structural system is suitable for the construction in the high seismic intensity zone.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• 제10권2호
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• pp.389-408
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• 2016

Recently, seismic hazard analysis has become a very significant issue. New systems and available data have been also developed that could help scientists to explain the earthquakes phenomena and its physics. Scientists have begun to accept the role of uncertainty in earthquake issues and seismic hazard analysis. However, handling the existing uncertainty is still an important problem and lack of data causes difficulties in precisely quantifying uncertainty. Ground Motion Prediction Equation (GMPE) values are usually obtained in a statistical method: regression analysis. Each of these GMPEs uses the preliminary data of the selected earthquake. In this paper, a new fuzzy method was proposed to select suitable GMPE at every intensity (earthquake magnitude) and distance (site distance to fault) according to preliminary data aggregation in their area using ${\alpha}$ cut. The results showed that the use of this method as a GMPE could make a significant difference in probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA) results instead of selecting one equation or using logic tree. Also, a practical example of this new method was described in Iran as one of the world's earthquake-prone areas.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• 제22권1호
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• pp.49-63
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• 2020

Studying the critical response characteristics of box culverts with diverse geometrical configurations under seismic excitations is a necessary step to develop a reasonable design method. In this work, a numerical parametric study is conducted on various soil-culvert systems, aiming to highlight the critical difference in the seismic performances between three- and four-sided culverts. Two-dimensional numerical models consider a variety of burial depths, flexibility ratios and foundation widths, assuming a visco-elastic soil condition, which permits to compare with the analytical solutions and previous studies. The results show that flexible three-sided culverts at a shallow depth considerably amplify the spectral acceleration and Arias intensity. Larger racking deformation and rocking rotation are also predicted for the three-sided culverts, but the bottom slab influence decreases with increasing burial depth and foundation width. The bottom slab combined with the burial depth and structural stiffness also significantly influences the magnitude and distribution of the dynamic earth pressure. The findings of this work shed light on the critical role of the bottom slab in the seismic responses of box culverts and may have a certain reference value for the preliminary seismic design using R-F relation.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제46권5호
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• pp.699-706
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• 2014

The probabilistic seismic performance of a standard Korean nuclear power plant (NPP) with an idealized isolation is investigated in the present work. A probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA) of the Wolsong site on the Korean peninsula is performed by considering peak ground acceleration (PGA) as an earthquake intensity measure. A procedure is reported on the categorization and selection of two sets of ground motions of the Tohoku earthquake, i.e. long-period and common as Set A and Set B respectively, for the nonlinear time history response analysis of the base-isolated NPP. Limit state values as multiples of the displacement responses of the NPP base isolation are considered for the fragility estimation. The seismic risk of the NPP is further assessed by incorporation of the rate of frequency exceedance and conditional failure probability curves. Furthermore, this framework attempts to show the unacceptable performance of the isolated NPP in terms of the probabilistic distribution and annual probability of limit states. The comparative results for long and common ground motions are discussed to contribute to the future safety of nuclear facilities against drastic events like Tohoku.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제47권6호
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• pp.766-775
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• 2015

The integrity assessment of reactor vessel internals should be conducted in the design process to secure the safety of nuclear power plants. Various loads such as self-weight, seismic load, flow-induced load, and preload are applied to the internals. Therefore, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Code, Section III, defines the stress limit for reactor vessel internals. The present study focused on structural response analyses of the upper guide structure upper flange. The distributions of the stress intensity in the flange body were analyzed under various design load cases during normal operation. The allowable stress intensities along the expected sections of stress concentration were derived from the results of the finite element analysis for evaluating the structural integrity of the flange design. Furthermore, seismic analyses of the upper flange were performed to identify dynamic behavior with respect to the seismic and impact input. The mode superposition and full transient methods were used to perform time-history analyses, and the displacement at the lower end of the flange was obtained. The effect of the damping ratio on the response of the flange was also evaluated, and the acceleration was obtained. The results of elastic and seismic analyses in this study will be used as basic information to judge whether a flange design meets the acceptance criteria.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제53권4호
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• pp.1331-1344
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• 2021

This study is to evaluate the seismic capacity of the fire-damaged cabinet facility in a nuclear power plant (NPP). A prototype of an electrical cabinet is modeled using OpenSees for the numerical simulation. To capture the nonlinear behavior of the cabinet, the constitutive law of the material model under the fire environment is considered. The experimental record from the impact hammer test is extracted trough the frequency-domain decomposition (FDD) method, which is used to verify the effectiveness of the numerical model through modal assurance criteria (MAC). Assuming different temperatures, the nonlinear time history analysis is conducted using a set of fifty earthquakes and the seismic outputs are investigated by the fragility analysis. To get a threshold of intensity measure, the Monte Carlo Simulation (MCS) is adopted for uncertainty reduction purposes. Finally, a capacity estimation model has been proposed through the investigation, which will be helpful for the engineer or NPP operator to evaluate the fire-damaged cabinet strength under seismic excitation. This capacity model is presented in terms of the High Confidence of Low Probability of Failure (HCLPF) point. The results are validated by the proper judgment and can be used to analyze the influences of fire on the electrical cabinet.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• 제24권1호
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• pp.53-64
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• 2023

Earth fissures with several kilometers will inevitably approach or cross the metro line, significantly threatening the safety of the underground structure in the earth fissure site. However, the influence of the earth fissure site's amplification effect on the metro station's dynamic response is still unclear. A representative earth fissure in Xi'an was taken as an example to establish a numerical model of a metro station in the earth fissure site. The dynamic response characteristics of the metro stations at different distances from the earth fissure under various seismic waves were calculated. The results show that the existence of the earth fissure significantly amplifies the dynamic response of the nearby underground structures. The responses of the axial force, shear force, bending moment, normal stress, horizontal displacement, inter-story drift, and relative slip of the metro station were all amplified within a specific influence range. The amplification effect increases with the seismic wave intensity. The amplification effect caused by the earth fissure has relatively weak impacts on the axial shear, shear force, bending movement, normal stress, and horizontal movement; slightly larger impacts on the inter-story drift and acceleration; and a significant impact on the relative slip. The influence ranges of the axial force and normal stress are approximately 20 m. The influence ranges of the acceleration and inter-story drift can reach 30 m. Therefore, the seismic fortification level of the underground structure in the earth fissure site needs to be improved.

• 한국지진공학회논문집
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• 제27권6호
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• pp.237-244
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• 2023

This study analyzes the seismic response of traffic light poles, considering soil-foundation effects through nonlinear static and time history analyses. Two poles are investigated, uni-directional and bi-directional, each with 9 m mast arms. Finite element models incorporate the poles, soil, and concrete foundations for analysis. Results show that the initial stiffness of the traffic light poles decreases by approximately 38% due to soil effects, and the drift ratio at which their nonlinear behavior occurs is 77% of scenarios without considering soil effects. The maximum acceleration response increases by about 82% for uni-directional poles and 73% for bi-directional poles, while displacement response increases by approximately 10% for uni-directional and 16% for bi-directional poles when considering soil-foundation effects. Additionally, increasing ground motion intensity reduces soil restraints, making significant rotational displacement the dominant response mechanism over flexural displacement for the traffic light poles. These findings underscore the importance of considering soil-foundation interactions in analyzing the seismic behavior of traffic light poles and provide valuable insights to enhance their seismic resilience and safety.

• 한국지진공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국지진공학회 2002년도 춘계 학술발표회 논문집
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• pp.187-194
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• 2002

Bridge dynamic behaviors and the failure of the foundation are examined in this study under seismic excitations including the local scour effect. The simplified mechanical model, which can consider the effect of various influence elements, is proposed to simulate the bridge motions. The scour depths around the foundations are estimated by the CSU equation recommended by the HEC-18 and the local scour effect upon global bridge motions is then considered by applying various foundation stiffness based upon the reduced embedded depths. From the simulation results, it is found that seismic responses of a bridge with the same scour depth for both foundations increase due to the local scour effect. The bridge scour is found to be significant under weak and moderate seismic intensity. The recovery durations of the foundation stiffness after local scour are found to be critical in the estimation of the probability of foundation failure under earthquakes. Therefore, the safety of the whole bridge system should be conducted with the consideration of the scour effect upon the foundations and the recovery duration of stiffness should be determined rationally.

• KCI Concrete Journal
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• 제13권2호
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• pp.26-32
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• 2001

A simple expected damage cost model is developed and a systematic approach to evaluate the economic effects of seismic hazards to reinforced concrete structures is presented. An expected damage cost function during a specific lifetime is modeled by a Poisson's process with uniform continuous cash flow assumption. It is possible that the proposed method can decouple the damage cost effect from random earthquake events. Thus, expected damage cost function can be formulated as a combination of three independent terms; a present worth factor of Poisson's process, a damage cost interpolation function and a mean occurrence rate of earthquake intensity. The validity of the proposed method is demonstrated by a comparative study of LCC evaluations with the previous study.