• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.87 no.2
• /
• pp.173-189
• /
• 2023

For a given structural geometry, the stiffness and damping parameters of the soil and the dynamic response of the structure may change in the face of an equivalent linear soil behavior caused by a strong earthquake. Therefore, the influence of equivalent linear soil behavior on the impedance functions form and the seismic response of the soil-structure system has been investigated. Through the substructure method, the seismic response of the selected structure was obtained by an analytical formulation based on the dynamic equilibrium of the soil-structure system modeled by an analog model with three degrees of freedom. Also, the dynamic response of the soil-structure system for a nonlinear soil behavior and for the two types of impedance function forms was also analyzed by 2D finite element modeling using ABAQUS software. The numerical results were compared with those of the analytical solution. After the investigation, the effect of soil nonlinearity clearly showed the critical role of soil stiffness loss under strong shaking, which is more complex than the linear elastic soil behavior, where the energy dissipation depends on the seismic motion amplitude and its frequency, the impedance function types, the shear modulus reduction and the damping increase. Excellent agreement between finite element analysis and analytical results has been obtained due to the reasonable representation of the model.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.63 no.1
• /
• pp.115-124
• /
• 2017

In this paper, a different technique to predict the effects of soil-structure interaction (SSI) on seismic response of building systems is investigated. The technique use a machine learning algorithm called Support Vector Regression (SVR) with technical and analytical results as input features. Normally, the effects of SSI on seismic response of existing building systems can be identified by different types of large data sets. Therefore, predicting and estimating the seismic response of building is a difficult task. It is possible to approximate a real valued function of the seismic response and make accurate investing choices regarding the design of building system and reduce the risk involved, by giving the right experimental and/or numerical data to a machine learning regression, such as SVR. The seismic response of both single-degree-of-freedom system and six-storey RC frame which can be represent of a broad range of existing structures, is estimated using proposed SVR model, while allowing flexibility of the soil-foundation system and SSI effects. The seismic response of both single-degree-of-freedom system and six-storey RC frame which can be represent of a broad range of existing structures, is estimated using proposed SVR model, while allowing flexibility of the soil-foundation system and SSI effects. The results show that the performance of the technique can be predicted by reducing the number of real data input features. Further, performance enhancement was achieved by optimizing the RBF kernel and SVR parameters through grid search.

• Earthquakes and Structures
• /
• v.3 no.3_4
• /
• pp.549-561
• /
• 2012

Many building foundations are embedded, however it is not easy to compact the backfill around the foundation especially for the deeply embedded ones. The soil condition around the embedded foundation may affect the seismic response of a building due to the weak contact between the soil and the foundation. In this paper, the response accelerations in the short-period range and at the period of 1 second (in the long-period range) for a seismic design spectrum specified in the IBC design code were compared considering perfect and poor backfills to investigate the effect of backfill compaction around the embedded foundation. An in-house finite-element software (P3DASS) which has the capability of horizontal pseudo-3D seismic analysis with linear soil layers was used to perform the seismic analyses of the structure-soil system with an embedded foundation. Seismic analyses were carried out with 7 bedrock earthquake records provided by the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center (PEER), scaling the peak ground accelerations to 0.1 g. The results indicate that the poor backfill is not detrimental to the seismic response of a building, if the foundation is not embedded deeply in the soft soil. However, it is necessary to perform the seismic analysis for the structure-soil system embedded deeply in the soft soil to check the seismic resonance due to the soft soil layer beneath the foundation, and to compact the backfill as well as possible.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.89-94
• /
• 2014

Spatial variations of a seismic wave are mainly wave passage and wave scattering. Wave passage effect is produced by changed characteristics of exciting seismic input motions applied to the bedrock. Modified input motions travel horizontally with time differences determined by apparent shear wave velocity of the bedrock. In this study, wave passage effect on the seismic response of a structure-soil system is investigated by modifying the finite element software of P3DASS (Pseudo 3-Dimensional Dynamic Analysis of a Structure-soil System) to apply inconsistent (time-delayed) seismic input motions along the soft soil-bedrock interface. Study results show that foundation size affected on the seismic response of a structure excited with inconsistent input motions in the lower period range below 0.5 seconds, and seismic responses of a structure were decreased considerably in the lower period range around 0.05 seconds due to the wave passage. Also, shear wave velocity of the bedrock affected on the seismic response of a structure in the lower period range below 0.3 seconds, with significant reduction of the seismic response for smaller shear wave velocity of the bedrock reaching approximately 20% for an apparent shear wave velocity of 1000m/s at a period of 0.05 seconds. Finally, it is concluded that wave passage effect reduces the seismic response of a structure in the lower period range when the bedrock under a soft soil is soft or the bedrock is located very deeply, and wave passage is beneficial for the seismic design of a short period structure like a nuclear container building or a stiff low-rise building.

• Earthquakes and Structures
• /
• v.26 no.2
• /
• pp.149-162
• /
• 2024

Aiming at the current research on the dynamic response analysis of the vehicle-bridge system under earthquake, which fails to comprehensively consider the impact of seismic wave incidence angles, terrain effects and soil-structure dynamic interaction on the bridge structure, this paper proposes a multi-point excitation input method that can consider the oblique incidence seismic P Waves based on the viscous-spring artificial boundary theory, and verifies the accuracy and feasibility of the input method. An overall numerical model of vehicle-bridge-soil foundation system in valley terrain during oblique incidence of seismic P-wave is established, and the effects of seismic wave incidence characteristics, terrain effects, soil-structure dynamic interactions, and vehicle speeds on the dynamic response of the bridge are analyzed. The research results indicate that with an increase in P wave incident angle, the vertical dynamic response of the bridge structure decreased while the horizontal dynamic response increased significantly. Traditional design methods which neglect multi-point excitation would lead to an unsafe structure. The dynamic response of the bridge structure significantly increases at the ridge while weakening at the valley. The dynamic response of bridge structures under earthquake action does not always increase with increasing train speed, but reaches a maximum value at a certain speed. Ignoring soil-structure dynamic interaction would reduce the vertical dynamic response of the bridge piers. The research results can provide a theoretical basis for the seismic design of vehicle-bridge systems in complex mountainous terrain under earthquake excitation.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.34 no.4
• /
• pp.437-447
• /
• 2023

Inclined piles are commonly used in civil engineering constructions where significant lateral resistance is required. Many researchers proved their positive performance on the seismic behavior of the supported structure and the piles themselves. However, most of these numerical studies were done within the framework of linear elastic or elastoplastic soil behavior, neglecting therefore the soil non-linearity at low and moderate soil strains which is questionable and could be misleading in dynamic analysis. The main objective of this study is to examine the influence of the pile inclination on the seismic performance of the soil-pile-structure system when both the linear elastic and the nonlinear soil models are employed. Based on the comparative responses, the adequacy of the soil's linear elastic behavior will be therefore evaluated. The analysis is conducted by generating a three-dimensional finite difference model, where a full interaction between the soil, structure, and inclined piles is considered. The numerical survey proved that the pile inclination can have a significant impact on the internal forces generated by seismic activity, specifically on the bending moment and shear forces. The main disadvantages of using inclined piles in this system are the bending forces at the head and pile-to-head connection. It is crucial to account for soil nonlinearity to accurately assess the seismic response of the soil-pile-structure system.

• Earthquakes and Structures
• /
• v.24 no.5
• /
• pp.345-352
• /
• 2023

This paper studied the effect of soil-structure interaction (SSI) on the seismic response and retrofit of a reinforced concrete structure with a soft-first story for different soil types. A 5-story structure built on a 30m deep homogeneous soil mass was considered as a case study structure, and steel column jacketing and steel bracing were chosen as seismic retrofit methods. Seismic responses of a fixed-base and a flexible base structure subjected to seven scaled earthquake records were obtained using the software OpenSees to investigate the effect of soil on seismic response and retrofit. The nonlinearBeamColumn elements with the fiber sections were used to simulate the nonlinear behavior of the beams and columns. Soil properties were defined based on shear wave velocity according to categorized site classes defined in ASCE-7. The finite element model of the soil was made using isoparametric four-noded quadrilateral elements and the nonlinear dynamic responses of the combined system of soil and structure were calculated in the OpenSees. The analysis results indicate that the soil-structure interaction plays an important role in the seismic performance and retrofit of a structure with a soft-first story. It was observed that column steel jacketing was effective in the retrofit of the model structure on a fixed base, whereas stronger retrofit measures such as steel bracing were needed when soil-structure interaction was considered.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.58 no.6
• /
• pp.1045-1075
• /
• 2016

Shallow footings are one of the most common types of foundations used to support mid-rise buildings in high risk seismic zones. Recent findings have revealed that the dynamic interaction between the soil, foundation, and the superstructure can influence the seismic response of the building during earthquakes. Accordingly, the properties of a foundation can alter the dynamic characteristics (natural frequency and damping) of the soil-foundation-structure system. In this paper the influence that shallow foundations have on the seismic response of a mid-rise moment resisting building is investigated. For this purpose, a fifteen storey moment resisting frame sitting on shallow footings with different sizes was simulated numerically using ABAQUS software. By adopting a direct calculation method, the numerical model can perform a fully nonlinear time history dynamic analysis to realistically simulate the dynamic behaviour of soil, foundation, and structure under seismic excitations. This three-dimensional numerical model accounts for the nonlinear behaviour of the soil medium and structural elements. Infinite boundary conditions were assigned to the numerical model to simulate free field boundaries, and appropriate contact elements capable of modelling sliding and separation between the foundation and soil elements are also considered. The influence of foundation size on the natural frequency of the system and structural response spectrum was also studied. The numerical results for cases of soil-foundation-structure systems with different sized foundations and fixed base conditions (excluding soil-foundation-structure interaction) in terms of lateral deformations, inter-storey drifts, rocking, and shear force distribution of the structure were then compared. Due to natural period lengthening, there was a significant reduction in the base shears when the size of the foundation was reduced. It was concluded that the size of a shallow foundation influences the dynamic characteristics and the seismic response of the building due to interaction between the soil, foundation, and structure, and therefore design engineer should carefully consider these parameters in order to ensure a safe and cost effective seismic design.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.34 no.6
• /
• pp.649-664
• /
• 2023

Structural inertial interaction is a representative the effect of dynamic soil-foundation-structure interaction (SFSI), which leads to a relative displacement between soil and foundation, period lengthening, and damping increasing phenomena. However, for a system with a significantly heavy foundation, the dynamic inertia of the foundation influences and interacts with the structural seismic response. The structure-to-foundation mass ratio (MR) quantifies the distribution of mass between the structure and foundation for a structure on a shallow foundation. Although both systems exhibit the same vertical factor of safety (FS_v), the MR and corresponding seismic responses attributed to the structure and foundation masses may differ. This study explored the influence of MR on the permanent deformation and seismic response of soil-foundation-structure system considering SFSI via numerical simulations. Given that numerous dimensionless parameters of SFSI described its influence on the structural seismic response, the parameters, except for MR and FS_v, were fixed for the sensitivity analysis. The results demonstrated that the foundation inertia of heavier foundations induced more settlement due to sliding behavior of heavily-loaded systems. Moreover, the structural inertia of heavier structures evidently exhibited foundation rocking behavior, which results in a more elongated natural period of the structure for lightly-loaded systems.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
• /
• v.7 no.4
• /
• pp.15-22
• /
• 2003

Seismic design codes developed taking into account the strong earthquakes may result in unnecessary economical loss in the low seismic area, and the importance of the performance based design considering the soil-structure interaction is recognized for the reasonable seismic design. In this study. elastic and inelastic seismic response analyses of a single degree of freedom system on the soft soil layer were performed considering the nonlinearity of the soil for the 1 weak earthquakes scaled to the nominal peak accelerations of 0.07g and 0.11g. The seismic response analyses were performed in one step applying the earthquake motions to the bedrock, utilizing a pseudo 3-D dynamic analysis software of the soil-structure system. The study results indicated that seismic response spectra of a system assuming the rigid base or the linear soil layer does not represent the true behavior of a structure-soil system, and it is necessary to take into account the nonlinear soil-structure interaction effects and to perform the performance based seismic design for the various soil layers, having different characteristics, rather than to follow the routine design procedures specified in the design codes for the reasonable seismic design. The nonlinearity of the soft soil excited with the weak seismic motions also affected significantly on the elastic and inelastic seismic response spectra of a system due to the nonlinear soil amplification of the earthquake motions, and it was pronounced especially for the elastic response spectra.