• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.85-94
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• 2018

The paper focuses on the seismic responses of a hyperbolic cooling tower resting on soil foundation represented by the three-parameter Vlasov elastic soil model. The three-parameter soil model eliminates the necessity of field testing to determine soil parameters such as reaction modulus and shear parameter. These parameters are calculated using an iterative procedure depending on the soil surface vertical deformation profile in the model. The soil and tower system are modeled in SAP2000 structural analysis program using a computing tool coded in MATLAB. The tool provides a two-way data transfer between SAP2000 and MATLAB with the help of Open Application Programming Interface (OAPI) feature of SAP2000. The response spectrum analyses of the tower system with circular V-shaped supporting columns and annular raft foundation on elastic soil are conducted thanks to the coded tool. The shell and column forces and displacements are presented for different soil conditions and fixed raft base condition to investigate the effects of soil-structure interaction. Numerical results indicate that the flexibility of soil foundation leads to an increase in displacements but a decrease in shell membrane and column forces. Therefore, it can be stated that the consideration of soil-structure interaction in the seismic response analysis of the cooling tower system provides an economical design process.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.161-189
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• 2015

Soil-pile raft-structure interaction is recognized as a significant phenomenon which influences the seismic behaviour of structures. Soil structure interaction (SSI) has been extensively used to analyze the response of superstructure and piled raft through various modelling and analysis techniques. Major drawback of previous study is that overall interaction among entire soil-pile raft-superstructure system considering highlighting the change in design forces of various components in structure has not been explicitly addressed. A recent study addressed this issue in a broad sense, exhibiting the possibility of increase in pile shear due to SSI. However, in this context, relative stiffness of raft and that of pile with respect to soil and length of pile plays an important role in regulating this effect. In this paper, effect of relative stiffness of piled raft and soil along with other parameters is studied using a simplified model incorporating pile-soil raft and superstructure interaction in very soft, soft and moderately stiff soil. It is observed that pile head shear may significantly increase if the relative stiffness of raft and pile increases and furthermore stiffer pile group has a stronger effect. Outcome of this study may provide insight towards the rational seismic design of piles.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.21-32
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• 2024

This study performed the seismic response analysis of an LNG storage tank supported by a disconnected piled raft foundation (DPRF) with a load transfer platform (LTP). For this purpose, a precise analytical model with simultaneous consideration of Fluid-Structure Interaction (FSI) and Soil-Structure Interaction (SSI) was used. The effect of the LTP characteristics (thickness, stiffness) of the DPRF system on the seismic response of the superstructure (inner and outer tanks) and piles was analyzed. The analytical results were compared with the response of the piled raft foundation (PRF) system. The following conclusions can be drawn from the numerical results: (1) The DPRF system has a smaller bending moment and axial force at the head of the pile than the PRF system, even if the thickness and stiffness of the LTP change; (2) The DPRF system has a slight stiffness of the LTP and the superstructure member force can increase with increasing thickness. This is because as the stiffness of the LTP decreases and the thickness increases, the natural frequency of the LTP becomes closer to the natural frequency of the superstructure, which may affect the response of the superstructure. Therefore, when applying the DPRF system, it is recommended that the sensitivity analysis of the seismic response to the thickness and stiffness of the LTP must be performed.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.51 no.1
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• pp.93-101
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• 2024

This paper presents an experimental and analytical study on a steel slit damper designed as an energy dissipative device for earthquake protection of structures considering soil-structure interaction. The steel slit damper is made of a steel plate with a number of slits cut out of it. The slit damper has an advantage as a seismic energy dissipation device in that the stiffness and the yield force of the damper can be easily controlled by changing the number and size of the vertical strips. Cyclic loading tests of the slit damper are carried out to verify its energy dissipation capability, and an analytical model is developed validated based on the test results. The seismic performance of a case study building is then assessed using nonlinear dynamic analysis with and without soil-structure interaction. The soil-structure system turns out to show larger seismic responses and thus seismic retrofit is required to satisfy a predefined performance limit state. The developed slit dampers are employed as a seismic energy dissipation device for retrofitting the case study structure taking into account the soil-structure interaction. The seismic performance evaluation of the model structure shows that the device works stably and dissipates significant amount of seismic energy during earthquake excitations, and is effective in lowering the seismic response of structures standing on soft soil.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
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• v.12 no.6
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• pp.55-63
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• 2008

This paper presents a seismic analysis technique for a 3D soil-structure interaction system in a frequency domain, based on the finite element formulation incorporating frequency-dependent infinite elements for the far field soil region. Earthquake input motions are regarded as traveling P, SV and SH waves which are incident vertically from the far-field soil region, and then equivalent earthquake forces are calculated using impedances of infinite soil by dynamic infinite elements and traction and displacement from free field response analysis. For verification and application, seismic response analyses are carried out for a multi-layered soil medium without structure and a typical nuclear power plant in consideration of soil-structure interaction. The results are compared with the free field response using a one-dimensional analytic solution, and a dynamic response of an example structure from another SSI package.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.187-200
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• 2021

The main factor for the amplification of ground motions near the crest or the toe of a slope is the reflection of the incident waves. The effects of the slope topography on the surrounding lands over the crest or at the toe can amplify the seismic responses of buildings. This study investigates the seismic performance of the slope topography and three mid-rise buildings (five, ten, and fifteen-storey) located near the crest and toe of the slope by 3D numerical analysis. The nonlinear model was used to represent the real behavior of building and ground elements. The average results of seven records were used in the investigations. Based on the analysis, the amplification factor of acceleration near the crest and toe of the slope was the most effective at distances of 2.5 and 1.3 times the slope height, respectively. Accordingly, the seismic performance of buildings was studied at a distance equal to the height of the slope from the crest and toe. The seismic response results of buildings showed that the slope topography to have little impact on up to five-storey buildings located near the crest. Taking into account a topography-soil-structure interaction system increases the storey displacement and base shear in the building. Accordingly, in topography-soil-structure interaction analyses, the maximum lateral displacement was increased by 71% and 29% in ten and fifteen-storey buildings, respectively, compare to the soil-structure interaction system. Further, the base shear force was increased by 109% and 78% in these buildings relative to soil-structure interaction analyses.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.275-290
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• 2006

In this paper, the performance of a tuned liquid damper (TLD) in suppressing the seismic response of buildings is investigated with shake table testing of a four-story steel frame model that rests on pile foundation. The model tests were performed in three phases with the steel frame structure alone, the soil and pile foundation system, and the soil-foundation-structure system, respectively. The test results from different phases were compared to study the effect of soil-structure interaction on the efficiency of a TLD in reducing the peak response of the structure. The influence of a TLD on the dynamic response of the pile foundation was investigated as well. Three types of earthquake excitations were considered with different frequency characteristics. Test results indicated that TLD can suppress the peak response of the structure up to 20% regardless of the presence of soils. TLD is also effective in reducing the dynamic responses of pile foundation.

• Proceedings of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea Conference
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• 1997.04a
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• pp.257-264
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• 1997

Seismic responses of the Hualien large scale seismic test model on a layered soil site are estimated for two recorded earthquakes and the analysis results are then compared and evaluated with the recorded responses. The method adopted for the analysis is based on substructuring method using a lumped parameter model in both the frequency and time domain. the study results indicate that the proposed method can reasonably estimate the earthquake responses of a soil-structure interaction system for engineering purposes.

• Coupled systems mechanics
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.293-310
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• 2024

This paper investigates the dynamic response of structures during earthquakes and provides a clear understanding of soil-structure interaction phenomena. It analyses various parameters, comprising ground shear wave velocity and structure properties. The effect of soil impedance function form on the structural response of the system through the use of springs and dashpots with two frequency cases: independent and dependent frequencies. The superstructure and the ground were modeled linearly. Using the substructure method, two different approaches are used in this study. The first is an analytical formulation based on the dynamic equilibrium of the soil-structure system modeled by an analog model with three degrees of freedom. The second is a numerical analysis generated with 2D finite element modeling using ABAQUS software. The superstructure is represented as a SDOF system in all the SSI models assessed. This analysis establishes the key parameters affecting the soil-structure interaction and their effects. The different results obtained from the analysis are compared for each studied case (frequency-independent and frequency-dependent impedance functions). The achieved results confirm the sensitivity of buildings to soil-structure interaction and highlight the various factors and effects, such as soil and structure properties, specifically the shear wave velocity, the height and mass of the structure. Excitation frequency, and the foundation anchoring height, also has a significant impact on the fundamental parameters and the response of the coupled system at the same time. On the other hand, it have been demonstrated that the impedance function forms play a critical role in the accurate evaluation of structural behavior during seismic excitation. As a result, the evaluation of SSI effects on structural response must take into account the dynamic properties of the structure and soil accordingly.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.939-963
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• 2016

According to the new directives about the rational and efficient use of energy, thermal bridges in buildings have to be avoided, and the thermal insulation (TI) layer should run without interruptions all around the building - even under its foundations. The paper deals with the seismic response of multi-storeyed reinforced concrete (RC) frame building structures founded on an extruded polystyrene (XPS) layer placed beneath the foundation slab. The purpose of the paper is to elucidate the problem of buildings founded on a TI layer from the seismic resistance point of view, to assess the seismic behaviour of such buildings, and to search for the critical parameters which can affect the structural and XPS layer response. Nonlinear dynamic and static analyses were performed, and the seismic response of fixed-base (FB) and thermally insulated (TI) variants of nonlinear RC building models were compared. Soil-structure interaction was also taken into account for different types of soil. The results showed that the use of a TI layer beneath the foundation slab of a superstructure generally induces a higher peak response compared to that of a corresponding system without TI beneath the foundation slab. In the case of stiff structures located on firm soil, amplification of the response might be substantial and could result in exceedance of the superstructure's moment-rotation plastic hinge capacities or allowable lateral roof and interstorey drift displacements. In the case of heavier, slenderer, and higher buildings subjected to stronger seismic excitations, the overall response is governed by the rocking mode of oscillation, and as a consequence the compressive strength of the XPS could be insufficient. On the other hand, in the case of low-rise and light-weight buildings, the friction capacity between the layers of the applied TI foundation set might be exceeded so that sliding could occur.