• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.135-156
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• 2014

In this research the effect of seismic design level as a practical approach for progressive collapse mitigation and reaching desired structural safety against it in seismically designed concentric braced frame buildings was investigated. It was achieved by performing preliminary and advanced progressive collapse analysis of several split-X braced frame buildings, designed for each seismic zone according to UBC 97 and by applying various Seismic Load Factors (SLFs). The outer frames of such structures were studied for collapse progression while losing one column and connected brace in the first story. Preliminary analysis results showed the necessity of performing advanced element loss analysis, consisting of Vertical Incremental Dynamic Analysis (VIDA) and Performance-Based Analysis (PBA), in order to compute the progressive collapse safety of the structures while increasing SLF for each seismic zone. In addition, by sensitivity analysis it became possible to introduce the equation of structural safety against progressive collapse for concentrically braced frames as a function of SLF for each seismic zone. Finally, the equation of progressive collapse safety as a function of bracing member capacity was presented.

• Advances in Computational Design
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.211-223
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• 2017

This research presented a numerical and experimental study on the seismic performance of first-generation base-isolated and fixed-base nuclear power plants (NPP). Three types of the base isolation system were applied to rehabilitate the first-generation nuclear power plants: frictional pendulum (FP), high-damping rubber (HDR) and lead-rubber (LR) base isolation. Also, an Excel program was proposed for the design of the abovementioned base isolators in accordance with UBC 97 and the Japan Society of Base Isolation Regulation. The seismic assessment was performed using the pushover and nonlinear time history analysis methods in accordance with the FEMA 356 regulation. To validate the adequacy of the proposed design procedure, two small-scale NPPs were constructed at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia's structural laboratory and subjected to a pushover test for two different base conditions, fixed and HDR-isolated base. The results showed that base-isolated structures achieved adequate seismic performance compared with the fixed-base one, and all three isolators led to a significant reduction in the containment's tension, overturning moment and base shear.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.53-63
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• 2007

Seismic design codes are developed mainly based on the observation of the behavior of structures in the high seismicity regions where structures may experience significant amount of inelastic deformations and major earthquakes may result in structural damages in a vast area. Therefore, seismic loads are reduced in current design codes for building structures using response modification factors which depend on the ductility capacity and overstrength of a structural system. However, structures in low seismicity regions, subjected to a minor earthquake, will behave almost elastically because of the larger overstrength of structures in low seismicity regions such as Korea. Structures in low seismicity regions may have longer periods since they are designed to smaller seismic loads and main target of design will be minor or moderate earthquakes occurring nearby. Ground accelerations recorded at stations near the epicenter may have somewhat different response spectra from those of distant station records. Therefore, it is necessary to verify if the seismic design methods based on high seismicity would he applicable to low seismicity regions. In this study, the adequacy of design spectra, period estimation and response modification factors are discussed for the seismic design in low seismicity regions. The response modification factors are verified based on the ductility and overstrength of building structures estimated from the farce-displacement relationship. For the same response modification factor, the ductility demand in low seismicity regions may be smaller than that of high seismicity regions because the overstrength of structures may be larger in low seismicity regions. The ductility demands in example structures designed to UBC97 for high, moderate and low seismicity regions were compared. Demands of plastic rotation in connections were much lower in low seismicity regions compared to those of high seismicity regions when the structures are designed with the same response modification factor. Therefore, in low seismicity regions, it would be not required to use connection details with large ductility capacity even for structures designed with a large response modification factor.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.65-71
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• 2014

Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, has seen a boom in construction in recent years. The old Baku city has been rapidly transforming into a new hub of high-rise buildings and lively cultural centers hosting the Euro Vision Song Contest in 2012 and European Games in 2015. A major population shift to Baku from its suburbs and the countryside has resulted in the doubling of Baku's population in the 4 years between 2009 and 2013. As of January 2013, Baku's population reached four million people, 43% of the citizens in Azerbaijan according to The State Statistical Committee of Azerbaijan. With this trend, the city needs more high-rise buildings to accommodate rapidly increasing demands for more housing and business space. Until the Azerbaijan Seismic Building Code was published in 2010 and became effective, many different seismic criteria, in terms of building codes and seismic intensities, were used for all new high-rise projects in Baku. Some designers used the SNIP (Russian) code with seismic level 9 or level 8 with 1 point penalty. Others used the Turkish code with Seismic Zone 1, UBC 97 with Zone 2 through 4, or IBC with Sa = 0.75 g through 1.0 g. The seismic intensity is now clarified with the Azerbaijan Seismic Building Code. However, the Azerbaijan Seismic Building Code is appropriate for low-rise buildings applications but may be inappropriate for high-rise project applications. This is because the code-defined response spectrum yields unrealistically conservative seismic forces for high-rise buildings with long periods, as compared to those determined by other internationally accepted building codes. This paper provides observations and recommendations for code-based seismic load assessment of high-rise buildings in the Baku area.