• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.207-216
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• 2017

Installing accelerometers in a building is an effective way to know how the building shakes when an earthquake happens. In this paper, we will introduce an example of an analysis that captures the acceleration reduction effect of the vibration damping device using data observed by the accelerometer at Roppongi Hills Mori Tower in Minato-ku, Tokyo, during the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011. Moreover, as the latest effort, from the standpoint of a developer who builds and operates a number of high-rise buildings in Japan, where frequent earthquakes are experienced, a system for real-time processing of accelerometer data was developed to instantly diagnose the degree of damage to high-rise buildings, and the actual system of earthquake damage health monitoring is discussed. This system is currently in operation in twelve high-rise buildings including Roppongi Hills Mori Tower.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.321-329
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• 2022

High-rise buildings constructed adjacent to low-rise structures experience frequent damage caused by the associated strong wind. This study aimed to implement a standard evaluation of the wind environment and airflow characteristics around high-rise apartment blocks using wind tunnel tests (WTT) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The correlation coefficient between the CFD and wind tunnel results ranged between 0.6-0.8. Correlations below 0.8 were due to differences in the wake flow area range generated behind the target building according to wind direction angle and the effect of the surrounding buildings. In addition, a difference was observed between the average velocity ratio of the wake flow wind measured by the WTT and by the CFD analysis. The wind velocity values of the CFD analysis were therefore compensated, and, consequently, the correlations for most wind angles increased.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.265-285
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• 2018

This paper presents a state-of-the-art review on the design, research and education aspects of fire safety engineering (FSE) with a particular concern on high-rise buildings. FSE finds its root after Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD, followed by Great London Fire in 1666. The development of modern FSE is continuously driven by industry revolution, insurance community and government regulations. Now FSE has become a unique engineering discipline and is moving towards performance-based design since 1990s. The performance-based fire safety design (PBFSD) involves identification of fire safety goals, design objectives, establishment of performance criteria, and selection of proper solutions for fire safety. The determination of fire scenarios and design fires have now become major contents for PBFSD. To experience a rapid and positive evolution in design and research consistent with other engineering disciplines, it is important for fire safety engineering as a profession to set up a special educational system to deliver the next-generation fire safety engineers. High-rise buildings have their unique fire safety issues such as rapid fire and smoke spread, extended evacuation time, longer fire duration, mixed occupancies, etc., bringing more difficulties in ensuring life safety and protection of property and environment. A list of recommendations is proposed to improve the fire safety of high-rise buildings. In addition, some source information for specific knowledge and information on FSE is provided in Appendix.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.31-41
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• 2016

High-rise buildings are increasingly viewed as having both technical and economic advantages, especially in areas of high population density. Increasingly taller buildings are being built worldwide. Increased heights entail increasing flexibility, which can result in serviceability problems associated with significant displacements and accelerations at higher floors. The purpose of this paper is to present the concept of a versatile vibration control technology (MR dampers with bracings) that can be used in super tall buildings. The proposed technology is shown to be effective, from a serviceability point of view, as well as resulting in dramatically reduced design wind loads, thus creating more resilient and sustainable buildings.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.221-226
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• 2022

Installation of Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) system is a legal obligation for high-rise buildings over 200 m or 50-floor high in South Korea. CNP Dongyang has developed key technologies for SHM system design, installation, and data analyzing. Also, CNP Dongyang has applied SHM technology to a plenty of South Korea's representative high-rise buildings. The SHM technology, also, could be used in safety management of construction phase, evaluation of structural performance, etc. In this paper, state of the art SHM technologies and their application examples are introduced to give insight for future research and practical use of SHM.

• 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.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.57-69
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• 2019

After decades of high-speed development, designing tall buildings as critical components of urban habitat, rather than simply standing aloof from their environments, has become an important concern in many Asian cities. Nevertheless, the lack of quantitative understanding cannot support efficient architectural design or urban renewal that targets better place-making. This study attempts to fill the gap by providing a typological approach for measuring the social impact of tall buildings' ground conditions: that is, public space, podiums, and interfaces. The central business districts (CBD) of three Asian cities, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Singapore, were selected as cases. Typical patterns and categories of lower-level public spaces among the three CBDs were abstracted via typological analyses and field study. The following evaluation is achieved through the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). This quantified approach helps to provide a visualization of high or low positive social impacts of tall buildings' lower-level public spaces among the three cases. This study also helps to suggest a design code for tall buildings aimed at a more human-oriented urban habitat.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.177-185
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• 2017

This research suggests the most effective way for improving energy efficiency in tall buildings is a "fabric-first" approach. This involves optimizing the performance of the building form and envelope as a first priority, with additional technologies a secondary consideration. The paper explores a specific fabric-first energy standard known as "Passivhaus". Buildings that meet this standard typically use 75% less heating and cooling. The results show tall buildings have an intrinsic advantage in achieving Passivhaus performance, as compared to low-rise buildings, due to their compact form, minimizing heat loss. This means high-rises can meet Passivhaus energy standards with double-glazing and moderate levels of insulation, as compared to other typologies where triple-glazing and super-insulation are commonplace. However, the author also suggests that designers need to develop strategies to minimize overheating in Passivhaus high-rises, and reduce the quantity of glazing typical in high-rise residential buildings, to improve their energy efficiency.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.4 no.4
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• pp.241-247
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• 2015

In this study, an approximate computer-based method was developed to analyze the behavior of raft and piled raft foundations. Special attention is given to the improved analytical method proposed by considering raft flexibility and soil nonlinearity. The overall objective of this study is to focus on the application of a simplified analysis method for predicting the behavior of sub-structures. Through the comparative studies, it is found that the computer programs (YS-MAT and YSPR), developed in this study, is in agreement with the general trends observed by field measurements. Therefore, YS-MAT (Yonsei-Mat) and YSPR (Yonsei Piled Raft) can be effectively used for the preliminary design of a raft or a piled raft foundation for high-rise buildings.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.315-323
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• 2020

In June 2016, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) in Japan delivered countermeasures against long-period ground motions caused by strong earthquakes along the Nankai trough. However, the countermeasures do not cover high-rise buildings equal to or shorter than 60 m in height, which do not require earthquake response analyses in the seismic design. Hence, in the present study, earthquake response analyses for such high-rise reinforced concrete (RC) buildings were performed under artificial ground motions assumed in the OS1 and OS2 regions to determine the base shear coefficients that satisfy a given safety demand. Furthermore, the results from the earthquake response analyses were estimated by the authors' proposed method based on the equivalent linearization method, showing good agreement and inspiring suggestions for more accurate and simplified estimations.