• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.481-501
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• 2015

Current design codes and technical recommendations often provide rough indications on how to assess effective stiffness of Reinforced Concrete (R/C) frames subjected to seismic loads, which is a key factor when a linear analysis is performed. The Italian design code (NTC-2008), Eurocode 8 and ACI 318 do not take into account all the structural parameters affecting the effective stiffness and this may not be on the safe side when second-order $P-{\Delta}$ effects may occur. This paper presents a study on the factors influencing the effective stiffness of R/C beams, columns and walls under seismic forces. Five different approaches are adopted and analyzed in order to evaluate the effective stiffness of R/C members, in accordance with the scientific literature and the international design codes. Furthermore, the paper discusses the outcomes of a parametric analysis performed on an actual R/C building and analyses the main variables, namely reinforcement ratio, axial load ratio, concrete compressive strength, and type of shallow beams. The second-order effects are investigated and the resulting displacements related to the Damage Limit State (DLS) under seismic loads are discussed. Although the effective stiffness increases with steel ratio, the analytical results show that the limit of 50% of the initial stiffness turns out to be the upper bound for small values of axial-load ratio, rather than a lower bound as indicated by both Italian NTC-2008 and EC8. As a result, in some cases the current Italian and European provisions tend to underestimate second-order $P-{\Delta}$ effects, when the DLS is investigated under seismic loading.

• Proceedings of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea Conference
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• 2000.04a
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• pp.120-129
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• 2000

As structure-soil interaction analysis for the seismic analysis of structures requires a nonlinear analysis of a structure-soil system considering the inelastic characteristics of soil layers nonlinear analyses of the foundation-soil system with the horizontal excitation were performed considering the nonlinear soil conditions for the nonlinear seismic analysis of structures. Stiff soil profile of SD and soft soil profile of SE specified in UBC were considered for the soil layers of a foundation and Ramberg-Osgood model was assumed for the nonlinear characteristics of soil layers. Studies on the changes of dynamci stiffnesses and damping rations of surface and embedded foundations depending on foundation size soil layer depth and piles were performed to investigate the effects of the nonlinear soil layer on the horizontal and rotational dynamic stiffnesses and damping ratios of the foundation-soil system According to the study results nonlinear prperties of a soil laryer decreeased horizontal and rotational linear stiffnesses and increased damping ratios largely Effects of foundation size soil layer depth and piles were also significant suggesting the necessity of nonlinear seismic analyses of structures.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Pressure Vessels and Piping
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.67-74
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• 2017

Recently there have been many concerns on structural integrity of nuclear piping under seismic loadings. In terms of failure of nuclear piping due to seismic loadings, an important failure mechanism is low cycle fatigue with large cyclic displacements. To investigate the effects of seismic loading on low cycle fatigue behavior of nuclear piping, the cyclic behavior of materials and nuclear piping needs to be accurately estimated. In this paper, the non-linear finite element (FE) analyses have been carried out to evaluate the effects of three different cyclic hardening models on cyclic behavior of materials and nuclear piping, such as isotropic hardening, kinematic hardening and combined hardening.

• Proceedings of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute Conference
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• 1996.04a
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• pp.157-164
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• 1996

Analyses of linear sloshing modes and seismic responses for cylindrical vessel containing fluid are performed by general finite element computer program, ANSYS. In order to examine the effectiveness of the sloshing analysis procedure, the calculated results are compared with experimental ones in the literature. Liquid sloshing effects in cylindrical LNG vessel are analyzed and the fluid-structure interaction effects are evaluated under the seismic loads. The sloshing frequencies calculated agree well with experimental results. The forces and moments for fixed and isolated LNG vessel are also calculated to evaluate the sloshing effects.

• Proceedings of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea Conference
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• 1999.04a
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• pp.231-238
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• 1999

The longitudinal dynamic behaviors of the bridge system consisting of multiple simply supported spans under seismic excitations are examined considering pounding effects. The pounding phenomena between adjacent girders which may consequently result in the span collapses are modeled by using the multi-degree-of-freedom system, The inelastic behavior of the RC pier is also considered by adopting the hysteresis loop model and the p-$\delta$ effect. Motions of the foundation and abutment are also considered but the local damage resulting from the girder pounding assumed to be neligible. The developed model is found to give the appropriate information of the dynamic characteristics of the bridge behavior. It is observed that the pounding effect becomes significant as the peak acceleration of the seismic excitation increases. Under minor earthquakes the pounding tends to increase the relative displacements while under strong earthquakes it tends to decrease the relative displacements by restricting the longitudinal girder motions, therefore it is suggested that the pounding effects should be considered in the analysis of the relative displacements of the longitudinally adjacent girder motions.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.34-41
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• 2020

In recent years, magnitude and frequency of earthquakes have increased in Korea. Damage to a bridge, which is one of the main infrastructures, can directly lead to considerable loss of human lives. Therefore, engineers need to evaluate the seismic fragility of the structure and prepare for the possible seismic damage. In particular, the number of aging bridges over 30 years of service increases, and thus the seismic analysis and fragility requires accounting for the aging and retrofit effects on the bridge. In this study, the nonlinear static and dynamic analyses were performed to evaluate the effects of the aging and FRP retrofit on a PSC bridge. The aging and FRP retrofit were applied to piers that dominate the response of the bridge during earthquakes. The maximum displacement of the bridge increased due to the aging of the pier but decreased when FRP retrofit applied to the aged pier. In addition, seismic fragility analysis was performed to evaluate the seismic behavior of the bridge combined with the seismic performance of the pier. Compared with the aged bridge, the FRP retrofit bridge showed a decrease in the seismic fragility in all levels of damage. The reduction of the seismic fragility in the FRP bridge was prominent as the value of PGA and level of damage increased.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.5-19
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• 2009

Most of earthquake-induced geotechnical hazards have been caused by the site effects relating to the amplification of ground motion, which is strongly influenced by the local geologic conditions such as soil thickness or bedrock depth and soil stiffness. In this study, an integrated GIS-based information system for geotechnical data, called geotechnical information system (GTIS), was constructed to establish a regional counterplan against earthquake-induced hazards at an urban area of Daejeon, which is represented as a hub of research and development in Korea. To build the GTIS for the area concerned, pre-existing geotechnical data collections were performed across the extended area including the study area and site visits were additionally carried out to acquire surface geo-knowledge data. For practical application of the GTIS used to estimate the site effects at the area concerned, seismic zoning map of the site period was created and presented as regional synthetic strategy for earthquake-induced hazards prediction. In addition, seismic zonation for site classification according to the spatial distribution of the site period was also performed to determine the site amplification coefficients for seismic design and seismic performance evaluation at any site in the study area. Based on this case study on seismic zonations in Daejeon, it was verified that the GIS-based GTIS was very useful for the regional prediction of seismic hazards and also the decision support for seismic hazard mitigation.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.215-229
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• 2014

Due to the lack of effective longitudinal constraint for center tower, structural stiffness of three-tower suspension bridge becomes less than that of two-tower suspension bridge, and therefore it becomes more susceptible to the seismic action. By taking a three-tower suspension bridge-the Taizhou Highway Bridge over the Yangtze River with two main spans of 1080 m as example, structural dynamic characteristics and seismic performance of the bridge is investigated, and the effects of cable's sag to span ratio, structural stiffness of the center tower, and longitudinal constraint of the girder on seismic response of the bridge are also investigated, and the favorable structural system is discussed with respect to seismic performance. The results show that structural response under lateral seismic action is more remarkable, especially for the side towers, and therefore more attentions should be paid to the lateral seismic performance and also the side towers. Large cable's sag, flexible center tower and the longitudinal elastic cable between the center tower and the girder are favorable to improve structural seismic performance of long-span three-tower suspension bridges.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.513-534
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• 2003

Using fluid dampers to connect adjacent buildings for enhancing their seismic resistant performance has been recently investigated but limited to linear elastic adjacent buildings only. This paper presents a study of inelastic seismic response of adjacent buildings linked by fluid dampers. A nonlinear finite element planar model using plastic beam element is first constructed to simulate two steel frames connected by fluid dampers. Computed linear elastic seismic responses of the two steel frames with and without fluid dampers under moderate seismic events are then compared with the experimental results obtained from shaking table tests. Finally, elastic-plastic seismic responses of the two steel frames with and without fluid dampers are extensively computed, and the fluid damper performance on controlling inelastic seismic response of the two steel frames is assessed. The effects of the fundamental frequency ratio and structural damping ratio of the two steel frames on the damper performance are also examined. The results show that not only in linear elastic stage but also in inelastic stage, the seismic resistant performance of the two steel frames of different fundamental frequencies can be significantly enhanced if they are properly linked by fluid dampers of appropriate parameters.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.46 no.5
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• pp.595-604
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• 2014

SILER (Seismic-Initiated event risk mitigation in LEad-cooled Reactors) is a Collaborative Project, partially funded by the European Commission in the $7^{th}$ Framework Programme, aimed at studying the risk associated to seismic-initiated events in Generation IV Heavy Liquid Metal reactors, and developing adequate protection measures. The project started in October 2011, and will run for a duration of three years. The attention of SILER is focused on the evaluation of the effects of earthquakes, with particular regards to beyond-design seismic events, and to the identification of mitigation strategies, acting both on structures and components design. Special efforts are devoted to the development of seismic isolation devices and related interface components. Two reference designs, at the state of development available at the beginning of the project and coming from the $6^{th}$ Framework Programme, have been considered: ELSY (European Lead Fast Reactor) for the Lead Fast Reactors (LFR), and MYRRHA (Multi-purpose hYbrid Research Reactor for High-tech Applications) for the Accelerator-Driven Systems (ADS). This paper describes the main activities and results obtained so far, paying particular attention to the development of seismic isolators, and the interface components which must be installed between the isolated reactor building and the non-isolated parts of the plant, such as the pipe expansion joints and the joint-cover of the seismic gap.