• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.603-622
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• 2008

This work deals with the design optimization of tuned mass damper (TMD) devices used for mitigating vibrations in high-rise towers subjected to seismic accelerations. A stochastic approach is developed and the excitation is represented by a stationary filtered stochastic process. The effectiveness of the vibration control strategy is evaluated by expressing the objective function as the reduction factor of the structural response in terms of displacement and absolute acceleration. The mechanical characteristics of the tuned mass damper represent the design variables. Analyses of sensitivities are carried out by varying the input and structural parameters in order to assess the efficiency of the TMD strategy. Variations between two different criteria are also evaluated.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.45-57
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• 2020

This paper presents the experimental application of a new method for seismic vulnerability assessment of buildings recently introduced in literature, the SMAV (Seismic Model Ambient Vibration) methodology with reference to their operational limit state. The importance of this kind of evaluation arises from the civil protection necessity that some buildings, considered strategic for seismic emergency management, should retain their functionality also after a destructive earthquake. They do not suffer such damage as to compromise the operation within a framework of assessment of the overall capacity of the urban system. To this end, for the characterization of their operational vulnerability, a Structural Operational Index (IOPS) has been considered. In particular, the dynamic environmental vibrations of the two considered strategic buildings, the fire station and the town hall building of a small town in the South of Italy, have been monitored by positioning accelerometers in well-defined points. These measurements were processed through modern Operational Modal Analysis techniques (OMA) in order to identify natural frequencies and modal shapes. Once these parameters have been determined, the structural operational efficiency index of the buildings has been determined evaluating the seismic vulnerability of the strategic structures analyzed. his study aimed to develop a model to accurately predict the acceleration of structural systems during an earthquake.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.157-179
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• 2013

We present an approach, based on the state dependent Riccati equation, for designing non-collocated seismic response control strategies for buildings accounting for physical constraints, with particular attention to force saturation. We consider both cases of active control using general actuators and semi-active control using magnetorheological dampers. The formulation includes multi control devices, acceleration feedback and time delay compensation. In the active case, the proposed approach is a generalization of the classic linear quadratic regulator, while, in the semi-active case, it represents a novel generalization of the well-established modified clipped optimal approach. As discussed in the paper, the main advantage of the proposed approach with respect to existing strategies is that it allows to naturally handle a broad class of non-linearities as well as different types of control constraints, not limited to force saturation but also including, for instance, displacement limitations. Numerical results on a typical building benchmark problem demonstrate that these additional features are achieved with essentially the same control effectiveness of existing saturation control strategies.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.495-504
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• 2018

The possibility of earthquakes in vulnerable regions indicates that efficient technique is required for seismic protection of buildings. During the recent decades, the concept is moving towards the insertion of base isolation on seismic prone buildings. So, investigation of structural behavior is a burning topic for buildings to be isolated in base level by bearing device. This study deals with the incorporation of base isolation system and focuses the changes of structural responses for different types of Lead Rubber Bearing (LRB) isolators. A number of sixteen model buildings have been simulated selecting twelve types of bearing systems as well as conventional fixed-base (FB) scheme. The superstructures of the high-rise buildings are represented by finite element assemblage adopting multi-degree of freedoms. Static and dynamic analyses are carried out for FB and base isolated (BI) buildings. The dynamic analysis in finite element package has been performed by the nonlinear time history analysis (THA) based on the site-specific seismic excitation and compared employing eminent earthquakes. The influence of the model type and the alteration in superstructure behavior of the isolated buildings have been duly assessed. The results of the 3D multistory structures show that the lateral forces, displacement, inertia and story accelerations of the superstructure of the seismic prone buildings are significantly reduced due to bearing insertion. The nonlinear dynamic analysis shows 12 to 40% lessening in base shear when LRB is incorporated leading to substantial allowance of horizontal displacement. It is revealed that the LRB isolators might be potential options to diminish the respective floor accelerations, inertia, displacements and base shear whatever the condition coincides. The isolators with lower force intercept but higher isolation period is found to be better for decreasing base shear, floor acceleration and inertia force leading to reduction of structural and non-structural damage. However, LRB with lower isolator period seems to be more effective in dropping displacement at bearing interface aimed at reducing horizontal shift of building structure.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.35-42
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• 2021

In this study, a steel frame that realized the second floor of a structure was fabricated in referring to NFPA 13. In addition, a riser pipe system with groove joints was installed, and a seismic simulation test was performed using static cyclic loading. Cyclic loading tests on the maximum allowable side sway of seismic design standards for buildings in Korea were conducted using actuators to analyze the seismic behavior of the riser pipe system and major piping elements due to the deformation of the steel frame structure or the displacement-dominant behavior caused by the relative displacement between the structural members in the event of a seismic load. Moreover, the deformation angle of the riser pipe system was measured using an image measurement system because it is difficult to measure using the conventional sensors.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.5 no.6
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• pp.657-678
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• 2013

For economical earthquake resistant design of cable-stayed bridge tower, the use of energy dissipation systems for the earthquake protection of steel structures represents an alternative seismic design method where the tower structure could be constructed to dissipate a large amount of earthquake input energy through inelastic deformations in certain positions, which could be easily retrofitted after damage. The design of energy dissipation systems for bridges could be achieved as the result of two conflicting requirements: no damage under serviceability limit state load condition and maximum dissipation under ultimate limit state load condition. A new concept for cable-stayed bridge tower seismic design that incorporates sacrificial link scheme of low yield point steel horizontal beam is introduced to enable the tower frame structure to remain elastic under large seismic excitation. A nonlinear dynamic analysis for the tower model with the proposed energy dissipation systems is carried out and compared to the response obtained for the tower with its original configuration. The improvement in seismic performance of the tower with supplemental passive energy dissipation system has been measured in terms of the reduction achieved in different response quantities. Obtained results show that the proposed energy dissipation system of low yield point steel seismic link could strongly enhance the seismic performance of the tower structure where the tower and the overall bridge demands are significantly reduced. Low yield point steel seismic link effectively reduces the damage of main structural members under earthquake loading as seismic link yield level decreases due their exceptional behavior as well as its ability to undergo early plastic deformations achieving the concentration of inelastic deformation at tower horizontal beam.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.11 no.5
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• pp.435-451
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• 2013

High-rise buildings are a common feature of urban cities around the world. These flexible structures frequently exhibit large vibration due to strong winds and earthquakes. Structural control has been employed as an effective means to mitigate excessive responses; however, structural control mechanisms that can be used in tall buildings are limited primarily to mass and liquid dampers. An attractive alternative can be found in outrigger damping systems, where the bending deformation of the building is transformed into shear deformation across dampers placed between the outrigger and the perimeter columns. The outrigger system provides additional damping that can reduce structural responses, such as the floor displacements and accelerations. This paper investigates the potential of using smart dampers, specifically magnetorheological (MR) fluid dampers, in the outrigger system. First, a high-rise building is modeled to portray the St. Francis Shangri-La Place in Philippines. The optimal performance of the outrigger damping system for mitigation of seismic responses in terms of damper size and location also is subsequently evaluated. The efficacy of the semi-active damped outrigger system is finally verified through numerical simulation.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.163-170
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• 2020

Floor acceleration plays a major role in the seismic design of nonstructural components and equipment supported by structures. Large floor acceleration may cause structural damage to or even collapse of buildings. For precision instruments in high-tech factories, even small floor accelerations can cause considerable damage in this study. Six P-wave parameters, namely the peak measurement of acceleration, peak measurement of velocity, peak measurement of displacement, effective predominant period, integral of squared velocity, and cumulative absolute velocity, were estimated from the first 3 s of a vertical ground acceleration time history. Subsequently, a new predictive algorithm was developed, which utilizes the aforementioned parameters with the floor height and fundamental period of the structure as the new inputs of a support vector regression model. Representative earthquakes, which were recorded by the Structure Strong Earthquake Monitoring System of the Central Weather Bureau in Taiwan from 1992 to 2016, were used to construct the support vector regression model for predicting the peak floor acceleration (PFA) of each floor. The results indicated that the accuracy of the predicted PFA, which was defined as a PFA within a one-level difference from the measured PFA on Taiwan's seismic intensity scale, was 96.96%. The proposed system can be integrated into the existing earthquake early warning system to provide complete protection to life and the economy.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.89-102
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• 2020

Shape memory alloy (SMA)-based Superelasticity-assisted Slider (SSS) is proposed as an engineering solution to practically exploit the well-accepted advantages of both sliding isolation and SMA-based recentering. Self-centering capability in SSS is provided by austenitic SMA cables (or wire ropes), recently attracting a lot of interest and attention in earthquake engineering and seismic isolation. The cables are arranged in various novel and conventional configurations to make SSS versatile for aseismic design and retrofit of structures. All the configurations are detailed with thorough technical drawings. It is shown that SSS is applicable without the need for Isolation Units (IUs). IUs, at the same time, are devised for industrialized applications. The proof-of-concept study is carried out through the examination of mechanical behavior in all the alternative configurations. Force-displacement relations are determined. Isolation capabilities are predicted based on the decreases in seismic demands, estimated by the increases in effective periods and equivalent damping ratios. Restoring forces normalized relative to resisting forces are assessed as the criteria for self-centering capabilities. Lengths of SMA cables required in each configuration are calculated to assess the cost and practicality. Practical implementation is realized by setting up a small-scale IU. The effectiveness of SSS under seismic actions is evaluated using an innovative computer model and compared to those of well-known Isolation Systems (ISs) protecting a reference building. Comparisons show that SSS seems to be an effective IS and suitable for earthquake protection of both structural and non-structural elements. Further research aimed at additional validation of the system are outlined.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.50 no.8
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• pp.1387-1401
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• 2018

An aircraft impact (AI) on a nuclear power plant (NPP) is considered to be a beyond-design-basis event that draws considerable attention in the nuclear field. As some NPPs have already adopted the seismic isolation technology, and there are relevant standards to guide the application of this technology in future NPPs, a new challenge is that nuclear power engineers have to determine a reasonable method for performing AI analysis of base-isolated NPPs. Hence, dynamic influences of the seismic isolation on the vibration and structural damage characteristics of the base-isolated CPR1000 containment are studied under various aircraft loads. Unlike the seismic case, the impact energy of AI is directly impacting on the superstructure. Under the coupled influence of the seismic isolation and the various AI load, the flexible isolation layer weakens the constraint function of the foundation on the superstructure, the results show that the seismic isolation bearings will produce a large horizontal deformation if the AI load is large enough, the acceleration response at the base-mat will also be significantly affected by the different horizontal stiffness of the isolation bearing. These concerns require consideration during the design of the seismic isolation system.