• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.2 no.4
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• pp.305-312
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• 2006

In the case of hospital buildings, where seismic design requirements are very high, existing structuresand especially those attacked by past earthquakes, appear, often, unable to fulfil the necessary safety prerequisites. In this paper, the retrofitting of hospital buildings is investigated, using alternative methods of repair and strengthening. Analysis of an existing hospital building in Patras, Greece, is performed. The load-bearing system is a reinforced concrete system. Two solutions are proposed: strengthening using concrete jackets around column and beam elements and application of viscoelastic dampers for the increase of the stability of the structure. Adequate finite element models are constructed for each case and conclusions are drawn on the efficiency of each rehabilitation method.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.81-94
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• 1994

It is well recognized that structures designed to resist strong ground motions should be able to withstand substantial inelastic deformations. A simple procedure has been developed in this paper to monitor the dynamic earthquake response (time-history analysis) of both steel and concrete multistorey buildings in the inelastic range. The building is treated as a shear beam model with three degrees of freedom per floor. The entire analysis has been programmed to run on a microcomputer and can output time histories of displacements, velocities, accelerations and member internal forces at any desired location. A record of plastic hinge formation and restoration to elastic state is also provided. Such information can be used in aseismic analysis and design of multistorey buildings so as to control the damage and optimize their performance.

• Proceedings of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute Conference
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• 1991.04a
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• pp.61-67
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• 1991

Conventional aseismic design methods of reinforced concrete frame all but disregard the state of damage over the entire building frame. This paper presents an automated damage-contorlled design method, which aims for uniform damage distribution throughout the entire building frame, as measured by the individual mumber damage indexes. Three design parameters, namely the longitudinal steel ratio, the confinement steel ratio and the frame member depth, were studied for their influence on the frame responce to an earthquake. The usefulness of this design method is demonstrated with a four story example office building predicting the extent of structural damage.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.219-227
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• 2021

This building is a forty-eight story, 170 meters high multiple dwelling house with Dual Frame System (DFS), a coupled vibration system connecting two independent structures with hydraulic dampers. Generation of large deformation between two structures during earthquakes contributes to make the hydraulic dampers effective. To improve the aseismic performance more, this building adopts DFS hybrid system that consists of DFS and base isolation system. About typical floors, columns and beams are constructed with LRV precast concrete method that shorten the construction period greatly by integrating column-beam joints in column members.

• 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.

• Proceedings of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea Conference
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• 1997.10a
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• pp.201-208
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• 1997

In most seismic codes such as the Uniform Building Code(UBC), the response modification factor(or the force reduction factor)is used to reflect the capability of a structure in dissipating energy through inelastic behavior. The response modification factor is assigned according to structural system type. Ductile systems such as special moment-resisting steel frames are assigned larger values of the response modification factor, and are consequently designed for smaller seismic design forces. Therefore, structural damage may occur during a severe earthquake. To ensure safety of the structures, the suitability of the response modification factor used in aseismic design procedures shall be evaluated. The object of this study is to develop a method for the evaluating of the response modification factor. The validity of the evaluating method has been examined for several cases of different structures and different earthquake excitations.

• Proceedings of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute Conference
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• 1998.04a
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• pp.414-421
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• 1998

The content of this paper consists of two related subjects. One is the assessment of damages in the existing structure and the other is the evaluation of seismic capacity of the structure with damage. A method is presented for damage assessment of existing structures using the modal data measured at limited points by the inverse medal perturbation technique. For efficient damage assessment, the number of the unknown probable damaged members is reduced for each damage identification by grouping the members in the large structure. The aseismic capacity is evaluated for the structure using the results of damage assessment. An example analysis is carried out for a building structure subjected to different earthquake excitations.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.299-306
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• 2023

An overview of seismic isolation and structural control in Japan is presented. The paper includes a mention of the history of aseismic technology and the earthquake threat in Japan, summarizes the merits of seismic isolation and response control, and discusses the types of devices used and some recent project examples. The projects presented are mostly examples of response control used for high-rise buildings. These types of buildings are not amendable to seismic isolation, and are a challenge to applying damping devices, as their high aspect ratio means that their dominant deformation mode is bending. Japanese engineers have developed a range of unique techniques to apply response control to these types of structures. Concluding remarks discuss some of the current challenges to expanding the use of seismic isolation and response control technologies.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Building Construction
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.113-119
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• 2008

Recently, fiber reinforced polymers(FRP) composite materials are used extensively in the rehabilitation of concrete structural members. A main application is to wrap beams and columns using the continuous fibers sheets to improve their strength and ductility. The corner chamfering affects significantly the performance of the continuous fibers sheets, and could lead to environmental problem with waste and dust. The main purpose of this paper is to verify the effect of corner conditions on the strength of the continuous fiber sheets, and to introduce new attached components which can avoid environmental problem. A total of 15 specimens were tested and carefully checked for three types of continuous fiber sheets(carbon, glass, and aramid) and three types of corner conditions(non-chamfering, chamfering, and device attaching). It is proved that the devices proposed in this research have some capabilities to use for RC member. But additional research will be needed for commercializing.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.603-623
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• 2015

The scale and nature of the recent earthquakes in the world and the related earthquake disaster index coerce the concerned community to become anxious about it. Therefore, it is crucial that seismic lateral load effect will be appropriately considered in structural design. Application of seismic isolation system stands as a consistent alternative against this hazard. The objective of the study is to evaluate the structural and economic feasibility of reinforced concrete (RC) buildings with base isolation located in medium risk seismic region. Linear and nonlinear dynamic analyses as well as linear static analysis under site-specific bi-directional seismic excitation have been carried out for both fixed based (FB) and base isolated (BI) buildings in the present study. The superstructure and base of buildings are modeled in a 3D finite element model by consistent mass approach having six degrees of freedom at each node. The floor slabs are simulated as rigid diaphragms. Lead rubber bearing (LRB) and High damping rubber bearing (HDRB) are used as isolation device. Change of structural behaviors and savings in construction costing are evaluated. The study shows that for low to medium rise buildings, isolators can reduce muscular amount of base shears, base moments and floor accelerations for building at soft to medium stiff soil. Allowable higher horizontal displacement induces structural flexibility. Though incorporating isolator increases the outlay, overall structural cost may be reduced. The application of base isolation system confirms a potential to be used as a viable solution in economic building design.