• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• 제59권1호
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• pp.15-36
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• 2016

The components of the seismic behavior factor of RC frames are expected to change as structural redundancy increases. Most researches indicate that increasing redundancy is desirable in response to stochastic events such as earthquake loading. The present paper investigated the effect of redundancy on a fixed plan for seismic behavior factor components and the nonlinear behavior of RC frames. The 3D RC moment resistant frames with equal lateral resistance were designed to examine the role of redundancy in earthquake-resistant design and to distinguish it from total overstrength capacity. The seismic behavior factor and dynamic behavior of structures under natural strong ground motions were numerically evaluated as the judging criteria for structural seismic behavior. The results indicate that increasing redundancy alone in a fixed plan cannot be defined as a criterion for improving the structural seismic behavior.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• 제85권6호
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• pp.781-791
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• 2023

Lateral pressure plays a significant role in the stress-strain relationship of compressed concrete. Concrete's internal cracking resistance, ultimate strain, and axial strength are improved by confinement. This phenomenon influences the nonlinear behavior of reinforced concrete columns. Utilizing behavior factors to predict the nonlinear seismic responses of structures is prevalent in seismic codes, and this factor plays a vital role in the seismic responses of structures. This study aims to evaluate the confining action on the behavior factor of reinforced concrete moment resisting frames (RCMRFs) with shear walls (SWRCMRFs). To this end, a diverse range of mid-rise SW-RCMRFs was initially designed based on the Iranian national building code criteria. Second, the stress-strain curve of each element was modeled twice, both with and without the confinement phenomenon. Each frame was then subjected to pushover analysis. Finally, the analytical behavior factors of these frames were computed and compared to the Iranian seismic code behavior factor. The results demonstrate that confining action increased the behavior factors of SW-RCMRFs by 7-12%.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• 제16권2호
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• pp.185-196
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• 2019

One of the shortcomings of seismic bridge design codes is the lack of clarity in defining the role of different seismic isolation systems with linear or nonlinear behavior in terms of R-factor. For example, based on AASHTO guide specifications for seismic isolation design, R-factor for all substructure elements of isolated bridges should be half of those expressed in the AASHTO standard specifications for highway bridges (i.e., R=3 for single columns and R=5 for multiple column bent) but not less than 1.50. However, no distinction is made between two commonly used types of seismic isolation devices, i.e., elastomeric rubber bearing (ERB) with linear behavior, and lead rubber bearing (LRB) with nonlinear behavior. In this paper, five existing bridges located in Iran with two types of deck-pier connection including ERB and LRB isolators, and two bridge models with monolithic deck-pier connection are developed and their R-factor values are assessed based on the Uang's method. The average R-factors for the bridges with ERB isolators are calculated as 3.89 and 4.91 in the longitudinal and transverse directions, respectively, which are not in consonance with the AASHTO guide specifications for seismic isolation design (i.e., R=3/2=1.5 for the longitudinal direction and R=5/2=2.5 for the transverse direction). This is a clear indicator that the code-prescribed R-factors are conservative for typical bridges with ERB isolators. Also for the bridges with LRB isolators, the average computed R-factors equal 1.652 and 2.232 in the longitudinal and transverse directions, respectively, which are in a good agreement with the code-specified R-factor values. Moreover, in the bridges with monolithic deck-pier connection, the average R-factor in the longitudinal direction is obtained as 2.92 which is close to the specified R-factor in the bridge design codes (i.e., 3), and in the transverse direction is obtained as 2.41 which is about half of the corresponding R-factor value in the specifications (i.e., 5).

• Wind and Structures
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• 제31권2호
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• pp.153-164
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• 2020

In the design of buildings, lateral loading is one of the most important factors considered by structural designers. The concept of performance-based design (PBD) is well developed for seismic load. Whereas, wind design is mainly based on elastic analysis for both serviceability and strength. For tall buildings subject to extreme wind load, inelastic behavior and application of the concept of PBD bear consideration. For seismic design, current practice primarily presumes inelastic behavior of the structure and that energy is dissipated by plastic deformation. However, due to analysis complexity and computational cost, calculations used to predict inelastic behavior are often performed using elastic analysis and a response modification factor (R). Inelastic analysis is optionally performed to check the accuracy of the design. In this paper, a framework for application of an R factor for wind design is proposed. Theoretical background on the application and implementation is provided. Moreover, seismic and wind fatigue issues are explained for the purpose of quantifying the modification factor R for wind design.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• 제1권2호
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• pp.215-230
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• 2010

The main objectives of this work were to investigate the effects of the nonlinear behavior of the isolation pads on the seismic response of bridges with rubber bearings, and to identify when base isolation improved their seismic performance. To achieve these objectives a parametric study was conducted designing a set of bridges for three different soil types and varying the number of spans, span lengths, and pier heights. The seismic responses (accelerations, displacements and pier seismic forces) were evaluated for three different structural models subjected to three earthquakes with different dynamic characteristics. The first represented bridges without base isolation; the second corresponded to the same bridges including now rubber bearings as an isolation system, with linear elastic behavior that shifted the natural period of the bridge by a factor of 2 to 4. In the third model the seismic response of bridges supported on lead-Rubber bearings was studied accounting for the nonlinear behavior of the lead. The results show clearly the importance of the nonlinear behavior on the seismic performance of the bridges.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• 제2권1호
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• pp.65-88
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• 2011

A new method for the seismic design of plane steel moment resisting frames is developed. This method determines the design base shear of a plane steel frame through modal synthesis and spectrum analysis utilizing different values of the strength reduction (behavior) factor for the modes considered instead of a single common value of that factor for all these modes as it is the case with current seismic codes. The values of these modal strength reduction factors are derived with the aid of a) design equations that provide equivalent linear modal damping ratios for steel moment resisting frames as functions of period, allowable interstorey drift and damage levels and b) the damping reduction factor that modifies elastic acceleration spectra for high levels of damping. Thus, a new performance-based design method is established. The direct dependence of the modal strength reduction factor on desired interstorey drift and damage levels permits the control of deformations without their determination and secures that deformations will not exceed these levels. By means of certain seismic design examples presented herein, it is demonstrated that the use of different values for the strength reduction factor per mode instead of a single common value for all modes, leads to more accurate results in a more rational way than the code-based ones.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• 제82권1호
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• pp.55-67
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• 2022

The precast reinforced concrete frame system is a method for industrialization of construction. However, the seismic performance factor of this structural system is not explicitly clarified in some existing building codes. In this paper, the seismic performance factor for the existing precast concrete building frame systems with cast-in-situ reinforced shear walls were evaluated. Nonlinear behavior of the precast beam-column joints and cast-in-situ reinforced shear walls were considered in the modeling of the structures. The ATC-19's coefficient method was used for calculating the seismic performance factor and the FEMA P-695's approach was adopted for evaluating the accuracy of the computed seismic performance factor. The results showed that the over-strength factor varies from 2 to 2.63 and the seismic performance factor (R factor) varies from 5.1 to 8.95 concerning the height of the structure. Also, it was proved that all of the examined buildings have adequate safety against the collapse at the MCE level of earthquake, so the validity of R factors was confirmed. The obtained incremental dynamic analysis (IDA) results indicated that the minimum adjusted collapse margin ratio (ACMR) of the precast buildings representing the seismic vulnerability of the structures approximately equaled to 2.7, and pass the requirements of FEMA P-695.

• 한국지진공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국지진공학회 2000년도 춘계 학술발표회 논문집 Proceedings of EESK Conference-Spring
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• pp.259-266
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• 2000

This study was conducted to investigate the seismic behavior assessment of circular reinforcement concrete bridge piers particularly with regard to assessing the displacement ductility curvature ductility response modification factor(R) and plastic hinge region etc, The experimental variables of bridge piers test consisted of transverse steel details amount and spacing different axial load levels etc. The test results indicated that reinforcement concrete bridge piers with confinement steel by the code specification exhibited suffcient ductile behavior and seismic performance. Also it is found that current seismic design code specification of confinement steel requirements may be revised.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• 제20권4호
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• pp.389-403
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• 2021

Skewed bridges, being irregular structures with complicated dynamic behavior, are more susceptible to earthquake damage. Reliable seismic-resistant design of skewed bridges can be achieved by accurate determination of nonlinear seismic demands. However, the effect of geometric characteristics on the response modification factor (R-factor) is not accounted for in bridge design practices. This study attempts to investigate the effects of changes in the number of spans, skew angle and bearing stiffness on R-factor values and to assess the seismic fragility of skewed bridges. Results indicated that changes in the skew angle had no significant effect on R-factor values which were in consonance with code-prescribed R values. Also, unlike the increase in the number of spans that resulted in a decrease in the R-factor, the increase in bearing stiffness led to higher R-factor values. Findings of the fragility analysis implied that although the increase in the number of spans, as well as the increase in the skew angle, led to a higher failure probability, greater values of bearing stiffness reduced the collapse probability. For practicing design engineers, it is recommended that maximum demands on substructure elements to be calculated when the excitation angle is applied along the principal axes of skewed bridges.

• Structural Monitoring and Maintenance
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• 제7권4호
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• pp.295-317
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• 2020

Investigation of the stability of arch dam abutments is one of the most important aspects in the analysis of this type of dams. To this end, the Bakhtiari dam, a doubly curved arch dam having six wedges at each of its abutments, is selected. The seismic safety of dam abutments is studied through time history analysis using the design-based earthquake (DBE) and maximum credible earthquake (MCE) hazard levels. Londe limit equilibrium method is used to calculate the stability of wedges in abutments. The thrust forces are obtained using ABAQUS, and stability of wedges is calculated using the code written within MATLAB. Effects of foundation flexibility, grout curtain performance, vertical component of earthquake, nonlinear behavior of materials, and geometrical nonlinearity on the safety factor of the abutments are scrutinized. The results show that the grout curtain performance is the main affecting factor on the stability of the abutments, while nonlinear behavior of the materials is the least affecting factor amongst others. Also, it is resulted that increasing number of the contraction joints can improve the seismic stability of dam. A cap is observed on the number of joints, above which the safety factor does not change incredibly.