This study aims to investigate the influence of near- and far-field earthquakes on the seismic performance of base-isolated Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) structures. Two earthquake motion groups of near-field and far-field characteristics are selected for fragility evaluation analysis. A base-isolated advanced reactor power 1400 (APR-1400) is employed for numerical analysis. A set of fragility curves are derived for various limit states based on the maximum likelihood estimation. The limit states are defined in terms of Lead Rubber Bearing (LRB) deformation capacity. The numerical results reveal that the median maximum deformations of LRBs were smaller for far-field ground motions than for near-field motions. Also, the comparison of fragility curves demonstrates that the probability of failure of base-isolated NPP structures is higher for near-field ground motions than far-field motions. It is crucial to select earthquake ground motions with both near- and far-field motions for the seismic evaluation of NPP structures.

The current work tries to valorize the bottom ash from Municipal Solid Waste Incineration (MSWI). The bottom ash from waste incineration consists of atypical granular materials. They are industrial by-products resulting from the incineration of domestic waste and the way of the considered valorization is road gravel. In this paper, we present the state parameters of bottom ash taken from a recycling company in the North of France. These features can help us evaluate our bottom ash according to the technical guide of realization of embankments and subgrades.