Assessment of the Seismic Vulnerability of a Multi-storey RC Structure with Plan Irregularity: A Case Study

Abstract

A nine-story reinforced concrete dual system (wall-frame) building located in Bucharest, categorized as plan-asymmetric and designed according to the provisions of Romanian and European codes was studied. The criteria for regularity in plan were verified comparatively according to three codes (Eurocode 8, ASCE 7-16 and the Romanian seismic design code P100-1-2013). The seismic behaviour of the studied building was further investigated by detailed nonlinear static analyses (pushover) and nonlinear dynamic analyses performed on the 3-D building model, for various load patterns and spectrum-compatible ground motion records, respectively. The seismic vulnerability of the building was estimated based on the structural vulnerability index, determined from the nonlinear analyses. The study highlighted the significant effects of the overall torsion on the investigated parameters, in particular on interstory drifts and roof displacements, but also on the seismic vulnerability index.