Numerical Study on Optimal Design and Seismic Capacity of Double-Span RC Frame Structures with Exterior Verandahs

Abstract

Frame structures with exterior verandahs, which are mostly built in densely populated areas such as teaching buildings and dormitories in southern China, are a special form of frame structure that must continue to be developed. However, compared with other frame structures in many post-earthquake fields, this type of building designed following the Chinese code has demonstrated poor seismic performance, leading to a significant number of casualties and property losses. Therefore, to complement the design requirements of this structural type in the present Chinese code, the seismic performance of this structural type needs to be improved and optimized. A typical double-span RC frame structure with an exterior verandah in the Lushan Earthquake as the structure prototype was selected in this paper. PKPM software is used to obtain design information for the structure prototype, and the finite element model is established by utilizing ABAQUS software for simulation and analysis. A series of various optimal conditions are created at the base of the structure prototype’s simulation results, and a thorough investigation of the structural seismic performance under each condition is performed. Eventually, suggestions and proposals for future Chinese codes concerning the structurally optimum design of this structural type are provided.

Conservativeness Study on the Seismic Analysis Method for Research Reactor Plant Structure Based on TMSR-LF1

“…The previous analysis revealed that the TMSR-LF1 plant structure cannot meet the seismic design goal of "no collapse in large earthquakes" during seismic analysis by the elastoplastic time history analysis. Therefore, adequate reinforcement [27,35,36] is imperative. Since the damage of the structure mainly occurs in the aboveground part, the following three measures have been recommended to enhance and reinforce the structure components above +0 m elevation: (1) the column crosssectional size of the structure will be upgraded from 600 mm × 600 mm to 800 mm × 800 mm; (2) the infill wall and shear wall components on both sides of the exterior wall and aisle of the structure will be modified to shear walls with an 800 mm thickness; (3) the infill wall elements in Advances in Civil Engineering other areas of the structure will be replaced with shear walls with a thickness of 400 mm.…”

Time-History Analyses on the Effect of Partial Infill Walls on the Seismic Response of a Reinforced Concrete Frame Structure

“…Improved mathematical models of physical phenomena, coupled with more and more complex numerical models of civil engineering structures, resulted in accurate assessments of their behaviour under various loading conditions. Numerical simulations are now at the heart of every major research project, from reliability analyses [1,2], to assessing the behaviour of different structures in difficult site conditions [3][4][5], to optimizing the design process and increase the safety of newly built or strengthened buildings [6][7][8][9][10], to creating intervention strategies and relief plans in case of occurring natural disasters [11]. Time-history analysis (THA) is based on direct step-by-step integration of the equation of motion in time domain considering as input either the recorded accelerograms of real earthquakes or synthetically / artificially generated ones to fit design elastic response-spectra of different design codes.…”