A Step Towards Evaluation of the Seismic Response Reduction Factor in Multistorey Reinforced Concrete Frames

A seismic nonlinear time-history analysis was made for four-, six-, and eight-storey reinforced concrete buildings. These buildings were made as three-dimensional space frame structures with shear walls in both orthogonal directions. They have five bays with 4.8 m spacing each in the horizontal direction, and three bays with 4.2 m spacing each in the transversal direction. The frames were designed according to the Jordanian Seismic Code of practice for Seismic Zones 4, 3, 2, and 1 as proposed for Jordan by several authors. Time-history analysis was made using the El Centro (N-S) earthquake record of May 1940 as an actual earthquake excitation. The response reduction factor (R) that primarily consists of two factors that are the ductility reduction (Rµ) and the overstrength (), is obtained. It has been seen that the seismic zoning has a slight effect on the ductility reduction factor for different buildings, since it ranges from Zone 4 to Zone 1 as 2.37 to 2.52, 1.72 to 1.78, and 1.14 to 1.18 for four-, six-, and eight-storey buildings, respectively. Moreover, it is observed that, for different buildings and different seismic zones, the ductility reduction factor (Rµ) is slightly different from the system ductility factor (µ) especially for higher values of µ (i.e., Rµ µ). The response reduction factor, called overstrength (), was evaluated. The overstrength factor was found to vary with seismic zones (Z) , number of stories, and design gravity loads. However, the dependency on seismic zones was the strongest. The average overstrength of these buildings in Zones 4 and 1 was 2.61 and 6.94, respectively. The overstrength increased as the number of storeys decreased: overstrength of a four-storey building was higher than an eight-storey building by 36% in Zone 4, and 39% in Zone 1. Furthermore, buildings of the three heights had an average overstrength 165.9% higher in Zone 1 than in Zone 4. These observations have a significant implications for the seismic design codes which currently do not take into account the variation of the response reduction factor, R (i.e., ductility reduction factor times overstrength).     

往复荷载作用下矩形钢管混凝土压弯构件承载力计算

本文基于往复荷载作用下矩形钢管混凝土压弯构件的实验结果，比较了国内外比较典型的设计规范(程)，包括英国BS5400(1979)、美国ACI318—99(1999)和AISC-LRFD(1999)、日本AIJ(1997)、欧洲EC4(1994)、中国GJB4142-2000(2001)和福建省地方标准(送审稿)，及本文数值方法在计算往复荷载作用下矩形钢管混凝土压弯构件承载力的差异。结果表明，在进行往复荷载作用下矩形钢管混凝土压弯构件承载力计算时，各种计算方法获得的承载力都偏于安全，其中，数值计算结果与实验结果最接近，GJB4142—2000(2001)的计算结果与实验结果吻合程度稍差，ACI318—99(1999)，EC4(1994)和福建省地方标准(送审稿)的计算结果比实验结果约低20％，而BS5400(1979)、AISC—LRFD(1999)和AIJ(1997)的计算结果比实验结果总体上低30％以上。本文结果可供进行矩形钢管混凝土结构设计时参考。     

Role of heterogeneities in jointing (fracturing) of geological media: Numerical analysis of fracture mechanisms

Fracture process is investigated using finite-difference simulations with a new constitutive model. It is shown that both geometry and fracture mechanism itself depend on the preexisting heterogeneities that are stress concentrators. In the brittle regime (low pressure, P), Mode-I fractures propagate normal to the least stress σ₃ from the imposed weak zones. At high P, shear deformation bands are formed oblique to σ₃. At intermediate values of P, the fracture process involves both shear banding and tensile cracking and results in the initiation and propagation of pure dilation bands. The propagating band tip undulates, reacting on the failure mechanism changes, but its global orientation is normal to σ₃. The σ₃-normal fractures are joints. There are thus two types of joints resulting from Mode-I cracking and dilation banding, respectively. The obtained numerical results are in good agreement with and explain the results from previous similar experimental study.     

Seismic vulnerability of Kuwait and other Arabian Gulf countries: information base and research needs

This paper points to the need for seismic risk and vulnerability assessment of infrastructure systems, most notably tall structures and coastal facilities, in Kuwait and other Arabian Gulf countries. Building codes in the region currently lack seismic provisions, despite evidence of a potential threat from large-magnitude earthquakes originating from the southern part of the Zagros fold belt. The historical record of Iranian earthquakes that may have caused significant ground motion in the Gulf region is examined, as are reports of coastal damage from tsunamis. Various specific tasks, expected to constitute research priorities of a Joint Center for Risk Research, a cooperative research program involving Princeton and Kuwait Universities, are outlined.     

A comparative study of the design spectra defined by Eurocode 8, UBC, IBC and Turkish Earthquake Code on R/C sample buildings

Earthquake codes have been revised and updated depending on the improvements in the representation of ground motions, soils and structures. These revisions have been more frequently seen in recent years. One of the key changes in earthquake codes has been performed on the design spectra. In this paper, the design spectra recommended by Turkish Earthquake Code and three other well known codes (Uniform Building Code, Eurocode 8, and International Building Code) are considered for comparison. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the differences caused by the use of different codes in the dynamic analysis and seismic verification of given types of buildings located at code defined different sites. The differences in expressions and some important points for elastic and inelastic spectra defined by the codes are briefly illustrated in tables and figures. Periods, base shears, lateral displacements and interstory drifts for the analyzed buildings located at code defined ground type are comparatively presented.     

Regional Considerations of Coastline Change,Tsunami Damage and Recovery along the Southern Coast of the Bay of Izmit (The Kocaeli (Turkey) Earthquake of 17 August 1999)

Co-seismic phenomena along the south coastline included liquefaction, subsidenceand tsunami. Construction on areas composed of fluvial and alluvial sediments aswell as unconsolidated fill increased the risk by creating potential for amplificationof seismic waves. Cyclic mobility liquefaction was common along the coastline, andlevel-ground liquefaction was observed. Flow liquefaction is held forth as a possibilityin the Deirmendere submarine landslide. Damage to structures was markedly more in areas of unconsolidated sediments. One or more tsunami struck immediately after the event; the uniformity of tsunami impact indicating a wave coming from 310° suggests that submarine faulting was the major source of tsunami. Over 800,000 m² of subsidence resulted from sediment slumping, fault controlled subsidence, and possibly post-liquefaction sediment compaction. After a brief period of post-event abandonment, reclamation and use of coastal areas is well underway. This creates a tension between human desires pushing for quick and inexpensive re-inhabitation of the coastal areas, and the needs for zoning and building codes for risk reduction. In this high-risk area suchcontrary cultural mandates cannot yield ideal results. It is suggested that an alternativemodel of immediate post-event creation of parks and natural areas that would yield benefit is preferable in coastal areas rather than the enforcement approach currently favored.     

SRG剖分编码与地理坐标的转换算法研究

提出一种基于SRG剖分方法的剖分编码与经纬度坐标之间的转换算法,不涉及任何投影变换,计算过程只需加、减、乘、除简单算术运算,计算速度快,且SRG剖分编码本身就具有固定的方向性,利于邻近搜索。算法中采用坐标系辅助区分一些难以区分的菱形块,降低了转化误码率,进而提高了转换的精度。     

Dynamical supersymmetric inflation

We propose a new class of inflationary models in which the scalar field potential governing inflation is generated by the same nonperturbative gauge dynamics that may lead to supersymmetry breaking. Such models satisfy constraints from cosmic microwave background measurements for natural values of the fundamental parameters in the theory. In addition, they have two particularly interesting characteristics: a “blue” spectrum of scalar perturbations, and an upper bound on the total amount of inflation possible.     

A multidirectional conditional spectrum

This paper presents a procedure to generate multidirectional conditional spectra (MDCS) that allow for the characterisation of seismic demands at different angles of incidence. Being conditional on a particular period and its direction of maximum response, it is considered to be a natural evolution of the conditional spectrum to account for the effects of directionality, that is, the variation of seismic demands as a function of the angle of incidence of ground motions, which can have a significant effect on the performance of different kinds of structures. The three main components needed for the generation of MDCS are explained in detail. Monte Carlo simulations are conducted using different sampling methods to assess the effects of incorporating the correlation between demands at different orientations for the same oscillator period, and a novel correlation model is proposed for this purpose. The statistical characteristics of MDCS, their relation with the conditional spectrum, the advantages of the MDCS over previous definitions of orientation‐specific spectra, and prospective future developments are discussed.     

Prediction of site factors by a non‐parametric approach

The problem addressed in this paper is the estimation of the (de)amplification of ground motion at soil sites (compared to rock sites) as a function of the intensity of the ground motion. A non‐parametric empirical approach, called the Conditional Average Estimator (CAE) method, has been used, which is different from all existing approaches. Site factors (SFs) for sites characterized with V_s30 between 180 and 360 m/s were predicted for the peak ground acceleration (PGA) and the spectral accelerations by using a combined database of recorded ground motions. Based on the results of the study, site factors for PGA and selected spectral accelerations are proposed, separately for weaker and stronger ground motions. Comparisons are made with the SFs used in two standards (Eurocode 8 and ASCE 7‐10) and with SFs proposed in the literature, including four Next Generation Attenuation (NGA) ground‐motion prediction equations. The study reveals that (i) SFs depend strongly on the ground‐motion intensity. In the case of stronger ground motions, they decrease with increasing acceleration. (ii) The SFs predicted in this study agree reasonably well with the existing SFs in the case of weak ground motion. For higher intensities of ground motion, they are generally smaller than the existing ones. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.