Submit to Special Issue Submit Abstract to Special Issue Review for Buildings Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser

Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance

Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Published Papers

A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Building Structures".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2024 | Viewed by 14887

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Rafael Shehu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (DICA), Politecnico Di Milano, 20133 Milan, Italy
Interests: masonry materials; concrete materials; composite materials; strengthening materials; masonry structures; reinforced concrete; composite structures; steel structures; structural design; structural analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Nicola Tarque

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

1. Department of Continuum Mechanics and Structures, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
2. Civil Engineering Division, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, 15088 San Miguel, Peru
Interests: seismic; earth buildings; building codes; earthquake; construction; rehabilitation; pathology; numerical modelling; heritage; seismic vulnerability

Dr. Manuel Buitrago

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología del Hormigón, Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 València, Spain
Interests: structural analysis; finite element analysis; finite element modeling; construction engineering; stress analysis; structural dynamics; concrete technologies; civil engineering technology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The prospect of buildings' seismic performance remains the biggest concern of engineers and researchers in seismic-prone countries. The last earthquakes, considering their damages and losses, despite their magnitude, have shown the flaws of the current or past vision for safer buildings. On the other side, there are plenty of examples to be highlighted, showing the advancement of expertise, knowledge, and know-how around adverse seismic hazards. It is the common opinion that continuous investigation of present structures, construction technique flaws, and the advantages of innovative perspectives will lead to a more secure built stock. In this context, any original contributions of research, case studies, or reviews are welcomed. Both existing and new structures present the same relevance for the coming decades. As a matter of fact, the current challenges which could be of interest cover a vast area of research activity. However, this issue is not limited to very narrow aspects. The current Special Issue, “Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance,” aims to gather contributions on:

Experimental setups of seismic performance of constructions;
Monitoring of seismic performance, new technologies toward awareness, and prevention measures;
Numerical analysis of structures;
Linear seismic analysis of structures;
Behavior factor investigation and consideration;
Advanced nonlinear simulations;
Fragility analysis;
Cases studies of new, existing, or retrofitted structures;
Base isolation technologies and their applications;
Energy dissipation elements and their applications.

Dr. Rafael Shehu
Dr. Nicola Tarque
Dr. Manuel Buitrago
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Buildings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

seismic analysis
seismic performance
incremental dynamic analysis
pushover analysis
fragility functions
nonlinear response
seismic retrofitting
seismic isolation
new structures
existing structures

Published Papers (10 papers)

Download All Papers

Order results

Result details

Show export options Show export options

Select all

Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

32 pages, 66583 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Preliminary Geospatial and In Situ Reconnaissance of the 8 September 2023 Moroccan Atlas Earthquake Damage

by Beatriz González-Rodrigo, Laura Navas-Sánchez, Juan Gregorio Rejas-Ayuga, Orlando Hernández-Rubio and María Belén Benito

Buildings 2024, 14(3), 693; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings14030693 - 05 Mar 2024

Viewed by 1099

Abstract

This research investigates the post-earthquake performances of structures in four rural villages in the Moroccan Atlas, emphasizing common construction system characteristics and design flaws that render buildings susceptible to seismic events. Village selection was based on a prior multispectral satellite-image study, proving effective for planning high-impact, post-earthquake field campaigns. The significance of this research resides in on-site data collection, facilitating the physical assessment of earthquake-induced damage and identification of inherent vulnerabilities in construction systems. The constructions in the study area exhibited structural design deficiencies, inadequate construction techniques, and urban modifiers, leading to damage extensively documented in the literature, as well as less-documented unique damage. Predominant seismic-design shortcomings in the study area included subpar material quality, insufficient earthquake-resistant design, and unskilled labor. In situ data were complemented by a global geospatial approach using differential synthetic aperture radar interferometry with Copernicus Sentinel 1 data. Once calibrated the proposed methodology with field data, the analysis of remote sensing processing results, allow assessing the damages in other earthquake-affected areas, including those not visited in the field but also impacted by the seismic event. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

18 pages, 5809 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Seismic Performance of a 1:4 Scale Two-Story Rammed Earth Model Reinforced with Steel Plates Tested on a Bi-Axial Shaking Table

by Natalia Barrera, Daniel M. Ruiz, Juan C. Reyes, Yezid A. Alvarado and Daniela Carrasco-Beltrán

Buildings 2023, 13(12), 2950; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13122950 - 27 Nov 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 842

Abstract

During the 16th and 17th centuries, Latin American cities adopted earthen construction techniques from European colonizers. As a result, rammed earth (RE) buildings now occupy an important place in Latin America’s cultural heritage. However, earthquakes around the world have shown that unreinforced earthen constructions are highly vulnerable. For several years, researchers in northern South America have been proposing a technique that consists of installing confining steel plates (or wooden elements) on both sides of the RE walls to form a grid. This system has shown excellent performance in controlling seismic damage and increasing strength and ductility capacity. Although researchers have tested full-scale one- and two-story earthen walls under pseudo-static loading in the laboratory, and one- and two-story earthen walls at 1:1 and 1:2 scales on uniaxial and biaxial shaking tables, the behavior of a complete reinforced module (one- or two-story) on a shaking table has never been assessed. The present study presents the results of shaking table tests performed on two-story RE modules at 1:4 scale. The experimental data indicate that the retrofit system with confining steel plates was effective in reducing the seismic damage of earthen constructions. In addition, the comparison of the results of the 1:4 scale tests with the 1:2 and 1:1 scale tests previously conducted by the researchers shows that the acceleration levels of the equivalent prototypes are in the same order of magnitude for the three scales. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

26 pages, 18824 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Reflections from the 2019 Durrës Earthquakes: An Earthquake Engineering Evaluation for Masonry Typologies

by Hüseyin Bilgin, Marsed Leti, Rafael Shehu, Hayri Baytan Özmen, Ahmet Hilmi Deringol and Rrapo Ormeni

Buildings 2023, 13(9), 2227; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13092227 - 31 Aug 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1372

Abstract

Two earthquakes struck the NW region of Albanian territory on 21 September 2019 (M_w = 5.6) and on 26 November 2019 (M_w = 6.4). The epicenters of the seismic activity were located offshore NW Durrës, one of Albania’s most populated cities, located 30 km from the capital Tirana. Various aftershocks followed subsequently. While there were no reported injuries, a number of buildings sustained significant damage near the epicenter following the initial event. Subsequently, during the second event, there was loss of life and extensive damage to civilian structures, resulting in multiple collapses. This study focuses on the earthquake damages observed in residential and public buildings in the earthquake-affected region. The earthquakes predominantly affected low-rise masonry buildings, while the newly constructed RC structures built according to the latest seismic rules were almost unaffected. The commonly encountered building typologies in the region, together with photos showing the amount of destruction are presented here. As observed by the authors during the reconnaissance visit to the stricken area, examples of various damage patterns are presented, along with a technically substantiated description of the reasons for those damages. Although modern buildings during recent earthquakes in the region show acceptable performance, the detailed surveys from the Durrës Earthquakes showed that there is still an important level of deficiency in current masonry buildings built by conventional methods and materials. This problem may reoccur in future earthquakes that may hit other rural regions of Albania, which must be focused on systematically in the near future. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

20 pages, 4676 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Influence of Different European Code Provisions for Capacity Design on the Seismic Performance of Reinforced Concrete Frames

by Fernando Gómez-Martínez and Agustín Pérez-García

Buildings 2023, 13(8), 2051; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13082051 - 11 Aug 2023

Viewed by 744

Abstract

Performance-based seismic codes ensure proper inelastic behaviour of reinforced concrete frames through capacity design, among others. This strategy relies not only on avoiding brittle failures and providing ductility to plastic hinges but also in their distribution within the frame aimed at a greater number of storeys involved in the eventual collapse mechanism. Although codes are generally in agreement to some basic principles in order to ensure capacity design, they show some discrepancies regarding the specific strategies. In this paper, capacity design provisions proposed by some European current codes—Eurocode 8, Italian NTC, and Spanish NCSE-02—are compared, and their effectiveness is discussed. The alternative formulation proposed by Italian code for “strong column–weak beam” turns out to be not suitable under specific circumstances, such as with large gravity loads or significant cantilever deformation in lower storeys. Regarding the value of axial load in columns to be considered for the calculation of shear and moment capacities, provisions in the three codes could eventually cause unconservative design for perimeter columns. The Spanish whole set of provisions is proved to not be effective due to their different fundamentals—they are based on overstrength instead of capacity. For all the three cases, some alternative procedures are suggested in this work. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 6362 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Influence of Heterogeneous Foundation on the Safety of Inverted Cone Bottom Oil Storage Tanks under Earthquakes

by Zuhao Dai, Hong Qiao, Xvdong Hao, Yijuan Wang, Hanwen Lei and Zhiqiang Cui

Buildings 2023, 13(7), 1720; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13071720 - 06 Jul 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 866

Abstract

In order to study the mechanical properties of inverted cone bottom oil storage tanks under earthquakes when the foundation is uneven, finite element modeling calculation for a 20,000 m³ storage tank is carried out based on ANSYS Workbench. Wind load, hydraulic pressure load, and seismic load are all equalized as distributed loads with varying spatial positions. Considering various combinations of different heterogeneous foundations and seismic loads, and by adjusting the preset foundation bed coefficient, the final foundation bed coefficient and the maximum foundation settlement value when the equivalent stress of the tank floor reaches yield strength under different conditions are calculated. The results show that under the condition of heterogeneous foundation stiffness considering seismic action, when the coefficient of local foundation bed is higher than that of natural silty clay, the requirement for safe use of the inverted cone bottom storage tank can be met. Among the seven simulated heterogeneous foundation forms, the form with high foundation stiffness on the windward side has a great influence on the safety of storage tanks. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

20 pages, 8634 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Seismic Performance of Concrete Column Connection with Square-Upper-Circular-Lower Steel Tube for Antique Buildings

by Xianghong Sun, Qingwei Guo, Yunpeng Xuan, Bingxue Wu and Jiabin Gao

Buildings 2023, 13(4), 916; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13040916 - 30 Mar 2023

Viewed by 1080

Abstract

The antique building combines traditional design with contemporary technology, making it an important structural style. Columns, as a crucial structural component, directly affect how well the building functions as a whole. This paper proposes a new connection form with the upper square concrete-filled steel tube-lower circular concrete-filled steel tube (USCFST-LCCFST). This study investigates the seismic performance of the proposed connection form of the columns. First, the finite element software ABAQUS-2021 is used to simulate and analyze the connection forms of the upper square concrete-filled steel tube and lower circular reinforced concrete (USCFST-LCRC) and the upper square steel reinforced concrete and lower circular reinforced concrete (USSRC-LCRC) above the antique building, respectively, which confirms the rationality of the modeling method explored in this paper. Then, geometric modeling of the USCFST-LCCFST connection is performed using ABAQUS. Simulation results demonstrate the superior seismic performance of the proposed connection form. In addition, the influence law of steel tube yield strength and the ratio of upper and lower column linear stiffness on its seismic performance are analyzed and determined through the variational parameter analysis of the USCFST-LCCFST connection form. The steel tube yield strength of USCFST-LCCFST column connection components is recommended to be 355–420 MPa and the ratio of upper and lower column linear stiffness should be no less than 0.063. In order to ensure the good seismic performance of the connection, the steel tube yield strength and the ratio of upper and lower column stiffness should be efficiently controlled in the design of antique buildings’ USCFST-LCCFST column connection components. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

18 pages, 10683 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Seismic Retrofitting of Indonesian Masonry Using Bamboo Strips: An Experimental Study

by Ahmad Basshofi Habieb, Farisal Akbar Rofiussan, Djoko Irawan, Gabriele Milani, Budi Suswanto, Amien Widodo and Hidajat Soegihardjo

Buildings 2023, 13(4), 854; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13040854 - 24 Mar 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1535

Abstract

Unreinforced masonry (UM) is well known as a vulnerable structure against earthquakes. However, it remains a popular structural system for low-rise residential housing in many high-seismicity areas, particularly in developing regions due to its low cost and easy construction. In the present study, a retrofitting strategy using locally available material, bamboo strips, was proposed. In addition to its fast-growing rate, the tensile strength of bamboo is considered high, nearly comparable to its steel counterpart. A series of experimental tests were performed in this study, including the bamboo tensile test, the mortar flexural test, the diagonal compressive shear test on the masonry assemblages, and the in-plane pushover test on masonry wall specimens without and with bamboo reinforcement. The retrofitted specimens with different volumes of bamboo reinforcement were also considered. The results show that the application of bamboo reinforcement, at a proper volume, significantly increases the ultimate strength and the ductility of the masonry wall. Such results indicate that the brittle failure of UM structures can be avoided by means of bamboo retrofitting. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 3723 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Seismic Hazard Curve as Dynamic Parameters in Earthquake Building Design for Sabah, Malaysia

by Noor Sheena Herayani Harith, Felix Tongkul and Azlan Adnan

Buildings 2023, 13(2), 318; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13020318 - 20 Jan 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2851

Abstract

This paper presents the significance of a seismic hazard curve plot as a dynamic parameter in estimating earthquake-resistant structures. Various cases of structural damages in Malaysia are due to underestimating earthquake loadings since mostly buildings were designed without seismic loads. Sabah is classified as having low to moderate seismic activity due to a few active fault lines. Background point, area, and line sources are the three tectonic features that have impacted Sabah. Data on earthquakes from 1900 to 2021 have been collected by a number of earthquake data centers. The seismicity is based on a list of historical seismicities in the area, which stretches from latitudes 4 °S to 8 °N and longitudes 115 °E to 120 °E. The goal of this research is to develop a seismic hazard curve based on a conventional probabilistic seismic hazard analysis being examined for the maximum peak ground acceleration at 10% probability of exceedance as published in MSEN1998-1:2015. This study extended to 5% and 2% probability of exceedance combined with the seismic hazard curve by using Ranau as a case study. To calculate the expected ground motion recurrence, such as peak ground acceleration at the site, earthquake recurrence models were combined with selected ground motion models. A logic tree structure was used to combine simple quantities such as maximum magnitudes and the chosen ground motion models to describe epistemic uncertainty. The result demonstrates that peak ground acceleration values at the bedrock were estimated to be 0.16, 0.21, and 0.28 g of the total seismic hazard curve at 10%, 5%, and 2% PE in a 50-year return period, respectively. The seismic hazard study at a Ranau site basically depends on the seismicity of a region and the consequences of failure in the past. Thus, the results can be used as a basis for benchmarking design or evaluation decisions and for designing remedial measures for Sabah constructions to minimize structural failure. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

19 pages, 9316 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Shaking Table Testing of a Low-Rise Reinforced Concrete Intermediate Moment Resisting Frame

by Sida Hussain, Hamna Shakeel, Asif Ali, Muhammad Rizwan and Naveed Ahmad

Buildings 2022, 12(12), 2104; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings12122104 - 01 Dec 2022

Viewed by 2118

Abstract

Multi-level shaking table tests were performed on a 1:3 reduced scale two-story reinforced concrete (RC) intermediate moment resisting frame (IMRF) conforming to the requirements given in the ACI-318-19. The exterior joints lacked shear reinforcement to assess the viability of the ACI model recommended for determining the design shear strength of the beam–column joint panel. One of the horizontal components of the 1994 Northridge earthquake accelerogram (090 CDMG Station 24278, Source: PEER strong motion database) was input to the frame for multi-level shaking table testing. Plastic hinges developed in beams under base input motion with a maximum acceleration equal to 0.40 g. The exterior joints incurred extensive damage under base input motion with a maximum acceleration equal to 0.70 g. The frame achieved displacement ductility and overstrength factors (determined as the ratio of the maximum resistance of the frame to the design base share force) equal to 2.40 and 2.50, respectively. This gives a response modification factor equal to 6. The satisfactory performance of the frame is attributed to the high efficiency of the beam–column joint, which was confined by spandrel beams on two faces and the high strength of the concrete. The inherent minimal confinement is sufficient to ensure satisfactory seismic behavior. The analysis confirmed overstrength equal to 1.58 for joint shear strength in comparison to the design strength determined using the ACI model. The data might serve as a reference for calibrating and validating numerical modeling techniques for performance evaluation, which are crucial in the context of performance-based engineering. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

24 pages, 6278 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Yielding and Ultimate Deformations of Wide and Deep Reinforced Concrete Beams

by Fernando Gómez-Martínez and Agustín Pérez-García

Buildings 2022, 12(11), 2015; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings12112015 - 18 Nov 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1213

Abstract

Current formulations proposed by Eurocode 8 part 3 for the inelastic deformations of existing reinforced concrete members are assessed separately for wide beams (WB) and conventional deep beams (DB). The current approach, based on a large experimental database of members, predicts larger ultimate chord rotation but lower chord rotation ductility for WB rather than for DB despite the similar curvature ductility, due to lower plastic hinge lengths in WB. However, if the data are disaggregated into DB and WB, predicted chord rotations are consistently conservative for DB and not conservative for WB if compared with experimental values, especially at ultimate deformation. Thus, plastic hinge length may be even greater for DB in comparison to WB. Therefore, some feasible corrections of the formulations for chord rotations are proposed, in order to reduce the bias and thus increase the robustness of the model for cross-section shape variability. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance)

► Show Figures

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Advanced Research and Prospect of Buildings Seismic Performance

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editors

Special Issue Information

Keywords

Published Papers (10 papers)

Research

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI