Earthquake amplification factors for self-supporting telecommunication towers

1999 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 208-215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed Khedr ◽  
Ghyslaine McClure

In the absence of specific guidelines for the seismic analysis of self-supporting telecommunication towers, designers may be tempted to apply building-code approaches to these structures. However, these towers respond to earthquakes in a different fashion than shear buildings. In this study, earthquake amplification factors for the base shear and the total vertical reaction of self-supporting latticed telecommunication towers are suggested based on modal superposition analysis performed on 10 existing towers, each being subjected to a set of strong-motion accelerograms acting in the horizontal and the vertical directions separately. Results are presented in detail for two of the towers studied, with heights of 66 and 121 m, respectively. Simple regression analyses are performed on the results from which the base shear and vertical reaction amplification factors are found. These factors are presented as functions of the tower's largest flexural period or largest axial period of vibration as appropriate, and can be used by designers to estimate the expected level of dynamic forces developed in self-supporting telecommunication towers due to an earthquake.Key words: dynamic analysis, lattice towers, base shear, vertical reaction.

2007 ◽  
Vol 34 (10) ◽  
pp. 1352-1363
Author(s):  
Rola Assi ◽  
Ghyslaine McClure

A simplified method is presented in this paper for the estimation of forces at the base of telecommunication towers mounted on building rooftops due to seismic excitation. Although some codes and standards propose simplified methods for the evaluation of base shear forces for towers founded on ground, no method yet exists for the evaluation of overturning moments. The proposed simplified method is based on numerical simulations using truncated modal superposition, which is widely used for seismic analysis of linear structures. The method requires the prediction of input seismic acceleration at the building–tower interface, the definition of an acceleration profile along the building-mounted tower, and the determination or evaluation of the mass distribution of the tower along its height. The method was developed on the basis of detailed dynamic analyses of three existing towers assumed to be mounted separately on three buildings. It was found that the method yields conservative results, especially for the overturning moments.Key words: self-supporting towers, earthquake, horizontal excitation, dynamic analysis, acceleration, modal superposition.


1992 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 510-520 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre Léger ◽  
Angelo Romano

This paper presents elastic and inelastic response spectra of strong motion accelerograms recorded during the 1988 Saguenay earthquake. Comparisons are made with the National Building Code of Canada (NBC) 1990 lateral forces requirements for the seismic resistant design of short-period structures. The use of a period-dependent force modification factor is proposed to take advantage of the energy dissipation capacity of short-period structures on a more rational basis. The seismic response of a typical low-rise steel building designed according to the NBC 1990 and CAN3-S16.1-M89 is then investigated. It is shown that to obtain a realistic picture of the ductility demand of low-rise buildings, the structural overstrength, that is, the supplied strength in excess of the seismic design base shear, should be explicitly considered in the design process. Key words: seismic design, earthquake, low-rise structures, code.


2012 ◽  
Vol 39 (8) ◽  
pp. 867-877 ◽  
Author(s):  
Damien Gilles ◽  
Ghyslaine McClure

Structural engineers routinely use rational dynamic analysis methods for the seismic analysis of buildings. In linear analysis based on modal superposition or response spectrum approaches, the overall response of a structure (for instance, base shear or inter-storey drift) is obtained by combining the responses in several vibration modes. These modal responses depend on the input load, but also on the dynamic characteristics of the building, such as its natural periods, mode shapes, and damping. At the design stage, engineers can only predict the natural periods using eigenvalue analysis of structural models or empirical equations provided in building codes. However, once a building is constructed, it is possible to measure more precisely its dynamic properties using a variety of in situ dynamic tests. In this paper, we use ambient motions recorded in 27 reinforced concrete shear wall (RCSW) buildings in Montréal to examine how various empirical models to predict the natural periods of RCSW buildings compare to the periods measured in actual buildings under ambient loading conditions. We show that a model in which the fundamental period of RCSW buildings varies linearly with building height would be a significant improvement over the period equation proposed in the 2010 National Building Code of Canada. Models to predict the natural periods of the first two torsion modes and second sway modes are also presented, along with their uncertainty.


1990 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 641-655 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory L. Fenves ◽  
Giorgio Serino

An evaluation of the response of a fourteen story reinforced concrete building to the 1 October 1987 Whittier earthquake and 4 October 1987 aftershock shows significant effects of soil-structure interaction. A mathematical model of the building-foundation-soil system provides response quantities not directly available from the records. The model is calibrated using the dynamic properties of the building as determined from the processed strong motion records. Soil-structure interaction reduces the base shear force in the longitudinal direction of the building compared with the typical assumption in which interaction is neglected. The reduction in base shear for this building and earthquake is approximately represented by proposed building code provisions for soil-structure interaction.


2011 ◽  
Vol 346 ◽  
pp. 58-62
Author(s):  
Pei Qiang ◽  
Ping Guan ◽  
Jing Tian ◽  
Er Liang Chen

Engineering characteristics of ground motion can be defined by three factors that are respectively amplitude, frequency and duration. Any one of them in isolation are not fully made known for the ground notions affecting on the structure. Response spectrum theory is one of the principal methods in seismic analysis. The maximum response of structure under earthquake input is only varying with period in traditional response spectrum during the whole time duration. The relationship between the maximum response and duration can not be shown in the response spectrum of earthquake. The concept of unsteady response spectrum is based on moveable spectrum in this paper. Based on the conventional response spectrum, the factor of time is taken into account in unsteady response spectrum research. Then the response spectrum can be studied according to time varying. As examples for strong motion records obtained from WenChuan earthquake, two methods are proposed to research the effect of duration on response spectrum. The result of unsteady response spectrum can play an important role in the further study of the structural failure mechanism and cumulative damage under earthquake loadings.


Author(s):  
Harsh Joshi

Abstract: Due to sloping land and high seismically active zones, designing and construction of multistory buildings in hilly regions is always a challenge for structural engineers. This review paper focuses to establish a review study on the Possible Types of building frame configuration in the hilly region and he behavior of Such building frames under seismic loading conditions, and (3) The recent research and developments to make such frames less vulnerable to earthquakes. This paper concludes that the dynamics characteristics of such buildings are significantly different in both horizontal and vertical directions, resulting in the center of mass and center of stiffness having eccentricity at point of action and not vertically aligned for different floors. When such frames are subjected to lateral loads, due to eccentricity it generates torsion in the frame. Most of the studies agree that the buildings resting on slanting ground have higher displacement and base shear compared to buildings resting on plain ground and the shorter column attracts more forces and undergoes damage when subjected to earthquake. Keywords: Building frame configuration, Seismic behavior, Dynamic characteristics, Response spectrum analysis, time history analysis.


2020 ◽  
Vol 110 (2) ◽  
pp. 534-555 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mika Thompson ◽  
Erin A. Wirth ◽  
Arthur D. Frankel ◽  
J. Renate Hartog ◽  
John E. Vidale

ABSTRACT Sedimentary basins in the Puget Sound region, Washington State, increase ground-motion intensity and duration of shaking during local earthquakes. We analyze Pacific Northwest Seismic Network and U.S. Geological Survey strong-motion recordings of five local earthquakes (M 3.9–6.8), including the 2001 Nisqually earthquake, to characterize sedimentary basin effects within the Seattle and Tacoma basins. We observe basin-edge generated surface waves at sites within the Seattle basin for most ray paths that cross the Seattle fault zone. We also note previously undocumented basin-edge surface waves in the Tacoma basin during one of the local earthquakes. To place quantitative constraints on basin amplification, we determine amplification factors by computing the spectral ratios of inside-basin sites to outside-basin sites at 1, 2, 3, and 5 s periods. Ground shaking is amplified in the Seattle basin for all the earthquakes analyzed and for a subset of events in the Tacoma basin. We find that the largest amplification factors in the Seattle basin are produced by a shallow earthquake located to the southwest of the basin. Our observation suggests that future shallow crustal and megathrust earthquakes rupturing west of the Puget Lowland will produce greater amplification within the Seattle basin than has been seen for intraslab events. We also perform ground-motion simulations using a finite-difference method to validate a 3D Cascadia velocity model (CVM) by comparing properties of observed and synthetic waveforms up to a frequency of 1 Hz. Basin-edge effects are well reproduced in the Seattle basin, but are less well resolved in the Tacoma basin. Continued study of basin effects in the Tacoma basin would improve the CVM.


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