Structural Control Systems for Seismic and Wind Excitation

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In addition to inflicting massive economic losses, the negative societal impact a natural disaster can have on a country is astounding. For example, during the 22 February 2011 (M6.3) Christchurch earthquake (New Zealand) a large number of buildings, similar to buildings in Canada, were damaged beyond repair and several collapsed. This resulted in 182 fatalities and closure of the central business district for months. According to a recent report commissioned by the Insurance Bureau of Canada, a substantial portion of Canada’s building stock will experience severe damage or complete collapse during a major earthquake. It is expected that a major earthquake in the Quebec City-Montreal-Ottawa corridor will result in losses of more than C$60 billion, and nearly C$75 billion if a major earthquake were to occur in British Columbia. Base isolation can be utilized to reduce earthquake-induced building damage and loss of life. Furthermore, high-rise and flexible buildings are vulnerable to wind induced motions, which can lead to occupant discomfort, increased structural member forces, building service interruptions and building envelope damage. The proposed research will focus on reducing the vulnerability of buildings to seismic or wind loading through the development of economical structural control systems that will significantly improve building performance. The research described in this proposal will advance the current state-of-knowledge and impact the state-of-practice in structural control systems, facilitating the attainment of maximal structural performance under seismic or wind excitation. Through experimental testing and numerical modelling, the performance of buildings equipped with novel partially bonded fiber reinforced elastomeric isolators (PB-FREI) under seismic loading, multiple tuned liquid dampers (MTLD) under wind excitation, and combinations of both devices under seismic or wind loading will be quantified. Findings from the proposed research will equip current and next generation engineers with novel devices and advanced design tools, including building code provisions and guidelines, enabling higher levels of building performance to be achieved. As an integral part of Canada’s construction industry, which employs over a million people, and consumes 40% of the country's energy and 50% of its primary resources, the $130 billion Canadian building market is in need of economical performance-based technical solutions, including cost-effective structural control devices and hybrid structural control systems. By advancing structural control devices for seismic, wind and multiple hazard applications, higher levels of building performance will be achieved. This will ultimately improve Canada’s infrastructure, providing Canadian communities with economical, safe and resilient buildings.