Earthquake Resistant Building Design — Design & Simulation

Abstract — Earthquake Resistant Building Design

Civil and Environmental Engineering. GEM implemented the scientific methodology developed by UCLA [BDL+15] and integrated it into the QGIS framework as part of the OpenQuake IRMT plugin. This computational tool was developed to quantify the effectiveness of specific resilience-building actions (preparedness and response) that would enhance the process of recovery following an earthquake. Building performance is assessed using metrics that are explicitly linked to community seismic resilience such as functionality, occupiability and repairability. A probabilistic approach to mapping the fragility function parameters for the loss-based damage states used in OpenQuake and HAZUS (e.g. slight, moderate, extensive, complete) to the recovery-based damage states (e.g. functional loss, uninhabitable, irreparable) that are needed to assess seismic resilience is applied. A discrete state-based stochastic simulation model is used to quantify recovery trajectories for damaged buildings. Deterministic recovery paths conditioned on the post-earthquake damage state are described by discrete recovery states and the time spent in each state. The uncertainty in the recovery trajectory is captured by generating multiple realizations of the recovery path (Monte Carlo Simulation) accounting for the uncertainty in the time spent in each state. The function that describes community-level (or neighborhood-level) recovery is obtained by aggregating the recovery curves for the individual buildings after accounting for the variation in shaking and damage at each site and various exogenous and endogenous factors that affect the pace of recovery.

Analytical & Numerical Modeling Methodology

This tool provides an effective way to engage key stakeholders from government, industry and other groups, who are concerned with enhancing post-disaster recovery of communities. For example, focus groups with practitioners and emergency managers can be held to demonstrate its capabilities and explore their questions and concerns with regards to post-earthquake recovery. By allowing them to explore various trajectories for specific earthquake scenarios, the simulator will assist policy-makers, municipal governments and planners in understanding the possible interventions and tradeoffs associated with post-earthquake recovery. The simulation model can also be used to investigate hypotheses derived from findings and conclusions from previous earthquakes. Hypothesis examples include the following: designing for higher building performance levels prevents outmigration from the city, and âIIresidential red zonesâII or temporary building moratoriums are preferable to patchwork reconstruction.

Finite Element Results & Code Compliance

The recovery framework previously described was incorporated into this plugin, resulting in a dynamic and user-friendly software tool for generating both building-by-building and community level post-earthquake recovery predictions. The OpenQuake IRMT allows users to: develop composite indicators (or indices) to measure social vulnerability and/or disaster resilience; integrate these indices with physical risk estimates from OpenQuake or other software platforms; and In the following steps, a brief description of the basic workflow to develop an end-to-end recovery prediction is presented, where the main features and capabilities of the tool are highlighted.

Scope & Practical Applications

• High-rise building and spatial frame analysis under seismic & wind loading
• Finite element continuum modeling in ABAQUS for non-linear material plasticity
• Classical lamination theory (CLT) and failure prediction for composite structures
• Spatial hazard mapping, landslide susceptibility, and catchment terrain analysis in QGIS
• Detailed bar bending schedules (BBS), structural drawings, and calculation booklets