Performance-based design is an efficient strategy for assessing and reducing the risk that a construction violates some performance requirement. In this paper, a procedure for performance-based assessment of seismic risk is illustrated with reference to a composite steel-concrete frame structure. Such risk is conventionally evaluated in a simplified formulation, i.e. as the mean annual frequenc...

The application of Heuristic Search Methods for the earthquake resistant design of structural frames is discussed. The Tabu Search method was selected for application to structural weight optimization of steel moment frame structures. A computer program was developed that uses Tabu Search for weight minimization of two-dimensional framed structures. Written in the FORTRAN computer language, the...

Early design decisions made on building configuration and spatial design affect seismic behavior of buildings. Therefore introducing design guidelines and empirical methods implemented to assess seismic behavior of buildings have been proposed as an appropriate approach. Such concept helps architects to take into the consideration that how their preliminary design decisions influence downstream...

A previous definition of seismogenic zones is required to do a probabilistic seismic hazard analysis for areas of spread and low seismic activity. Traditional zoning methods are based on the available seismic catalog and the geological structures. It is admitted that thermal and resistant parameters of the crust provide better criteria for zoning. Nonetheless, the working out of the rheological...

Damage due to earthquake is commonly related to substantial direct and indirect losses, highlighting the need for damage detection and retrofit prioritization based on the results of the seismic risk assessment of the road network. In this context, numerous methodologies have been developed for the seismic vulnerability assessment of bridges for different levels of seismic hazard using fragilit...

S U M M A R Y Geophysical inversion is often ill-posed because of inaccurate and insufficient data. Regularization is often applied to the inversion problem to obtain a stable solution by imposing additional constraints on the model. Common regularization schemes impose isotropic smoothness on solutions and may have difficulties in obtaining geologically reasonable models that are often suppose...

The prototype hybrid high-rise structure is special for its dual structural systems, so a 1/50 shaking table model was tested by the State Key Laboratory of Disaster Reduction in Civil Engineering of Tongji University to study its seismic behaviors. Then numerical models were made by 3D finite element analysis software, named MIDAS. The comparison of the analytical and experimental results veri...

A dissipative bracing system incorporating pressurized fluid viscous spring-dampers has been studied for many years by the authors as an alternative seismic protection strategy for new and existing frame structures. As a concluding stage of this activity, a set of demonstrative case studies was examined to illustrate the enhancement of seismic performance and the economic advantages guaranteed ...

In recent years, it is considerably attempted to develop the concept of energy dissipation as an applicable technology to overcome the energy released by earthquakes. The passive control systems such as metallic dampers have been widely considered. The dampers are basically used to mitigate the structural responses and reduce the damages in main structural elements by energy dissipation. ...

In the seismic risk assessment of structures, two main random variables are involved, namely the vulnerability of the structure and the seismic action. The aim of the study presented here is to analyze the seismic behavior of the jacket-type offshore platforms as an expensive and vital structure. Furthermore, the influence of the incidence angle of the seismic action is also investigated by usi...