A Brief Method for Rapid Seismic Damage Prediction of Buildings Based on Structural Strength

Abstract

Rapid prediction of the post-earthquake structural damage to a region is of great importance to community relief and rescue. Detailed information on buildings in earthquake disaster areas is commonly inaccessible in the aftermath of an earthquake. Accurately assessing the seismic damage to urban buildings using limited information is significant. This study proposes a design-strength-based method for regional seismic structural damage prediction based on structural strength. Only a few basic attributes of buildings are required, including the basic building plan size, building height, construction time, and structural type. Theoretically, the method is very brief, and can be applied to all types of structures, including irregular ones, compared with other commonly used regional seismic damage prediction methods. The proposed method is validated with acceptable accuracy and efficiency compared with the refined finite element (FE) model analysis and simplified model analysis. The proposed seismic structural damage prediction method was applied to a university campus, which can serve as a simple reference for community earthquake resistance evaluation and improvement.