Abstract
Today, increased tectonic plate activity in the Cascadia Megathrust Subduction Zone, located on the PacificAmerican Coast, has the potential to cause a massive earthquake with a magnitude upwards of 9.0 on the Richterscale and resulting tsunami that could cause severe architectural damage and large death tolls. Unfortunately,modern technologies used to reinforce buildings are not completely effective because they only absorb some shockin the foundation. Additionally, no current building design is completely resistant against the hydrostatic andbuoyant forces from tsunamis. Therefore, it becomes necessary to design a cost-effective structure resistant to theeffects of both of these natural disasters. After conducting research in civil engineering and physics at the ArizonaState University and Oregon State University, a hexagonal model with a two-part base isolation system wasdesigned and built utilizing neoprene rubber, alloy steels, and shock-absorbers. The model was tested against anearthquake simulation of the 2011 Tohoku-Japan Earthquake and multiple direct shear tests, and against variouscomputer-controlled waves to measure the model’s stability against hydrodynamic forces of tsunamis. Both tests hadthe model remain stabilized, thus supporting the potential of life-size structures along global coastlines to provide asafe-shelter during natural disasters.
Highlights
One of the foremost issues in the international world is the fear of another natural catastrophe
There is no real protection against tsunamis of great magnitude, such as the one in Tohoku (Major Update: Catastrophic Failure of Seawalls in Japan). This engineering project seeks to help the global community by designing a unique multipurpose, scaled earthquake and tsunami resistant structure to provide protection in times of natural disaster along the coastlines. This project was greatly influenced by the 2011 Tohoku tsunami-earthquake in Japan, because an incident of this magnitude is quite probable in the near future with the projected occurrence of “The Big One" tsunami-earthquake in the Cascadia subduction zone within the 30 years
Since the Structure usually is a long-period response, the period of the structure usually is around 3s-5s.The Sine Wave Graph (4.12 Graph 1) shows that base isolation system shaking between 0.2 to 4788 | P a g e April 2017 www.cirworld.com
Summary
One of the foremost issues in the international world is the fear of another natural catastrophe. There is no real protection against tsunamis of great magnitude, such as the one in Tohoku (Major Update: Catastrophic Failure of Seawalls in Japan) This engineering project seeks to help the global community by designing a unique multipurpose, scaled earthquake and tsunami resistant structure to provide protection in times of natural disaster along the coastlines. This project was greatly influenced by the 2011 Tohoku tsunami-earthquake in Japan, because an incident of this magnitude is quite probable in the near future with the projected occurrence of “The Big One" tsunami-earthquake in the Cascadia subduction zone within the 30 years. This would support the potential for success of life-size structures along coastlines worldwide which can provide shelter, food, water, medication, reduce panic, and provide an efficient mode of evacuation during times of need
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
