Discussion on the Seismic Design Analysis Method of Masonry Building

Abstract

The main seismic objective in China is defined as “no failure under minor earthquake, repairable damage under moderate earthquake and no collapse under major earthquake”. Both strength and deformation are important to evaluate the seismic performance. For masonry building, only the shear strength check under minor earthquake is stipulated in the current Chinese seismic design code. Due to the poor ductility of masonry building, the seismic design analysis method may not guarantee the collapse-resistant capacity under major earthquake. For the achievement of the seismic objective, the demand of ductility is discussed. A typical severely damaged masonry building by the 5.12 Wenchuan Earthquake of 2008 is presented for the analysis of the through X-shape crack on the load-bearing wall. In order to enhance the collapse-resistant capacity, the authors suggest more shear strength margin to take the influence of structural ductility into consideration. The feasible way can be easily realized as a target to raise the limitation for the shear strength check parameter under minor earthquake and to keep uniform seismic capacity in two directions. The investigated building is also illustrated here as an example to process the shear strength check for better seismic performance by the authors’ suggestion.