Earthquake Resistant Structures

Abstract

Much of the surface of the earth is subjected to earthquakes from time to time. An earthquake is a spasm of ground shaking, originating from part of the earth’s crust. The consequences of severe earthquakes are injury and loss of life, the costs of repair of damage to structures, contents, and infrastructure, and the costs of disruption of business and other activities. It is evident that the provision of earthquake resistance in buildings, bridges, and other structures remains a great challenge for engineers and others associated with the design and construction of structures in the seismically active parts of the world. This chapter provides brief introduction on origin of earthquakes, strength of earthquakes, earthquake motion, and analysis on the typical damages caused by earthquakes. It also proposes a ductile design approach for resistance to earthquake including their performance criteria and the future trend in design approach. In addition, the approach for earthquake resistance using base isolation and mechanical energy-dissipating devices are discussed. The concise introduction on seismic assessment and upgrading of old structures are provided. Moreover, the earthquake resistance of lifelines is presented. This chapter can be used for the researchers to know the overall overview on the earthquake, its consequences and earthquake resistant structures.