Earthquake-Resistant Design of Important Civil Engineering Structures

Abstract

Nuclear power plants contain many civil engineering structures, such as water-intake and—discharge facilities, tank foundations, and port structures. Those civil engineering structures that support important safety equipment and piping systems and those that assist in cooling water delivery to the reactor and spent fuel cooling facilities in an emergency are referred to as “important civil engineering structures.” This chapter describes the earthquake-resistant design of such important civil engineering structures. The earthquake-resistant design methodology, as based on a dynamic response analysis, and a method to model civil engineering structures and nearby ground for dynamic response analysis are explained. Methods for the assessment of seismic safety of civil engineering structures are explained. These assessments are based on an allowable stress and strength of the structural members, and an allowable structure deformation. For an assessment of the allowable structure deformation, an interpretation of the ultimate state of important civil engineering structures in terms of their functional requirements is discussed, and a method to determine the ultimate state that focuses on the failure process of reinforced concrete is described.