Method for the seismic performance evaluation of fasteners used for securing cultural artifacts

Abstract

Earthquakes may damage not only the museum structures but also the cultural artifacts collected in museums, but little seismic risk assessment has been carried out toward museum collections. While museum staff usually rely on their own experience to secure cultural artifacts with fasteners to prevent them from being damaged during an earthquake. To reasonably evaluate the seismic performance of fasteners, this study first puts forward an analysis method for use in the museum-showcase-artifact system, and then puts forward a seismic fragility analysis method for cultural artifacts based on logistic regression. Finally, a method is proposed for the evaluation of the seismic performance of fasteners by comparing the seismic risk of cultural artifacts when freestanding and secured with fasteners. Via finite element analysis, the proposed evaluation method is further explained and verified, and the impacts of the height, type and number of the fastener on its seismic performance are analyzed. Based on the proposed evaluation method, the seismic performance of the fasteners used for securing a precious cultural pot exhibited in a museum in northern China is evaluated. The results show that the evaluation method proposed in this study can quantify the seismic performance of fasteners, and provides a scientific basis for the selection of fasteners for cultural artifacts.