Study on the seismic performance of a multi‐tower connected structure

Abstract

AbstractMany reinforced concrete or steel reinforced concrete single‐tower buildings have been built in China. The structural performance of such one‐tower structural systems depends on that of the primary components that are structural walls or moment‐resistant frames. For multi‐tower connected structures, problems become more complex. A multi‐tower connected building, with large floor slab openings in plan and long‐span truss in elevation, was thus studied because of its structural complexity and irregularity. First, a 1/25 scaled model structure was tested on the shake table under minor, moderate, and major earthquake levels. Then, the dynamic responses of the model structure were interpreted to those of the prototype structure according to the similitude laws. The experimental results were also compared with the numerical analysis of a three‐dimensional finite element model for the irregular structure. Both experimental and analytical results demonstrate that, despite of the structural complexity, the overall responses of the building meet the requirements of the Chinese design code and the torsion of the structure is not remarkable. It is suggested that the strength and stiffness of the long‐span connecting truss should be improved due to the potentially large vertical acceleration under strong earthquakes. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.