Using upper storeys as semi-active tuned mass damper building systems

Abstract

This paper presents an exploratory case study based analysis of the seismic performance of multi-storey passive and semi-active tuned mass damper (PTMD and SATMD) building systems are investigated for 12-storey moment resisting frames modelled as ‘10+2’ storey and ‘8+4’ storey. Segmented upper stories of the structure are isolated as a tuned mass, and a passive viscous damper or semi-active resetable device is adopted for energy dissipation. Optimum TMD control parameters and appropriate matching SATMD configurations are adopted from a companion study on a simplified two degree of freedom (2-DOF) system. Log-normal statistical performance results are presented for 30 probabilistically scaled earthquake records. The time history analysis and normalised reduction factor results show the response reductions for all seismic hazards. Thus, large SATMD systems can effectively manage seismic response for multi degree of freedom (MDOF) systems across a broad range of ground motions in comparison to passive solutions. This research demonstrates the validity of the TMD building systems for consideration in future design and construction. It also provides a template for the design and analysis of passive or semi-active TMD buildings utilising large masses, or more efficiently, added storys, for improving seismic response performance.