Performance-based Seismic Design – Structural Wall

Abstract

In this research, the performance-based seismic design of a reinforced concrete structural wall measuring 36,0 m in height, 6,0 m in width, and 0,3 m in thickness, located on the coast of Ecuador, was carried out through a nonlinear static analysis (NSA) and a nonlinear dynamic analysis (NDA) in order to analytically evaluate the minimum thickness recommended by ACI 318 for slender flexure-controlled walls. In the mathematical model developed in the SAP2000 software, both geometric nonlinearity and material nonlinearity were included.

Among the main results of the NSA, the capacity curve, performance point, ductility, and overstrength factor were obtained. Regarding global stability, for the design earthquake level (DBE), the structure meets the immediate occupancy (IO) performance objective, while for the maximum considered earthquake level (MCE), the wall ensures life safety (LS).

In the NDA, for global stability, the average of the maximum inter-story drifts is below the maximum allowable limit (2,0% for DBE and 4,0% for MCE), thus favorably satisfying this criterion. Regarding local stability, the average of the maximum rotation at the first story is below the maximum allowable limit (0,5% for DBE and 1,5% for MCE), ensuring that the structure meets the IO performance objective for DBE and LS for MCE.