Seismic Retrofit of Pilotis Buildings by Novel Aluminium Buckling-Restrained Braces (Al-BRBs). Application to a Modernist Architecture Building in Lisbon

The worldwide dissemination of the pilotis multi-storey RC buildings, generally attributed to architect Le Corbusier, was contemporary with a structural engineering line thought that advocated soft first storey as means filtering down seismic inertia forces in upper storeys. These two architectural and international trends, combined outdated detailing low-code design, greatly increase risks developing sidesway mechanism at storey, shown past earthquake occurrences other studies. article explores possibility strengthening representative 1955 building Lisbon by inclusion novel aluminium buckling-restrained braces (Al-BRBs) storey. This should reduce extreme deformation concentration level without fully eliminating it, thus take advantage additional damping provided stable hysteretic behaviour Al-BRBs. Al-BRBs have some distinctive features unique properties alloys, such formability (allowing for an extruded casing component) improving low-cycle fatigue characteristics core component thermal treatments.