This article describes design concept and material characteristics of a new ductile fiber reinforced cementitious composite referred to as ECC (Engineered Cementitious Composite). This particular ECC contains Polyvinyl Alcohol fiber and exhibits remarkably ductile tensile property with over 1% of tensile strain capacity. The high tensile strain performance of the ECC was found successfully util...

Attenuation of random noise and enhancement of structural continuity can significantly improve the quality of seismic interpretation. We present a new technique, which aims at reducing random noise while protecting structural information. The technique is based on combining structure prediction with either similarity-mean filtering or lower-upper-middle (LUM) filtering. We use structure predict...

Abstract Recently, the reinforced cement concrete (RCC) frame has been one of most commonly used structural systems for buildings in high seismic region due to its inherent earthquake-resistant property. However, there is still a deficiency understanding RCC building system dynamic behaviour during significant earthquakes. A 1/4th scaled framed structure tested on shake table present study. The...

This paper describes an approach used to develop retrofit strategies for hospitals and other critical facilities in low to moderate seismic hazard zones, where strong earthquakes are infrequent, but if they should occur, the consequences would be high. Hospitals in New York State and other urban centers in the eastern U.S. fall into this category, where seismic retrofit requires information on ...

Remote detection and characterization of fractured reservoirs is facilitated in this project by developing a revolutionary software system. The Model-Automated Geo-Informatics (MAGI) software integrates basin modeling, seismic data, synthetic seismic wave propagation and well data via information theory. The result is a seismic inversion cast in terms of fracture and other reservoir characteris...

Despite the utilization of several earthquake resistant traditional techniques in Iranian architecture throughout the centuries, the high seismic vulnerability of Iranian vernacular constructions is obvious. One of the latest innovations in building earthquake-proof emergency dwellings, prior to introducing the modern seismic design codes, took place during the successive destructive earthqu...

This paper proposes an indicator of seismic performance based on life-cycle cost of a building. It is expressed as a ratio of lifetime damage loss to life-cycle cost and determines the seismic performance of isolated buildings. Major factors are considered, including uncertainty in hazard demand and structural capacity, initial costs, and expected loss during earthquakes. Thus, a high indicator...

Title of Document: NUMERICAL STUDY OF SEISMIC BEHAVIOR OF HIGH STRENGTH STEEL REPLACEABLE SHEAR LINKS Huiling Hu Master of Science, 2015 Directed By: Yunfeng Zhang, Professor Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Eccentrically Braced Frames (EBFs) have been widely used in seismic protection and remediation in the recent years. However, the seismic behavior of shear links made of hig...

In this paper an optimization framework is presented for automated performance-based seismic design of bridges consisting of multi-column RC pier substructures. The beneficial effects of fusing components on seismic performance of the quasi-isolated system is duly addressed in analysis and design. The proposed method is based on a two-step structural analysis consisting of a linear modal dynami...

Seismic hazard assessment for the construction of earthquake-resistant buildings, in particular of critical facilities, in France follows traditionally a deterministic approach. The aim of the French Working Group EPAS (Evaluation Probabiliste de l’Aléa Sismique / Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Assessment), under the aegis of the AFPS (Association Française de Génie Parasismique / French Associat...