Multi-Disaster Resistant Building with a

Safe Core

By
Nasar Ahmad Khan
Under the supervision of
Dr. Gaurav Srivastava

A Thesis proposal submitted to

Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Gandhinagar
September, 2016

Abstract
Natural disasters like earthquake, wind etc. are one of the most fearsome
geological phenomena and if not managed properly can lead to
devastating consequences to both life and property. The numbers of
natural disaster occurrences and the cost of damages have increased
exponentially in the last two decades. Disaster resistant structures are
indispensable. It is imperative that structures are designed to resist the
extreme events like earthquake and wind forces, in order to reduce the
hazardous risks associated with it. Therefore, the need for designing and
constructing structures for predictable performances under extreme
events has been increased. Of course, the future of disaster-resistant
design is a function of the past performances of such designs. Today, we
understand disaster especially earthquake to a great extent that how our
built structures will respond to a wide range of earthquake. The challenges
therefore are to develop new techniques and improve existing practices in
design and construction of structures, to attain acceptable performances
of structures.
Essentially, the objective of the study is to develop a mathematical model
that produces a core dwelling unit which should be safe to withstand a
wide spectrum of earthquake while preventing structural damage during
moderate earthquake and collapse during severe earthquake ground
shaking in the adjoining structure. To carry out this task, probabilistic
analysis will be performed on regular and modified structures using
models that the structure will not reach a specified state of failure.
Probabilities of failure and reliability index are the two terms of primary
importance in this analysis. To evaluate this first order second moment
(FOSM) reliability method and Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) will be used
in the study. In first part of the thesis, a three-dimensional structural
model (with improved earthquake resistant design) for nonlinear structural
dynamic analysis will be proposed and studied. The second part of the
thesis investigates the issues related to mechanical joint modelling of core
unit with the adjoining structure and also considering other extreme
events like wind etc.

Table of Contents
1
Introduction.................................................................................................................
...................... 4
1.1 Motivation and Problem
Definition...............................................................................................4
2 Research
Proposal.....................................................................................................................
........5
2.1 Problem
Statement....................................................................................................................
.....5
2.2 Problem
Formulation
5
2.3 Possible
Outcomes....................................................................................................................
.....6
3 Research
Methodology................................................................................................................
.....6
3.1 Structural
Modelling...................................................................................................................
...6
3.1.1 Spatial
Model........................................................................................................................
......6
3.1.2 Modal
Model.........................................................................................................
.8
3.1.3 Nonlinear Joint
Model................................................................................................................9
4 Plastic Analysis
Approach................................................................................................................9
4.1 Modelling of plastic
Hinges.........................................................................................................10
4.2 Moment-curvature
Relationship...................................................................................................10
5 Orthotropic Modelling of Corrugated
Sheet .12
5 Preliminary Results and
Discussions...............................................................................................13
6
Timeline.....................................................................................................................
......................15

4
7
References..................................................................................................................
..........16

1.

Introduction
1.1 Motivation and problem definition

Structural models are used in the field of engineering to study and predict
the behaviour of real structures. They are often found at the design stage
of a mechanical product, when the effect of physical modifications on the
total response of the structure needs to be understood before the real
fabrication is carried out. Of course, physical models are very useful tools
in engineering for their directness and visual impact. For a long time,
physical modifications on the products were the only choice, and these are
made mainly based on experience, if not via a pure trial-and-error
approach. From the economic point of view, cutting down the time and
resources can largely improve the nations growth, which is in fact the
driving force behind the development of structural modelling techniques
in the construction industries. The demand is clearly there, so is the
challenge is to develop an efficient structural model that can be processed

to deliver accurate predictions of the dynamic behaviour of complex

systems.
The subject of this thesis is the development of a three-dimensional finite
element model for non-linear dynamic analysis of structure response with
emphasis on the earthquake resistant core unit. Specifically, these
problems are studied and discussed:
1. Designing and developing a mathematical model of reinforced concrete
frame with masonry infill as per IS 1893-1 (2002) for non-linear dynamic
analysis and finding the probability of its failure,
2. Formulation of a mathematical model of same geometry as in 1 and
modifying it to that extent to avoid the probability of failure of the
modified structure and
3. Developing a mathematical model of the same structure as in 1 but
with a provision of hollow tubular steel frame with corrugated plates infills
and assessing its probability of failure.
4. Developing an efficient joint model between the steel and reinforced
concrete frame to produce accurate predictions.
The aim of this thesis is to investigate the objectivity of the proposed
principles in the design of structures for primarily earthquake resistance
and formulations of guidelines for their improvement with the purpose of
constructing more reliable and economic structures. The post yield
structural response (plastic hinge) is one of the major parameters in the
present study that governs the failure and the level of performance
expected from the structure.

2.

Research Proposal
2.1 Problem Statement

For many years, the basic intent of the building code seismic provision has
been to provide buildings with an ability to withstand intense ground
shaking without collapse but potentially with some significant damage.
However, for regions with a high population density and a lower level of
development i.e. in developing countries this damage may cause
casualties on a greater extent. In the present study, the basic problem is

formulated on the concept that steel moment-frame buildings are capable

of extensive yielding and plastic deformation, without loss of strength. The
intended plastic deformation consists of plastic rotations developing
within the beams, at their connections to the columns, and is theoretically
capable of resulting in gentle dissipation of the earthquake energy
delivered to the building. Damage is expected to consist of moderate
yielding and localized buckling of the steel elements, not brittle fractures.
Steel moment-frame buildings are anticipated to develop their ductility
through the development of yielding in beam-column assemblies at the
beam-column connections. This yielding may take the form of plastic
hinging in the beams (or in the columns), plastic shear deformation in the
column panel zones, or through a combination of these mechanisms. The
emphasis of this report is on the formation of plastic hinges on individual
elements and stories, and on the whole structural system that
considerably holds the failure of the structure for earthquake ground
motions.

2.2
i.

ii.

iii.

iv.

2.3
I.
II.
III.

Problem Formulation
How the steel moment frame with steel corrugated plate infills
could improve the structural performance of a composite
structure?
Draw the comparison between a reinforced concrete structure
and modified composite structure for failure and reliability
analysis.
Development of an Earthquake Resistant structural core unit
within a building which must satisfy the basic design criterion
(i.e. seismic demand computed capacity).
How uneconomical it would be to develop a reinforced concrete
structure with masonry infills over a modified composite
structure for the same probability of failure?
Possible outcome
An efficient structural model of composite frame with increased
earthquake resistance.
Development of low cost earthquake resistant building with a
safe core.
Application of the developed design to multi-storey building using
base isolation techniques

3. Research Methodology
3.1
Structural Modelling
3.1.1 Spatial Model

Most of the structural dynamic analyses are carried out with the
assumption of linearity in structures behaviour, even though nonlinearity
is the underlying actuality. The first option of a structural model is derived
from the structures most tangible physical properties: its mass, elasticity
and energy dissipation mechanisms. The simplest Spatial Model consists
of a single mass, spring and damper that form a so-called Single Degree
of Freedom (SDOF) model. Both rigid body motion and deformation of the
structure itself are important for a better understanding of the
performance of the structure under dynamic loading. The deformation
shape as well as its amplitude can only be described with more than one
displacement coordinate, which is in the form of a set of discrete points
along the structure. The MDOF structural model is derived from the
equation of motion, which is formulated by expressing the equilibrium of
the effective forces associated with each of its degree of freedom. In
i
linear structural dynamics, four types of force are active at any DOF ,

fi
externally applied load

f Ii
, inertial force

f Di
, damping force

and spring

f Si
force

. The dynamic equilibrium may be expressed as:

Figure 1: Single Degree of Freedom System

f Ii f Di f Si f i t

(1)
When all the DOFs are counted at the same time, forces are represented
in vector form for the MDOF system as:

f Ii f Di f Si fi t

(2)

i f Si
The spring force at DOF , is a linear combination of the deformation at
kij

all the DOFs weighted by the corresponding coefficient

the stiffness influence coefficient.
f S1
f
S 2
M

f Si
M

f SN

k12
k22

L
L

k1i
k2i

M M
ki1 ki 2
M M

kN1 kN 2

O
L

M O
kii L

O
L

M O
k Ni L

k11
k21

k 1N
k 2 N
M

kiN
M

k NN

L
L

, which is called

u1
u2
M

ui
M

uN
(3)

We can also express the above equation in the matrix form:

f S K u
(4)

In which
is the
x
stiffness matrix, and
is
x 1 the
displacement vector representing the deformation shape of the structure.
Normally, it is assumed that only viscous-type damping exists in the
concerned structure. In the same way as for the elastic forces, the
damping force at a certain DOF is the linear combination of damping
effects at all the DOFs, and it can be expressed as
f D1
f
D 2
M

f Di
M

f DN

c12
c22

L
L

c1i
c2i

M M
ci1 ci 2
M M

cN 1 c N 2

O
L

M O
cii L

O
L

M O
cNi L

c11
c21

L
L

c 1N
c 2 N
M

ciN
M

c NN

u&
1
u&2
M

u&i
M

u&N
(5)

The above equation can be summarized in the matrix form as

f D C u&
(6)

C
In which
is the
velocity vector.

u&
viscous damping matrix and

is the

x 1 is the

The mass matrix is defined in a similar way

f I1
f
I 2
M

f Ii
M

f IN

m11
m21

m12
m22

M
mi1
M

mN 1

L
L

m1i
m2 i

L
L

M O
mi 2 L

M O
mii L

M O
mN 2 L

M O
mNi L

m 1N
m 2 N
M

miN
M

m NN

&
u&
1
&
u&
2
M

&
i
u&
M

&
u&
N
(7)
u&
fI M &

(8)

M
Where,
vector.

is the

u&
&

mass matrix and

is the

x 1 acceleration

All the off-diagonal items in the above mass matrix are zero if they are
derived with the assumption that the element mass is concentrated at
those nodal points and only translational degrees of freedom are used to
describe the motion. The total mass concentrated at any node is the sum
of the contribution from all the elements attached to the nodal point. The
mass matrix created in this way is called Lumped Mass Matrix.
Substituting equations (4), (6) and (8) into (9), we have the fundamental
system equation that governs the dynamic behaviour of the modelled
structure
u& C u& K u f
M &

(9)
Mathematically, equation (9) represents a coupled system of linear second

M
order ordinary differential equations. The matrices
represent the Spatial model of the structure.

3.1.2

Modal model

C
,

K
and

10

Without any external excitation structural dynamic behaviour is unique

and can be described by a set of natural frequencies and the
corresponding vibration mode shapes. Both sets of values can be derived

f
from the calculation of the steady-state solution of equation (9) when

0
. We can also assume for instance that the damping matrix

u
. It can also be assumed that

is set at

i t

when the structure is vibrating

N
naturally, in which
is the
x 1 vector of time-independent amplitude of
the response. Rearranging the terms in equation (9), we get
K- 2 M

it

(10)
The only non-trivial solutions are those which satisfy:
det K- 2 M 0

(11)

The solution of this equation is N values of , the undamped system

natural frequencies. Substituting each of the natural frequencies back into
equation (10) yields a corresponding set of relative values of response

(1 2 ) / D
amplitudes
, the so-called mode shape corresponding to that
natural frequency. In mathematical expression, these two sets of values
are represented in matrix form as:
12 L

M O
0 L

= 1

M
N2

(12)
They are called eigenvalues and eigenvector respectively, and form the
Modal model of a structure.
3.1.3 Nonlinear Joint Model

11

From the structural modelling point of view, the jointed connections can
be in different physical forms so long as the kinetic and kinematic
constrains are considered properly, which is of course the difficult part of
joint modelling. Joints are normally treated separately from the remaining
structural components. One of the reasons is that it is impossible to have
a generalised joint model. This is in contrast to the structural components
that can all be modelled by defining the mass, stiffness and damping
matrices from the design data with frequency response data from past
experiment. The physics of such constraints is rather different, and in
some cases it is difficult to come up with a mathematical description
without significant simplification.
One typical example is a friction joint. Joints are major sources of
nonlinearity in an assembly. This is also part of the reason why joints
should be treated separately from other components. If linear joint models
and normal structural coupling techniques can solve the problem within
the required accuracy, there is no need to go for nonlinear methods. The
fact is that nonlinear models need more parameters to describe the
behaviour sufficiently. In a linear system, less joint parameters are
required and they can be easily adjusted based on the discrepancies
between the experiment and simulation data. Secondly, a nonlinear joint
model must be presented in a form that is ready to be integrated with the
remaining structural component models. It can be developed either from
the study of the fundamental physics of the joint, and the other is from
experiment considering friction and geometric nonlinearity.

4. Plastic Analysis Approach

Experimental results showed that there is a considerable nonlinearity in
the infilled frames before their collapse. The nonlinearity arises mainly
from cracking and crushing of the infill wall material, confinement of the
infill walls in the frames, and formation of plastic hinges in the frame
members. In the elastic stage, stress concentration occurs at all four
corners. As cracks develop and propagate, the stresses at the tensile
corners are relieved while those near the compressive corners are
significantly increased. The frame moments increase significantly when
the infill wall degrades leading to the formation of plastic hinges and
collapse of the structure. The local crushing of the infill wall corner is
associated with a plastic hinge formation either in the beam or in the
column. The following modes of failure were identified.
a) Corner crushing mode with failure in columns: This mode of failure is
associated with weak columns and strong infill wall. Failure occurs in

12

the columns with subsequent crushing of the infill wall at the

compressive corners.
b) Corner crushing mode with failure in beams: This mode of failure
predominates when beam is relatively weak and the infill wall is
strong. Failure occurs in beam after the failure of the infill wall at the
compressive corners.
c) Diagonal crushing mode: With relatively strong frame and weak infill
wall, failure occurs in the infill wall by crushing at the loaded corners
with subsequent failure in the joints of the frame.

4.1 Modelling of Flexural Plastic Hinges in the Structural

Model
In the implementation of pushover analysis, the model must account for
the nonlinear behaviour of the structural elements. In the present study,
point-plasticity approach is considered for modelling nonlinearity, wherein
the plastic hinge is assumed to be concentrated at a specific point in the
frame member under consideration. Beam and column elements in this
study were modelled with flexure (M3 for beams and P-M2-M3 for
columns) hinges at possible plastic regions under lateral load (i.e., both
ends of the beams and columns). Properties of flexure hinges must
simulate the actual response of reinforced concrete components and steel
tubular column subjected to lateral load. The analytical procedure used to
model the flexural plastic hinges are explained below.
Flexural hinges in this study are defined by moment-rotation curves
calculated based on the cross-section and reinforcement details at the
possible hinge locations. For calculating hinge properties it is required to
carry out momentcurvature analysis of each element. Constitutive
relations for concrete, hollow tubular steel and reinforcing steel, plastic
hinge length in structural element are required for this purpose. The
flexural hinges in beams are modelled with uncoupled moment (M3)
hinges whereas for column elements the flexural hinges are modelled with
coupled P-M2-M3 properties that include the interaction of axial force and
bi-axial bending moments at the hinge location. Although the axial force
interaction is considered for column flexural hinges the rotation values
were considered only for axial force associated with gravity load.

4.2 Moment-Curvature Relationship

Moment-curvature relation is a basic tool in the calculation of
deformations in flexural members. It has an important role to play in
predicting the behaviour of reinforced concrete and steel tubular members

13

under flexure. In nonlinear analysis, it is used to consider secondary

effects and to model plastic hinge behaviour. When an initial straight
beam segment is subject to a uniform bending moment throughout its
length, it is expected to bend into a segment of a circle with a curvature
that increases in some manner with increase in the applied moment (M).
Curvature may be alternatively defined as the angle change in the slope
of the elastic curve per unit length.

Figure 1: Curvature in an initially straight beam section

At any section, using the plane sections remain plane hypothesis under
pure bending, the curvature can be computed as the ratio of the normal
strain at any point across the depth to the distance measured from the
neutral axis at that section. If the bending produces extreme fibre strains

of
and
at top and bottom at any section (compression on top and
tension at bottom assumed in this case), then, for small deformations, it

(1 2 ) / D
can be shown that
. If the beam behaviour is linear elastic,
then the moment-curvature relationship is linear, and the curvature is
obtained as

M
EI

The flexural rigidity (EI) of the beam is obtained as a product of the

modulus of elasticity E and the second moment of area of the section I.

14

Figure2: Idealised moment-rotation curve for reinforced concrete

element

5 Orthotropic modelling of Corrugated Sheets

The trend to higher quality steel is primarily seen in an increased yield
stress and there has been a continuing increase in the yield stress of
typical mass-produced products such as purlins, sheeting and decking in
recent years. The corrugated and curved panels often contain transverse
corrugations which serve to bend the thin-walled steel sheet into a curved
shape and act as a stiffener at the same time. They serve as both the
building envelope and structural system providing economic designs.
Modeling corrugated sheets using the finite element method usually
requires an extensive amount of elements. To reduce the required amount
of elements, 2-dimensional, orthotropic models may be used to represent
the properties of a corrugated sheet. Another goal of this exercise is to
find a more efficient substitution to the existing structure i.e. lighter
structure with the same mechanical properties. A possible competitor to
the corrugated sheet and frame construction may be a sandwich panel
structure.

Figure 3: Geometric parameters from the corrugated sheet are used in

analytical expressions to calculate equivalent orthotropic properties for
the 2D orthotropic plate.
The youngs modulus of the orthotropic model can be expressed as a
function of bending rigidity (Equation 13-15)

15

Ex

12(1 xy yx )
t3

Dx

(13)
Ey

12(1 xy yx )
t3

Dy

(14)
Gxy

6 Dxy
t3

(15)

5. Preliminary Results and Discussion:

1) Orthotropic modelling of corrugated panel and its validation
The ISO Steel container 20 feet long was taken into consideration for
the present study.

Property
Value
E

(Pa)

2.00E11
C

(m)

0.125
L

(m)

0.154
F

(m)

Figure 4: Material data and parameters for the

studied corrugated sheet.

0.023

(rad)

1.19
d

(m)

Comparison of the first six Eigen modes of the orthotropic

models and the original model

Eigen
0.009
Mode

Corrugate
d model

Frequency(
Hz)

Frequency(
(m)
Hz)

(%)

Frequency(
Hz)

(%)

Frequency(
Hz)

(%)

0.009053
0.01549

0.010341
0.017986

13.52
16.11

0.010063
0.01786

11.15
15.30

0.010812
0.021201

19.43
36.37

0.002
1
v
0.3

Samanta

Liew

Briassoulis

16
3
4
5
6

0.01658
0.036955
0.045708
0.04633

0.019606
0.037375
0.047289
0.049527

18.25
1.13
3.45
6.9

0.018165
0.037748
0.043238
0.048009

9.56
2.15
-5.40
3.62

0.023124
0.035231
0.052113
0.053293

39.46
-4.67
14.01
15.01

Figure 5: Modal analysis (1st mode shape) of corrugated model and

orthotropic models.
Comparison of buckling characteristics of the corrugated sheet and the
orthotropic model
Buckling analysis was performed on a part of the corrugated sheet with
dimensions 2271.5(Lx) by 746.6(Ly) mm. This is equivalent to a part of the
corrugated sheet between two support beams. The plate was subjected to
compression in the corrugated direction, that is, the y-direction. Long
edges were clamped to simulate a continuous plate attached to the
structural beams, and short edges were simply supported. The buckling in
the corrugated model occurred at 9.33 MN The first buckling mode of the
orthotropic plate model corresponded to a load of 6.34 MN. Since the
thickness of the sheet metal used in the fully corrugated model, was 2
mm, so we get a significantly higher buckling stress for the corrugated
model.

17

Figure 6: Corrugated sheet with dimensions 2271.5(Lx) mm by 746.6(Ly)

mm, with corrugation along y-axis.

Figure 7: First buckling mode of corrugated sheet and orthotropic model.

Timeline of the Thesis

Year
Semester
Task 1 Literature Review
Orthotropic modelling of corrugated
panel & its validation
Paper1: Micro-modellinging of steel tubular
frame with corrugated infill panel
Task2- Designing and developing a
mathematical model of reinforced
concrete frame with masonry infill for
nonlinear dynamic analysis
Tasks 3 - Developing a mathematical
model for composite frame with
corrugated plates infills
Task 4: Perform Reliability and risk
analysis using MCS
Paper2: Novel EQRD composite frame with a
safe core

2016
1

2017
2

2018
2

18
Paper3: Buckling and Stability analysis of the
safe core
Task 5 Efficient joint modelling at the
interface of steel and RC frame and
Experimental case studies for validation
Task6- Scaled down testing of developed
composite model.
Paper4 Joint modelling for nonlinear dynamic
analysis
Task7- Response aanalysis under other
extreme events for the developed model
Paper5- Scaled down testing of Composite
frame under seismic loading
Task 7 Thesis writing and Presynopsis

Thesis Defense

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Earthquake Engineering. Prentice Hall: Englewood Cliffs, NJ
Das, D., & Murty, C. V. R. (2004). Brick Masonry infills in seismic design of
RC framed buildings: Part 1-Cost implications. Indian Concrete
Journal,78(7), 39-44.

19

Das, D., & Murty, C. V. R. (2004). Brick masonry infills in seismic design of
RC frame buildings. Part 2: Behaviour. Indian concrete journal, 78(8), 3138.
Krawinkler, H. (2000). State of the art report on systems performance of
steel moment frames subject to earthquake ground shaking. Report no.
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Chandrasekaran, S., Nunziante, L., Serino, G., & Carannante, F.
(2016).Seismic design aids for nonlinear analysis of reinforced concrete
structures. CRC Press.
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practice. New Delhi: Bureau of Indian Standards.
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Engineering,2011.
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dynamic analyses of folded plates. Engineering Structures, 21(3), 277287.
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design

and