Seismic Zone Factor, Z

The seismic zone represents ground motion acceleration values on rock with 10 percent
change of being exceeded in 50 years. Similarly, the seismic zone represents the maximum
ground motion acceleration values on rock associated with an earthquake that is expected to
occur in every 475 years.

The seismic zone factor, Z, accounts for the amount of seismic risk present in a
building’s zone based on the anticipated maximum ground acceleration at the site. Zone 0
represents the least risk and zone 4 implies the maximum base effective peak acceleration (EPA)
is 0.4 g for the design earthquake, where g is the acceleration of gravity. EPA greater 0.3 would
be classified as zone 4. Based on UBC-97, the value of seismic zone factor is shown in Table
A.5.

Seismic Importance Factor, I

The importance factor reflects the relative importance attached to a structure remaining
during and following an earthquake. The design based shear is increased 25% for those
structures considered relatively importance UBC-97, the value of seismic importance factor;
shown in Table A-4.

Soil-Profile Types; SA through SF

The ground vibration caused by an earthquake tends to be greater on soft soil than on
hard soil or rock. In the UBC-97, the profiles are classified into 6 different soil types ranging
from A (hard rock) to E (soft soil) and type F, assigned to those sites that require specific
evaluation.

Where soil properties are not known in sufficient detail, soil profile S D can be used UBC-
97, the soil profile is shown in Table A.6.

Seismic Source Types

The maximum moment magnitude potential of a fault and its slip rate are used to classify
the seismic source types. There are three seismic source types ranging from
 Most active type A source

Medium active type B source

Least active type C source

Based on UBC-97, seismic source types are shown in Table A.7.

Near-Source Factor; Na and Nv

The Na and Nv values represent the amplification in ground motion at Zone 4 near the
location known major active faults. The shortest distance to a seismic source is the minimum
distance between the site and area defined by the vertical projection of the source on the surface
(that is, surface projection of the fault plane).

The UBC-97 has adopted two near factors Na and Nv and these factors are acceleration
(for short-period structures) and velocity (for long-period structures) controlled factors. Near-
source effects are greater for long period structure (that is, N v is greater than Na) UBC-97, the
value of near source factors are shown in Table A.8.

Seismic Response Coefficients; Ca and Cv

Ca and Cv are parameters which reflect the potential amplification of the ground vibration
caused by different soil types. These coefficients are functions of the zone factor, soil profile
types and near source factor. Acceleration based coefficient, C a controls for shorter periods
approximately up to one second and velocity based coefficient, Cv controls for longer periods.

To determine seismic response coefficients for soil-profile type SF, the requirements of
the site-specific geotechnical investigation and dynamic site response analysis can be performed.
For zone 4, near-source factors (Na and Nv) are used in the determination of Ca and Cv. Based on
UBC-97, seismic response coefficients are shown in Table A.9.

Response Modification Factor, R

Response modification factor, R, represents the inherent over strength and global
ductility capacity of structural components. Ductility can be defined as a measure of the ability
of a structural system to deform in the plastic range prior to failure. All structures are defined for
strengths less than that would be needed in a completely elastic structure; the value of the
response modification (R) always exceeds 1.0. The structure response modification factor is
determined from the type of structural system used in design of structures. Based on UBC-97,
response modification factor is shown in Table A.10.

Earthquake effect on Structures

Structure damage due to an earthquake is not solely a function of the earthquake ground
motion. The primary factors affection the extents of damage are

Moment-Resisting Frame

In this system, both gravity and lateral loads are supported by complete space frame.
There are three types of moment-resisting frame for concrete; special moment-resisting frame
(SMRF), intermediate moment-resisting frame (IMRF) and ordinary moment-resisting frame
(OMRF).

1. Special moment-resisting frames; steel or concrete moment-resisting frames especially

detailed to ensure ductile behavior and suitable in high seismic risk area, especially in
seismic zone 3 and 4.
2. Intermediate moment-resisting frames; concrete frames with less stringent requirements
and cannot be used in seismic zone 3 and 4.
3. Ordinary moment-resisting frames; steel or concrete moment-resisting frames that do not
meet the special detailing requirements for ductile behavior and suitable for low risk area,
especially in seismic zone 0 and 1. Moment-resisting frame system is shown in fig 2.7.