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Base Shear An Other
Base Shear An Other
Base Shear
The equivalent base shear method can be used for equipment that is
mainly subjected to shear deformation or that can be equivalent to a
single-mass system.
From: Ultra-High Voltage Ac/dc Grids, 2015
Related terms:
Viscous Damper, Degree of Freedom, Outrigger
Total 9762.07
Z = 0.36
I = 1.5
R = 1.5
Sa/g = 2.5
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temple because of its considerable thickness, where the shear area is high. The
results for shear show that only the top floor and fourth floor levels are critical in
shear, while other levels are not likely to fail in shear because of very large wall
thickness. The piers between the openings are more flexible than the portion of the
wall below and above the openings, so practically all deformations take place in the
pier that leads its failure. The masonry piers near the door and window openings
fail in shear due to stress concentration.
Fig. 9.8. Bending stress (Horizontal S11) contours under seismic action in X
direction (left) and Y direction (right).
Fig. 9.9. Bending stress (Transverse Horizontal S11) contours under seismic action
in X direction (left) and Y direction (right).
Fig. 9.10. Shear stress contours under seismic action in X direction (left) and Y
direction (right).
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Fig. 9.11. Bending stress (Horizontal S11) contours under response spectrum
analysis in X direction (left) and Y direction (right).
Fig. 9.12. Bending stress (Transverse Horizontal S11) contours under response
spectrum analysis in X direction (left) and Y direction (right).
Fig. 9.13. Shear stress contours under seismic action in X direction (left) and Y
direction (right).
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Figure 10.3. Flow diagram for computing base shear for buildings.
Base shear value (V) is determined by combining the following physical factors:
• Soil conditions at the site
• Proximity to potential sources of seismic activity (such as geological faults)
• Probability of significant seismic ground motion
• Level of ductility and overstrength associated with various structural
configurations and total weight
• Fundamental (natural) period of vibration of the structure when subjected to
dynamic loading
10.6.1 Fundamental Mode
The tendency for a building to sway from side to side in response to ground
motion produces greater accelerations in its upper parts. This back-and-forth
motion is called the fundamental mode and dominates most structural seismic
response. It is influenced by soil type, structural stiffness, and building use.
Period of Vibration
Mode shapes are movement patterns that occur naturally in structures that have
been set in motion by ground shaking. For seismic-resistant structures each
structure has a unique natural or fundamental period of vibration, which is the
time required for one cycle of free vibration.
Parameters: The factors determining the fundamental period include structure
stiffness and height. The equation provided in the Uniform Building Code (UBC)
for determining the natural period of vibration is (refer to UBC for notations used
in formulae).
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Soil profile type SA is described as hard rock and mainly occurs in eastern states as
stated earlier. Soil profile type SB is found mainly in the western states described as
rock and ground response coefficients. CA and CV are identical to effective peak
acceleration value (Z). When a soil’s characteristic is unknown, in accordance with
UBC and IRC, soil profile SD may be assumed as default. Table 10.3 shows the wide
range of shear wave velocity.
Interna
AISC Code ASCE Code ACI Code Code (
D=dead load; L=live load; Lr=roof live load; W=wind load; S=snow load;
E=seismic or earthquake load; R=rain load or nominal load due to initial
rainwater or ice exclusive of the ponding contribution; H=loads due to weight
and lateral earth pressure of soils, groundwater pressure or pressure of bulk
materials; T=total effect of temperature, creep, shrinkage, differential
settlement and shrinkage-compensating concrete; f2=0.7 for roof
configurations (such as saw tooth), and 0.2 for other roof configurations; f1=1
for floors in places of public assembly, for live load in excess of 100lbs/ft2 and
for parking garage live load, and 0.5 for other live loads. F = load due to fluids
with well defined pressures and maximum heights.
Note: Applicable Code needs to be consulted for any changes in the load
factors or load combinations.
where Cv=0.54 from the ground response coefficient table for Zone 3 and stiff soil
(soil type D) and I =1. The form of this expression indicates that the response
coefficient increases as the importance factor increases and as the response
modification factor and natural period reduce. The effect of the importance factor
is to increase the seismic response coefficient by 25%. The maximum value of the
seismic response coefficient, Cs=2.5 Ca I/R. The expression controls for a shorter
period up to 1 second.
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framing system; materials; construction methods; and nonstructural components.
In resolving these, the following facts must be remembered:
Building Shape Influences Behavior. Geometric shapes such as squares or
rectangles usually perform better than buildings in the shape of the letters L, T,
U, H, O, or a variation of these.
Building Material Influences Behavior. Ductile materials perform better than
brittle ones. Examples of ductile materials include steel and aluminum.
Examples of brittle materials include brick, stone, and unstrengthened
concrete. Concrete, the most widely used construction material in the world, is
made of sand, gravel, and crushed stone bonded with cement and needs to be
reinforced with steel bars.
Height Affects Behavior. Buildings of different heights shake at different
frequencies. Soil response to shaking is a factor.
Function Affects Design. Seismic-resistant criteria may differ for hospitals, fire
stations, office buildings, and the like.
Proximity Affects Design. Close proximity to adjacent buildings influences.
Design of Columns
• Base Shear,V
Use worst case of wind or seismic V = ________
• Overturning Moment, Mo
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• Allowable tension stress, Ft,
Related Equipment
Dennis R. Moss, Michael Basic, in Pressure Vessel Design Manual (Fourth Edition),
2013
Design of Columns
• Base Shear, V
Use worst case of wind or seismic
V = ___________
• Overturning Moment, Mo
• Slenderness ratio, Sr
Tension Case
• Tension stress, fT
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Zone 0:……………0
Zone 1:……………0.075
Zone 2A:……………0.15
Zone2B:……………0.20
Zone 3:…………… 0.3
Zone 4:……………0.4
I = importance factor
standard facilities……………1.0
hazardous/essential facilities……………1.25
R = coefficient
self-supporting stacks……………2.9
vertical vessel on skirt……………2.9
spheres and vessels on braced legs……………2.2
horizontal vessel on pier……………2.9
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vertical vessel on unbraced legs……………2.2
Cv = coefficient from Table 3-9b
SF See Footnote 1
SF See Footnote 1
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y = deflection, in.
N = number of column legs
A = cross-sectional area of leg braces, in.2.
g = acceleration due to gravity, 386 in./sec2
Im = moment of inertia of pier, legs, stack, etc., in.4
E = modulus of elasticity, psi
Sa- Sf = soil profile type from Table 3-9c
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SB Rock 2,500 to − −
5,000 (760
to 1,500)
1 Soil Profile Type Se also includes any soil profile with more than 10 feet
(3048mm) of soft clay, defined as a soil with plasticity index Pl>20,
Wmc≥40 percent, and su <500psf (24kPa). The Plasticity Index, PI, and
the moisture content, Wmc, shall be determined in accordance with
approved national standards.
Nv Na Nv Na Nv Na Nv Na
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Seismic source type = from Table 3-9e
Seismic
Source Seismic Source
Type Seismic Source Description Definition2
Maximum
Moment Slip Rate,
Magnitude, SR
M (mm/year)
Design Procedure
Step 1: Determine the following.
For all zones:
Weight, Wo,
Importance factor, I
Soil profile type (Table 3-9c)
Seismic zone factor, Z
Numerical coefficient, Rw
For zone 4 only:
Seismic source type
Distance to fault
Near source factor, Nv
Step 2: Determine or calculate seismic coefficients.
Ca (Table 3-9a)
Cv (Table 3-9b)
Step 3: Determine period of vibration.
T=
Step 4: Calculate the base shear, V.
V is the greater of V1 or V2
but need not exceed V3:
For zone 4 there is the additional requirement that the base shear shall be at
least equal to V4
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Step 5: Since the seismic design for pressure vessels is based on allowable
stress rather than ultimate strength, the base shear may be reduced by a factor
of 1.4.
Notes
1. Vessels mounted in structures at some elevation other than grade generally will
experience amplified base motion near and above the natural frequencies of
the support structure.
• Light vessels (less than 1% of structure weight):
a. If vessel frequency > structure frequency, then vessel is subjected to
maximum acceleration of the structure.
b. If vessel frequency < structure frequency, then vessel will not be
affected by structure. It will respond as if it were mounted at grade.
• Medium vessels (less than 20% of structure weight): Approximate methods
may be used to develop the instructure response spectra. The method
used should account for interaction between vessel and structure (energy
feedback). Consideration should be given to account for ductility of the
vessel.
• Heavy vessels (single large vessel or multiple large vessels): The vessel(s) is
the principal vibrating element. It requires a combined seismic model,
which simulates the mass and stiffness properties of vessel and structure.
2. For tall slender vessels, the main concern is bending. For short, squat vessels
the main concern is base shear.
3. The procedures outlined in this chapter are static-force procedures, which
assume that the entire seismic force due to ground motion is applied
instantaneously. This assumption is conservative but greatly simplifies the
calculation procedure. In reality earth quakes are time-dependent events and
the full force is not realized instantaneously. The UBC allows, and in some
cases requires, that a dynamic analysis be performed in lieu of the static force
method. Although much more sophisticated, often the seismic loadings are
reduced significantly.
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The seismic base shear, , used for the design of the force-resisting systems
should not be less than , as expressed by (ASCE, 2017a):
(5.44)
where
(5.45)
The important factor, , is defined in Table 5.7 and the response modification
coefficient, , can be determined using Table 5.16; , , and are
determined previously in Step 1.2 (Section 5.2.1.1.2); is the fundamental period
of the building; and is the damping reduction factor.
Note that in Eq. (5.44) the limit, , is not applicable in case less than two
dampers per main direction in each story are provided and if horizontal and/or
vertical irregularities are present (ASCE, 2017a).
17.22
17.23
since Vb0 = W(A/g).
Let A/g be called base shear coefficient or lateral force coefficient. It is used in
building codes to represent the coefficient by which structural weight is multiplied
to obtain the base shear. A is the peak pseudo-acceleration. A pseudo-acceleration
response spectrum is a plot of A as functions of Tn.
The parameters have certain characteristics that are of practical interest. The
pseudo-spectral velocity Spv is close to spectral velocity Sv for short period
structures and is almost equal to the intermediate periods but is different for long
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period structures. A comparison of the NS component of the Northridge
earthquakes is made in Fig. 17.14 for spectral velocity and spectral acceleration for
ς = 0.05. For zero damping, pseudo-spectral acceleration is identical to spectral
acceleration Sa. However, for damping other than zero these two are slightly
different. Nevertheless, for damping levels encountered in most engineering
applications the two may be considered to be practically equal.
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(46.26)
where F is the wave load effect, H is the wave height, and A and B are the fitting
factors.
(46.27)
where F is the current load effect, Vc is the current speed, and C is the fitting factor.
(46.28)
where F is the wind load effect, Vwind is the wind speed, and Aw is the associated
with the windward area (if the unit of the windward area is m2, Aw = area ∗ 0.001,
and the unit of F is MN).
The wave and current loads mainly affect the immersion zone structure of the
platform, and will show a mutual effect on the base shear force. Therefore, it is
better to take the two parameters into consideration simultaneously, and the fitting
function of wave and current load is as follows:
(46.29)
where F is the base shear force; H is the wave height; Vc is the current speed; and A,
B, C, D, E, and F are the fitting factors.
As the wind load mainly affects the upper structure of the platform, the wind load
effect can be analyzed separately.
According to the above analysis, the load effect fitting function can be as follows:
(46.30)
Generally, eight directions of typhoon load effects should be considered to find the
most dangerous load conditions. In this study, for simplicity, only one typical
direction was chosen to do the analysis. The ANSYS multiphysics module was used
to conduct the typhoon load analysis under different load parameters.
Table 17.2. Base Shear Forces Calculated for Three Types of Typical Buildings
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It can be seen that even with q = 1.5 the assumption of the inelastic response has
an important influence on the value of respective base shear force.
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Reduced Stiffness According to the ACI 318 and CSA A23.3
Referencing Sect. 6.6.3.1.1 and Sect. 10.14.1.2, the gross section area Ag and moment of inertia Ig are
permitted for elastic analysis with factored load levels applied. Determining factored load levels is done
utilizing Table 6.6.3.1.1(a) from the ACI 318-14 [1] and the table located under Sect. 10.14.1.2 in the CSA
A23.3-14 [2], where the element type and its condition are taken into consideration. The multiplying
factors reduce the moment of inertia while the gross section area stays constant. These factors were
conservatively enforced by the various concrete standards to account for section loss due
to concrete cracking.
According to the ACI 318-14 Sect. 6.6.3.1.1, the moment of inertia and gross area of members/surfaces
shall be calculated in accordance with Tables 6.6.3.1.1(a) or 6.6.3.1.1(b) unless a more rigorous analysis
is required. Similarly, the CSA A23.3-14 lists a table which includes the corresponding multiplication
factors applied to each moment of inertia.
Different conditions such as "cracked" and "uncracked" only effects concrete elements categorized under
"wall". When calculating the moment and shear for a cracked wall, a factor of 0.70 is applied to the gross
moment of inertia Ig. If the wall is indicated to crack, based on the modulus of rupture, the moment of
inertia is calculated as 0.35Ig for further analysis.
Unlike walls, when analyzing other elements such as columns, beams, flat plates, and flat slabs, the
moments of inertia do not change based on cracked or uncracked assumptions. The reduced value is
based on a single reduction factor listed below.
Columns: Ig = 0.70Ig
Beams: Ig = 0.35Ig
Flat plates and flat slabs: Ig = 0.25Ig
For all concrete elements, including walls, a factor of 1.0 is applied to the gross section area Ag.
Therefore, the gross area of the concrete section remains unchanged. With regards to the ACI 318-14,
moment of inertia values taken from MacGregor and Hage (1977) [3] are multiplied by
a stiffness reduction factor of φk = 0.875 referenced from R6.6.4.5.2. For example, the moment of inertia
can be calculated as such:
0.875(0.80Ig) = 0.70Ig
RFEM Adoption
RFEM seamlessly allows the user to modify the flexural or axial stiffness of any concrete member
or surface to be considered for the analysis and design. The component types can be set for each
element under the "Modify Stiffness" options within the program.
Significance of Area Moment of Inertia
Area moment of inertia is also known as the second moment of an area for a reason.
It can be calculated by taking moment about the area twice i.e., Second moment of area
= (area) x (perpendicular distance)2. The perpendicular distance depends on the axis of
bending.
Uncracked concrete is where the tensile stress in the concrete is smaller than the
tensile strength of the concrete and there will be no cracking occurring.
Local Axes in ETABS
Vertical Line Objects. For vertical line objects the local axes have the following default
orientation:
Local axis 1 is along the line object. The positive local 1 axis is in the same direction as the
positive global Z-axis, upward.
Local axis 2 is perpendicular to the line object. The projection of the positive local 2 axis
onto the global X-axis is in the same direction as the positive global X-axis.
Local axis 3 is perpendicular to the line object. The direction of the positive local 3 axis is
determined from applying the right-hand rule using the directions of the 1 and 2 axes
described in the preceding bullets.
Horizontal Line Objects. For horizontal line objects (parallel to the global X-Y plane),
the local axes have the following default orientation:
Local axis 1 is along the line object. The projection of the positive local 1 axis onto the
global X-axis is in the same direction as the positive global X-axis. If the line object is parallel
to the global Y-axis such that there is no projection onto the global X-axis, the positive
direction of the local 1 axis is the same as the direction of the positive global Y-axis.
Local axis 2 is perpendicular to the line object. The positive local 2 axis points in the same
direction as the global Z-axis, upward.
Local axis 3 is perpendicular to the line object and is horizontal. The direction of the positive
local 3 axis is determined from applying the right-hand rule using the directions of the 1 and
2 axes described in the preceding bullets.
Other (neither vertical nor horizontal) Line Objects. For line objects that are not
vertical and are not horizontal, the local axes have the following default orientation:
Local axis 1 is along the line object. The positive local 1 axis has an upward sense. The
projection of the positive local 1 axis onto the global Z-axis is in the same direction as the
positive global Z-axis, upward.
Local axis 2 is perpendicular to the line object. The local 1-2 plane is vertical. The positive
local 2 axis has an upward sense. The projection of the positive local 2 axis onto the global
Z-axis is in the same direction as the positive global Z-axis, upward.
Local axis 3 is perpendicular to the line object and is horizontal. The direction of the positive
local 3 axis is determined from applying the right-hand rule using the directions of the 1 and
2 axes described in the preceding bullets.
The local axes color convention for joints, frame elements, shell elements, etc. is as follows:
Figure 1. Visualization of increasing mesh density on a steel plate. Image used courtesy of Comsol
Figure 2. Visualization of local adaptive meshing. Concentrating the mesh density around the area of
highest stresses. Image used courtesy of Comsol
After each small piece is mathematically described, they are re-assembled and
linked together. The relationships between elements are analyzed through a
series of compatibility and/or continuity equations, forming a larger system of
equations that populate a matrix. For example, knowing the forces applied to
a structure and the stiffness of the structure, FEA can calculate the
displacements of each element by solving the system of equations within the
matrix. Stresses and strains can be solved in a similar fashion.
First, the model only undergoes small deformations and deflections based
on the applied forces.
Second, the material does not experience any plastic deformation or creep
due to loading.
Third, the boundary conditions remain the same and do not change
throughout the simulation.
Small deformations mean that the material resides within the linear portion of
the stress-strain curve (following the material's elastic modulus). This means
that the material remains in its elastic state, does not experience any plastic
deformation, and deflection can be calculated using Hooke’s Law.
Figure 3. Stress vs. strain curve, highlighting the linear behavior of a material until reaching the yield
strength point; once beyond, the material begins to behave nonlinearly. Image used courtesy
of Nicoguaro
When these cases are present, the software uses a nested iterative process to
solve the changing system of equations created by the elements within the
model. This is unlike linear FEA, where the system of equations does not
change during the solution process. Once the model deforms, has new
boundary conditions, or reaches strains beyond the linear range of the force-
displacement curve, the software must solve a new set of equations. Various
mathematical methods are derived to perform iterations and optimizations of
FEA, including the Newton-Raphson method and the Broyden-Fletcher-
Goldfarb-Shanno method.
As per Clause 7.3.1 of IS 1893:2016(Part 1), Seismic design force shall be estimated using
full dead load plus some percentage of the imposed load as given in Table 10.
For Imposed load distributed uniformly on the floor, 25% of the imposed the load shall be
considered when the intensity of the live load is up to and including 3.0kN/m2.
And for imposed load distributed uniformly on the floor, 50% of the imposed load shall be
considered when the intensity of the live load is more than 3kN/m2.
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Articles, Principles
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This post presents the procedure in scaling of base shear in ETABS. It is assumed
that you are already aware of the principles of response spectrum analysis and are
using CSI ETABS as your analysis tool.
UBC-97 and ASCE 7-05 or later require that the base shear calculated using modal
response spectrum dynamic analysis should exceed or match a certain percentage
of the static base shear calculated using Equivalent Lateral Force procedure (static
analysis). The requirements of ASCE 7-05 are implemented in this example. For
completeness, relevant steps on how to set up the spectrum cases in ETABS are
presented.
STEP 1:
An ETABS model should already be available for the project.
STEP 2:
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Declare the static load cases in x- and y-direction. In this example, these are
designated as EQX and EQY respectively.
The seismic parameters are project specific dependent on seismicity of the region,
the underlying soil class and type of building structure. Eccentricity in seismic
loading will not be considered for the static cases since the base shear obtained
from EQX and EQY cases would only be used for base shear scaling and not for
design, i.e. seismic design will only use the forces from dynamic analysis.
STEP 3:
Define the Response Spectrum function. The parameters you input here should
match the static case seismic parameters.
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STEP 4:
Define the mass source to be used in the seismic analysis specific to the project
criteria. For example, you might include 25% of the occupancy live load as part of
the mass source.
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STEP 5:
Define the P-delta parameters based on project specific criteria or standard
practice. Usually, the factors of the gravity load component of the governing
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seismic load combination is used. For example, if the load combination includes
1.2 DEAD + 1.0 LIVE + 1.0 EARTHQUAKE, and deem that the gravity component of
this combination would produce the highest P-delta effect, you would input:
STEP 6:
Set up the modal case which must include vibration in both x- and y-direction.
There should be sufficient number of modes to achieve at such that at least 90%
total mass participation (ASCE 7-05 Section 12.9.1). In this example, Ritz method is
used with 16 modes analyzed.
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STEP 7:
Add two Response Spectrum cases in U1 and U2 horizontal direction. In this
example, SPECX and SPECY are defined respectively.
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The response spectra is to be multiplied g/R*I (ASCE 7-05 Section 12.9.2), hence an
initial scale should be entered for each response spectrum case. Note that by
defining an initial scale as a factor of g, the results obtained from the response
spectrum analysis would be a force value, e.g. in kN unit.
The adopted method for modal combination is CQC while the directional
combination is SRSS.
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STEP 8:
Create a load combination that combines the response from each direction SPECX
and SPECY. Two methods are commonly used:
Method 1) 100% from one direction + 30% from the other direction
Method 2) Square root of the sum of squares (SRSS) of the effect from each
direction.
The SRSS method of combination will be used in this example. This is declared as
SPECXY in the ETABS load combination definition.
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Scale values of 1.0 are applied for each case. This can be adjusted later in the load
combination of SPECXY after the analysis has been completed. If a higher scale
factor is necessary to satisfy code requirements, this can be applied in the
combination without having to rerun the dynamic analysis. This can save hours or
even days of computer analysis time in case of a huge model!
STEP 9:
If you have completed STEPS 1-8, you should be able to run the analysis. After the
analysis is completed, click on Display > Show Tables
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Select Analysis > Results > Modal Results > Modal Participating Mass Ratios
and Analysis > Results > Structure Results > Story Forces check boxes.
Select the “Modal Participating Mass Ratios” table. Verify that both “Sum UX” and
“Sum UY” have achieved at least 90% participation. If not, increase the number of
modes then rerun the analysis. For our example, 100% participation has been
achieved.
Select the “Story Forces” table. Right-click on any part of the table and choose
“Export to Excel”
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STEP 10:
With the data exported in Excel, filter the data by clicking Data > Filter
The base shear will be scaled from the base of the structure, therefore select the
lowest level only. In our example, Story1.
Filter the Load Case/Combo by selecting EQX, EQY, SPECX Max, and SPECY Max.
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Finally, filter Location to display the Bottom forces only. The Excel table should now
look like as shown:
Create a formula at the end of each row to calculate the resultant shear:
SQRT(VX^2 + VY^2)
Get the ratio between dynamic and static base shear. In this example,
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Ratio,x = 1.739
Ratio,y = 1.682
The ratio should be greater than the minimum prescribed by the code. Based on
ASCE 7-05 Section 12.9.4, the ratio should be more than 85%. Since both
Ratio,x and Ratio,y are greater than 0.85, there is no need to further adjust the
scales, e.g. keep SPECX=1 and SPECY=1 under the load combination SPECXY.
Create other seismic load combinations in ETABS and make use of the pre-
combined SPECXY load combination. For example, the ASCE 7-05 combination
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Notice how we used the combined effect SPECXY instead of SPECX or SPECY
individually. This reduces the total number of seismic combinations we would
need to define in ETABS. ASCE 7-05 also requires us to include the vertical
component of the earthquake force in the combination (not shown in this simple
example).
STEP11:
What if the ratio between dynamic and static base shear is less than 0.85? Let’s
consider the following data derived from another theoretical ETABS analysis.
V,EQX = 10800 kN
V,EQY = 10800 kN
V,SPECX = 9850 kN
V,SPECY = 7830 kN
Scale,SPECX = 1.0
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Plot of story shear against building height depicting scaled and unscaled base shear.
The above diagram shows the original unscaled dynamic story shear (red lines)
and the scaled up dynamic story shear (green lines). In this example, it can be seen
that the shear force distribution for each corresponding story is lower in the
dynamic analysis procedure as compared with the static analysis procedure. This is
generally the case, therefore most structural designers prefer to apply dynamic
seismic analysis which could result to more economical design.
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1 COMMENT Oldest
Abo Yahya
3 months ago
my question is there and difference between this scale factor and scale factor when we are
showing the results of analysis plot function that units find in two axis X&Y?
Reply
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Otte
Seismic analysis and design as per Eurocode 8 can be done quite easily with the built-in features of
ETABS 2016 and SAP2000 v19.
ETABS 2016/SAP2000 v19 are capable to perform the following methods of seismic analysis and
design:
This technical note will focus on seismic analysis and design using Equivalent Lateral Force Method
(ELF) and Response Spectrum Analysis (RSA).
For both ELF and RSA methods, seismic mass source will first need to be defined. The weight of the
structure used in the calculation of automatic seismic loads is based on the specified mass of the
structure, and is termed mass source in ETABS 2016 and SAP2000 v19.
In EC8, the storey weight, Wi at storey i, taken when calculating the seismic actions should comprise
the full permanent load plus the variable load multiplied by a factor ΨEi. ΨEi is equal to Ψ2i multiplied
by a reduction factor ϕ.
Values of Ψ2i and ϕ are National Determined Parameters and reference should be made to specific
National Annexes. Note that these factors differ with occupancy category (residential, offices, shops,
etc.). Thus, mass source definition could be different from projects to projects.
To define the seismic mass source, click on Define>Mass Source… then define mass source as below:
Modal Analysis results give modal frequencies/period and mode shapes that are primarily used in
Response Spectrum Analysis in ETABS 2016 and SAP2000 v19.
The fundamental modal periods on the two main orthogonal directions reported from the modal
analysis can be used in calculating the base shear for Equivalent Lateral Force Method.
The maximum number of modes specified should be sufficient to meet the 90% mass participation
requirement by the code. This requirement is to ensure that the response of all modes of vibration
contributing significantly to the global response has been taken into account.
After running modal analysis, Modal Mass Participation can be checked in ETABS 2016 and SAP2000
v19:
Click on Display>Show Tables… and tick Modal Participating Mass Ratios under Results> Modal Results.
EC8 also requires that the stiffness of all load bearing elements must account for the effect of cracking.
EC8 also states that unless a more accurate analysis of the cracked elements is performed, the elastic
flexural and shear stiffness properties of concrete elements may be taken to be equal to one-half of
the corresponding stiffness of the uncracked sections.
To satisfy the above requirements, stiffness properties of slabs with shell properties, beams, columns,
and walls has to be reduced to 50%.
To reduce the stiffness properties of slabs with shell properties, select the slabs, and click on
Assign>Shell>Stiffness Modifiers…
To reduce the stiffness properties of beams, select the beams and click on Assign>Frame>Property
Modifiers…
To reduce the properties of walls, select the walls, and click on Assign>Shell>Stiffness Modifiers…
In Equivalent Lateral Force Method, the Base Shear is determined using code based procedures. The
calculated Base Shear is then distributed through all the stories in relation to the storey weight and
height from the base.
Use of Equivalent Lateral Force Method should be limited for simple regular buildings, without
elevation regularity, and the fundamental periods in the two main directions are less than 2 seconds.
To define a static seismic load pattern, click on to Define>Load Patterns… Select “Seismic” as the type,
and select “EUROCODE8 2004” in Auto Lateral Load.
An important thing to note is that the value required for Ground Acceleration is in terms of ag/g,
where ag = agR x Importance Factor, and g refers to gravitational acceleration (9.81 m/s2).
Three options are provided for the building period to be used in calculating the automatic seismic
loads as per EC8. These are Approximate, Program Calculated, and User Defined.
In using Approximate period, the program will calculate the fundamental period based on EN1998-1
Eq. 4.6.
If Program Calculated is chosen, the program start with the period of the mode calculated to have the
largest participation factor in the direction that loads are being calculated (X or Y).
For the input the Story/Elevation range data, specify a top story/maximum elevation and a bottom
story/minimum elevation. This specifies the elevation range over which the automatic static lateral
loads are calculated. In most instances, the top elevation would be specified as the uppermost level
in the structure, typically the roof in a building.
The bottom elevation typically would be the base level, but this may not always be the case. For
example, if a building has several rigid below-grade levels and it is assumed that the seismic loads are
transferred to the ground at ground level, it would be practical to specify the bottom elevation to be
above the base level.
Note that no seismic loads are calculated for the bottom story/minimum elevation and below.
Specifying 0.05 (5%) in the eccentricity ratio input will satisfy EC8 requirements regarding minimum
accidental torsion effect that need to be considered. The eccentricity options have meaning only if
the model has diaphragms—the programs ignore eccentricities where diaphragms are not present.
RSA method is suitable to be used for Irregular buildings. In this dynamic analysis, building irregularity
and dynamic effects are both accounted.
Generally, RSA method is used to find the maximum/peak response of the structure to a certain
dynamic loading wherein the “Sign” (direction) is not relevant.
Define the response spectrum function using similar values as that of in static seismic load pattern
definition.