Seismic Response of Reinforced Concrete Buildings in Caracas, Venezuela

Abstract eng:
As part of the Seismic Microzonation Project of the Caracas city, coordinated by the Venezuelan Seismological Research Foundation (FUNVISIS), a study on the seismic response of nine (9) real moment-resisting reinforced concrete frame buildings located in Caracas – Venezuela, has been developed. The selected buildings includes low (3-4 stories), medium (6-8 stories) and high-rise (13-17 stories) RC frame structures, designed according to the different Venezuelan Standard Construction, i.e. buildings designed before 1967 year (Pre-67), between 1967 and 1982 year (67-82) and buildings designed after 1982 year (Post-82). Each building was modeled using a computer 3D model with SAP2000, taking into account dimensions and reinforcement details of the primary system components (columns and beams), and then subjected to simplified nonlinear analysis to evaluate seismic performance. Using Pushover analysis, the capacity curve is obtained for each analysis direction of the model, then different physical damage levels are defined and associated with Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA) throug ATC-40 simplified procedures. The seismic hazard is characterized using a typical site acceleration spectrum. Based on analysis results, preliminary fragility curves are generated for each building and each analysis direction, showing the significant vulnerability of those buildings constructed before 1967 (Pre-67), specially high-rise buildings, which performance is unacceptable for hazard levels expected in Caracas city . The fragility curves also show a good performance, regardless of height, for buildings constructed after 1982 (Post-82), while the performance of buildings constructed between 1967 and 1982 (67-82) do depend on building height, showing that low-rise buildings perform better than medium and high-rise buildings, the last ones revealing seismic strength below normative according to current Venezuelan seismic code.

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