Dissipative Steel Supports of Industrial Equipment

Abstract eng:
Industrial structures are characterised by high masses which have to be considered in the determination of seismic forces; these masses usually result from processing equipment and storage containers, which are often supported by steel structures. In the case of industrial buildings the seismic loads acting on the equipment are determined by means of floor spectra for which an elastic response of the building is assumed. Furthermore the common formulas given for the determination of floor spectra are based on a simplified modal shape of the building which does not reflect the influence of high masses on top of the buildings. For separate supports (e.g. for tanks or reactors) no specific rules are provided so far by the codes. Within the European research Project INDUSE numerical investigations have been performed to evaluate the influence of the nonlinear, dissipative response of industrial buildings on the floor response spectra. The studies have been done as Incremental Dynamic Analyses and provided the dependency between the floor spectra on the actual grade of plastification. The capability of elevated supports carrying single components to develop a ductile and dissipative behaviour has been investigated for typical equipment. The results allow for a more realistic determination of seismic forces acting at the equipment and thus of a more efficient design of anchorages to be provided for the supported components.

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