Influence of Number of Supports of Secondary Structure on Its Seismic Response

Abstract eng:
Multiply-supported secondary structures attached across different floors of a primary structure are ubiquitous in big cities. Examples include advertisement boards, fire escapes, and building façades. In a seismic event, this type of secondary structure experiences spatial coupling, i.e. the response at one of the attachments affects that of the other. The number of support of a secondary structure affects the spatial coupling behaviour, and hence its response. Current analysis methods for multiply-supported secondary structures are developed mostly from numerical studies with idealised assumptions. Experimental studies are still scarce. This paper investigates the influence of the number of attachments of a secondary structure on its seismic response through large-scale shake table experiments. The experimental model consisted of a 1:4 scale, four-storey three-dimensional primary structure with a secondary structure attached. Secondary structures with two and three supports were considered alternately. Both secondary structures have the same dynamic properties to ensure valid comparison. Large-scale testing was implemented to study the acceleration from the ground to the secondary structure, which would otherwise be too small to detect in a small-scale setup. For this purpose, the response were measured at the ground, each floor of the primary structure, beams of the primary structure where the secondary structure was attached, and each end of the secondary structure. The effect of the number of supports on the response of the secondary structure at each supports will be revealed. The interaction between the primary and secondary structures will also be explicated. The results will contribute as a first step to optimize the design of secondary structures with multiple supports.

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