1 s2.0 S235271022201748X Main
1 s2.0 S235271022201748X Main
1 s2.0 S235271022201748X Main
A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T
Keywords: This study presents seismic retrofitting of medium-rise torsionally coupled Reinforced-Concrete
Torsionally coupled soft-storey building (RC) non-ductile building with soft ground storey. An irregular RC building with T-shaped plan
Seismic retrofit is considered for the present study. In this sample building the presence of plan irregularity results
Displacement-based design in the torsional coupling of lateral modes. The location of staircase in the sample building
Short yielding core BRB significantly enhances the plan irregularity. Therefore, the contribution of stiffness of the stair
Energy dissipative device
case slabs is considered in the overall stiffness of the numerical model. Buckling Restrained Braces
(BRBs) with short yielding cores are adopted to improve the seismic performance of the sample
building. Short yielding core BRBs are installed in the ground storey to control the seismic lateral
response induced by the soft-storey and torsional coupling of lateral modes. Displacement-based
design method is adopted for the design of short yielding core BRBs to enhance the stiffness and
energy dissipation of the structure so that it can endure the considered earthquake without
exceeding the target drift level. Nonlinear dynamic analysis of the sample building is carried out
before and after retrofit under bidirectional horizontal ground excitations applied simultaneously.
The seismic performance is assessed in terms of maximum inter-storey drift, torsional response,
plastic hinge distribution, residual displacement. Maximum axial force distribution of BRBs,
maximum ductility and cumulative ductility demand of BRBs are discussed for a critical ground
motion record. Analysis of the results reveals that the installation of BRBs decouples the
torsionally coupled lateral modes of the sample building; and decreases inter-storey drift,
torsional response and residual displacement in the soft ground storey. Thus, the retrofit design
considered in this study, enhances the overall structural performance of the sample building
reducing the lateral response due to the combined effect of the soft-storey and torsional coupling
of lateral modes.
1. Introduction
Major seismic design standards adopted across the world have classified the irregularities in buildings generally as plan and vertical
irregularities. The existence of irregularities results in non-uniform distribution of responses in the structural components. During past
earthquakes, many buildings with irregular structural configurations experienced either significant damage or collapse. Past research
works [1,2] confirmed that the irregular buildings undergo more damage than the regular buildings. Therefore, it is important to
improve the seismic performance of these structures. The presence of plan irregularity induces torsional coupling of lateral modes and
results in non-uniform distribution of seismic demand in the structural components. Discontinuity of infill walls in the ground storey
* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: [email protected] (G. Das).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2022.105742
Received 22 September 2022; Received in revised form 29 November 2022; Accepted 11 December 2022
Available online 13 December 2022
2352-7102/© 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
G. Das et al. Journal of Building Engineering 65 (2023) 105742
results in vertical irregularity in form of soft-storey imposing large ductility demand in the ground storey columns. Extensive research
works have been conducted to evaluate the impact of both types of irregular configurations individually on the nonlinear response of
buildings.
Duan and Chandler [3] evaluated the inelastic seismic response of torsionally coupled buildings designed as per the provisions of
seismic design codes by carrying out nonlinear dynamic analysis. The study investigated the adequacy of the modal analysis procedure
and static procedure in the seismic design codes. These procedures were found to be non-conservative for the evaluation of the
maximum ductility demand, where the plan irregularity was significant. Ghersi and Rossi [4] presented a design approach for
torsionally coupled building and proposed a formula for design eccentricity to limit the maximum ductility demand. Mulas et al. [5]
carried out a seismic vulnerability assessment for torsionally coupled RC building and proposed retrofit strategies subsequently to
reduce the vulnerability. The addition of a new RC shear wall stiffened the structural system and decoupled the torsionally coupled
lateral modes by reducing the eccentricity between the Centre of Mass (CM) and the Centre of Rigidity (CR). In another approach, RC
walls were replaced by a frame system, where the sample building was weakened, decreasing the stiffness and thus, seismic demand.
Thermou and Psaltakis [6] proposed a design methodology incorporating RC infill walls at the periphery of the torsionally coupled RC
building with soft ground storey. The proposed design approach eliminated the torsional coupling of the mode shapes and enhanced
the seismic performance of the building, ensuring optimum distribution of inter-storey drift throughout the height. Direct
displacement-based design [7,8] approaches were employed to retrofit the torsionally coupled RC buildings. The validity of the design
procedure was verified by nonlinear dynamic analysis. The results obtained from the analysis displayed that the target performance
objectives of the retrofit design were achieved. Jangid and Datta [9] proposed seismic retrofitting of torsionally coupled structures
using base isolation system. Parametric study was carried out; and the effectiveness of the base isolation system to reduce the seismic
response of the structure was assessed. The study reported that the ratio of uncoupled torsional frequency to lateral frequency of the
superstructure significantly affected its effectiveness. Further, it was observed that the increase of torsional coupling, reduced the
effectiveness of the base isolation system in mitigating the torsional response of the superstructure.
Most of the studies assessed the seismic response of irregular buildings, based on numerical models excluding the contribution of
stiffness of the staircase. The inclined staircase slabs significantly contribute to the stiffness of the building due to the mobilisation of
diagonal bracing action under lateral load and thereby attract a large amount of seismic force. The studies [10,11] on seismic analysis
of torsionally coupled RC buildings addressed the non-uniform distribution of stiffness due to the presence of inclined staircase slabs
and the location of the staircase in the plan. It was reported that the non-uniform distribution of stiffness induced by the rigidity of
inclined staircase slabs and short columns around the staircase contributed to the increase in the eccentricity of floor. The inclusion of
staircase flights as structural components in the numerical modelling of buildings is necessary. This would influence the eccentricity
between the Centre of Mass (CM) and the Centre of Rigidity (CR) of the building, which is a measure of the plan irregularity and thus,
affecting the overall seismic response of the building.
Negro and Taylor [12] conducted pseudo-dynamic tests on full-scale frames of RC buildings and assessed the global behaviour of
the frames with and without considering the soft-storey effect. The soft-storey effect was induced in the building by removing infill
walls in the ground storey. The experimental results exhibited significant displacement demand at ground storey level with some
damage in the infill panels of the first storey only. Khan and Rawat [13] performed nonlinear static analysis of masonry infilled RC
buildings with eccentric bracings in the soft-storey. Sahoo and Rai [14] developed a retrofitting technique with aluminium shear links
as passive dampers in addition to strengthening of ground-storey columns. A performance-based design approach was used to pro
portion various structural elements. Nonlinear analysis was carried out to evaluate inter-storey drift, residual drift, yield mechanism,
energy dissipation and lateral strength. Benavent-Climent and Mota-Paez [15] employed hysteretic dampers for the seismic retrofitting
of existing non-ductile RC soft-storey buildings. An energy-based design method was proposed to evaluate the required strength,
stiffness and energy dissipation capacity of the hysteretic dampers. Mazza et al. [16] adopted base isolation technique to retrofit a RC
soft-storey building located on high seismic zone. Nonlinear dynamic analysis was carried out to assess the seismic behaviour of the
structure before and after retrofit. The study reported that the retrofit technique was effective to mitigate the maximum horizontal
displacement induced by seismic event. Fakhouri and Igarashi [17] proposed a new isolation interface of multiple-slider bearing to
retrofit existing soft-storey building. Numerical analysis was performed to investigate the efficiency of the proposed system in
decreasing the ductility demand and damage in the structure. An optimum design procedure for multiple-slider bearings was proposed
by balancing the maximum bearing displacement and the first story ductility demand ratio.
So far, a limited number of studies have investigated the combined effect of plan and vertical irregularities on the seismic response
of buildings. Hareen and Mohan [18] estimated the inelastic response of torsionally coupled RC ductile building having soft ground
storey using Extended N2 method and Extended Capacity Spectrum Method. Seismic responses of the building obtained using these
methods were compared with those obtained using bidirectional time-history analysis. A conservative design procedure was proposed
for the computation of seismic response of corner columns on the flexible side (FS), considering 1.5 times the design forces. Goh and
Pan [19] studied the torsional response of non-ductile two-way asymmetric structures with the soft ground storey. The displacement
responses were substantially increased in the elements on the FS than on the rigid side (RS) due to the soft-storey and torsional
coupling of lateral modes. Further, it was also observed that the displacement amplification on the FS was increased significantly with
the increase of eccentricity. Lee and Hwang [20] carried out seismic retrofitting of low-rise torsionally coupled RC building with
soft-storey. A series of earthquake simulation tests were conducted on a 1/5th scale model before and after retrofit. Buckling restrained
braces (BRB) and fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) sheets were used at the periphery of the original prototype building to reduce the
seismic response induced by the soft-storey and torsional coupling of lateral modes.
However, BRBs are widely used as passive control hysteretic dampers, which exhibit stable hysteretic energy dissipation in both
compression and tension. Cost-effective BRBs are used as the alternative to conventional concentric/eccentric braces which are sus
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ceptible to buckling in compression with substantial strength deterioration. Several experimental and analytical studies [21–24] were
carried out to assess the performance of BRBs. Past research works [25–28] reported that BRBs were effective in reducing the
maximum inter-storey drift, and residual drift of building by providing additional stiffness and hysteretic energy dissipation. Ruiz et al.
[29] proposed retrofit techniques to improve the seismic performance of RC moment frame building with soft ground storey. Incre
mental dynamic analysis (IDA) and seismic fragility analysis were performed to compare the seismic performance of original building
with that of retrofitted building. Among the retrofit techniques, the installation of BRBs led to transmission of lower seismic demand to
the foundation. Castaldo et al. [30] conducted seismic retrofitting of an existing RC building resting on high seismic zone using BRBs
and evaluated its seismic performance before and after retrofit by performing nonlinear static analysis and IDA. The employment of
BRBs contributed to increase the ductility capacity of the overall structure and also effectively reduced the inter-storey drift, residual
drift demand. Qie et al. [31] performed seismic performance evaluation of multi-storey steel frame using iron based smart memory
Fig. 1. Framing plan of sample building: (a) First-floor, (b) Second-Fourth floor.
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alloy (Fe-SMA) in BRB core instead of mild steel. A comparative study was carried out between the conventional BRB with steel core
and BRB with Fe-SMA based core. IDA was carried to evaluate its seismic performance. It is observed that the performance of Fe-SMA
based BRB was better in minimizing the maximum inter-storey drift, maximum floor acceleration, residual drift than that of con
ventional BRB. However, researches with Fe-SMA material are still in their early stage. Further studies are needed to investigate its
effectiveness and practical implementation for seismic retrofitting. Chen et al. [32] evaluated the seismic performance of a
multi-storey RC building equipped with inverted V-type BRBs. The seismic responses in terms of inter-storey drift, residual de
formations were reduced due to the installation of BRBs. Moreover, this study investigated the effect of the ratio of yielding core length
(Lc ) to total working length (Lw ) on the stiffness of BRBs. It was reported that the reduction of this ratio increased the effective stiffness
of BRBs.
BRB core consists of central yielding segment with transition and end segments on the either side. The Lc in conventional BRB varies
between 60 and 70% of Lw . Several studies [33–37] were conducted on short yielding core BRBs, where the Lc is varying between 20
and 50% of Lw . The axial strain capacity of the brace core lies between 4 and 5%. The reduction of yielding core segment led to smaller
axial yield displacement which resulted in the enhanced axial stiffness of BRBs. Thus, the short yield core BRBs require lesser
cross-sectional area as compared to the conventional BRBs to provide the required axial stiffness in the brace core. Moreover, the
studies [35,37,38] reported that the brace core experienced increased ductility demand due to the reduction of yielding core length.
Pandikkadavath and Sahoo [35] investigated the seismic performance of medium-rise building frame employing short yielding core
BRBs, where Lc was considered ~0.3 Lw . Nonlinear static and dynamic analysis were conducted to evaluate its seismic response. It was
confirmed that short yield core BRBs effectively mitigated the inter-storey drift and residual drift of the building.
However, very limited research works were carried out to enhance the seismic performance of torsionally coupled RC buildings
with soft-storey using BRBs. In this present study, seismic retrofitting of an irregular RC building is carried out using BRBs with short
yielding core to mitigate the seismic response due to the soft-storey and torsional coupling of lateral modes. The location of the stair-
hall in the plan of the sample building also results in the increase of eccentricity between the CM and the CR. The nonlinear seismic
response of the sample building is evaluated, incorporating the contribution of lateral stiffness of the staircase in the numerical
modelling. BRBs are installed in the ground storey to mitigate the seismic response induced by the soft-storey and torsional coupling of
lateral modes. Displacement-based design (DBD) of BRBs is adopted for the lateral response control of the soft ground storey. The
present study approaches the application of the short yielding core BRBs inducing smaller yield displacement in the brace core. So far,
no studies have been conducted on retrofitting of torsionally coupled soft-storey building using short yielding core BRBs. The present
study relies on the application of short yielding core BRBs to provide sufficient stiffness and ductility for the seismic response control of
the sample building. The main objectives of this study are to minimize the eccentricity at the first-floor, and the maximum storey drifts
within the prescribed value for controlling the plastic deformations and thereby mitigating seismic damage levels in the primary
structural elements of the sample building.
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3. Numerical modelling
3D numerical model of the sample building is developed using finite element software SAP2000 [43] (see Fig. 3). In the present
study, three different models of the sample building are considered as: i) Model A, original building model excluding the contribution
of the staircase stiffness, ii) Model B1, original building model including the contribution of the staircase stiffness, iii) Model B2,
retrofitted building model including the contribution of the staircase stiffness. Beams and columns are modelled using frame elements.
Mander unconfined concrete model [43,44] is used to simulate the compressive stress-strain behaviour of unconfined concrete, as
shown in Fig. 4(a). The stress-strain behaviour of reinforcement steel bar is characterized using the Park stress-strain model [43], as
shown in Fig. 4(b). The stress-strain behaviour of confined concrete is simulated considering the model proposed by Mander et al. [44].
The nonlinearity of masonry infill wall is modelled using the idealized stress-strain curve proposed by Kaushik et al. [45]. The
compressive stress-strain curve of URM prism, developed from the analytical stress-strain relation proposed by Kaushik et al. [45], is
presented in Fig. 4(c). Unreinforced masonry (URM) infill walls are modelled using equivalent diagonal struts according to FEMA 356:
2000 [46]. The widths of the equivalent diagonal struts are shown in Table 2.
The end zone offset in modelling of RC beam and columns are considered as 0.5. In-plane rigidity of RC floor slabs are modelled
using rigid horizontal diaphragms. The finite element (FE) model of RC staircase slabs is simulated using 4-noded shell elements. The
locations of CM and CR of floor diaphragms, which are computed for each of the three models [47], are shown in Fig. 1. The ec
centricity (ey /Ly ) at the first-floor level is 13% for Model A. However, the location of the CR gets shifted due to the consideration of the
staircase in Model B1, which increases the corresponding eccentricity value to 18%. From the second to fourth-floor level, the ec
centricity value is 2%, which is insignificant as compared to that at the first-floor level. In Model B2, the eccentricity at the first-floor
level decreases to 0.13%. In this present study, modal analysis and nonlinear analysis are carried out for Model B1 and Model B2 only,
where the contribution of staircase stiffness is considered in the numerical modelling of the sample building. The characteristics of
corresponding modes, as obtained from the modal analysis, are presented in Table 3. In order to simulate nonlinear behaviour,
displacement-controlled lumped plastic hinges were defined considering: a) interaction of axial force and bi-axial bending moment
(P-M-M), and moment-rotation (M-ϴ) in columns, b) uniaxial moment-rotation (M-ϴ) in beams; and c) axial force-displacement (F-δ)
behaviour at the midspan of the diagonal struts. The plastic hinge length (Lp) in beams and columns are taken as 0.5 of section depth
(H) as recommended by Pauley and Priestley [48]. These hinges are assigned at a distance of 0.5H from the support face. The details of
M-ϴ plastic hinges are presented in Table 4. The idealized moment-rotation curve of the beam and column section is shown in Fig. 5.
Rotation at point E is taken as 1.5–2.0 times of ϴu , according to FEMA 356 [46]. The nonlinear force-deformation behaviour associated
with the axial hinges of the infill struts are simulated following the study by Alwashali et al. [49]. Cyclic moment-rotation degradation
is simulated by the Takeda hysteresis model [50]. Cyclic force-deformation behaviour of the infill strut element is simulated by the
pivot hysteresis model using the parameters suggested by Cavaleri and Trapani [51].
Table 1
Details of structural members.
Top Bottom
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Fig. 4. Stress-strain curves of (a) unconfined concrete [43], (b) steel rebar [43], (c) masonry prism [45].
Table 2
Widths of equivalent diagonal struts.
hcol (m) 4.00 3.50 3.50 3.50 3.50 3.50 3.50 2.00 2.00 1.75
b (m) 6.00 6.00 4.50 5.50 3.75 3.00 5.25 3.00 3.00 3.00
a (m) 0.65 0.64 0.50 0.59 0.45 0.39 0.57 0.37 0.36 0.36
hcol - height of column from centre to centre of beam, b - bay width, a - width of equivalent infill strut.
seismic retrofitting is carried out for the ground storey only, considering both the effect of soft-storey and torsional coupling of lateral
modes.
Short yielding core BRBs impose higher ductility demand in the brace core, resulting in the reduction of seismic force demand.
Further, the smaller axial yield displacement in the brace core contributes to enhanced axial stiffness, which can be utilized to
minimize the eccentricity and thus, decoupling of torsionally coupled lateral modes. Therefore, in this study, short yielding core BRBs
are adopted to minimize the eccentricity of first-floor and control the seismic lateral response due to the soft-storey.
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Table 3
Time periods and mass participation ratios.
Type of numerical model Mode no Time Period (s) Mass participation ratio (%)
UX UY RZ
Table 4
Details of moment-rotation (M-ϴ) plastic hinges.
mitigate the lateral drift response associated with the soft storey. The additional BRBs in the X direction are distributed on both the FS
and RS of the building without changing the location of the CR. Displacement-based design (DBD) approach is adopted to estimate the
mechanical properties of BRBs for lateral drift control measures. Step by step DBD procedure is discussed as follows:
• Performance objectives: Design drift threshold (θd ) is considered as 1% under the Design Basis Earthquake (DBE), which cor
responds to PGA of 0.18 g [39]. The seismic performance is also evaluated for 2% drift under Maximum Considered Earthquake
(MCE) which corresponds to PGA of 0.36 g [39].
• Design storey yield displacement: The design storey yield displacement at the ground storey level (uyg ) is computed from Eq. (1)
as:
uyg = hθy (1)
where, h is the storey height and θy (θd /μdg ) is design yield drift ratio.
μdg is storey ductility at the ground storey level, as provided by BRB.
• Design axial yield displacement: Design axial yield displacement demand (Δy ) in BRB core is calculated from Eq. (2) as:
Δy = uyg cos α (2)
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• Computation of seismic demand: The design base shear of masonry-infilled RC frame with BRBs (Vy,d ) is computed from Eq. (3)
following N2 method by Fajfar et al. [52].
Vy,d = Me Say (3)
( )2
∑
mi ui
Me = ∑
i
mi u2i
; where, mi is storey mass; ui is target displacement profile of MDOF structure.
i
Say = Sa
Rμ ; where, Sae is elastic pseudo-spectral acceleration demand of equivalent SDOF model of MDOF structure; Rμ is response
e
• Design lateral stiffness: Design lateral stiffness (Kl ) of the ground storey is calculated as:
/
Kl,d = Vy,d uyg (4)
• Calculation of design parameters of BRBs: Axial stiffness (Ky,BRB ), axial yield force (Ny,BRB ), and area of yielding core (Ac ) of
BRBs are calculated using the following equations:
/( )
Ky,BRB = Kl,d ncos2 α (5)
Δy = Δc + Δt + Δe
where, E is Young modulus; Lc , Lt and Le are the length of yielding core segment, transition segment and end segment; Ac , At and Ae are
the cross-sectional areas of yielding core segment, transition segment and end segment.
In this present study, the steel grade of BRB core is taken as Fe250 (fy = 250 MPa). The storey ductility at the ground storey level
corresponding to DBE is considered as μd = 7. The storey yield displacement at the ground storey level is calculated from Eq. (1) as:
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uyg ≈ 0.0057 m. At /Ac and Ae /Ac is considered as 2.5 and 3.5 respectively [35]. The design parameter Lc is selected between 35 and
40% of Lw corresponding to Δy in compliance with Eq. (8). Maximum axial strain capacity (εmax ) in the brace core is considered as 4%.
Maximum axial displacement capacity (Δmax ) can be readily calculated from Eq. (9) as suggested by Della Corte et al. [26] as:
( )
Δmax = Δy + εmax − εy Lc (9)
Table 5
Design mechanical parameters of BRBs.
3
Elements Bay Width (m) Lw (m) Ac ( × 10− m2 ) Ky,BRB (kN/m) Maximum capacity (kN)
Tension Compression
BXA1, BXA2, BXA3, BXA4 4.5 6.02 910 52,906 318.5 350.4
BXC1, BXC2 4.5 6.02 1000 58,140 350.0 385.0
BYA1, BYA2, BYA3, BYA4 4.5 6.02 910 52,906 318.5 350.4
BYB1, BYB2, BYB3⋅BYB4 5.5 6.80 850 45,186 297.5 327.3
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Table 6
Details of seismic ground motions.
height of the building. Thus, the concentrated drift demand in the soft-storey increases the vulnerability of the ground-storey columns.
Figs. 10(b) and Fig. 11(b) show that the maximum ISDs of Model B2 are decreased significantly in the ground storey and increased
slightly in the upper storeys. It indicates the redistribution of drift demands along the height of the building. However, the largest drift
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Fig. 10. Maximum ISD profile under DBE for (a) Model B1, (b) Model B2.
still occurs in the ground storey. In Model B1, the mean value of the maximum ground storey drift under DBE is 1.48% and 1.42% in the
X and Y direction, respectively. In Model B2, these are reduced to 0.87% and 0.74% in the corresponding directions. Thus, the mean
values of the maximum mean drift demands are restricted within the pre-selected drift limit, and thus, the target performance objective
of the retrofit design is achieved. The mean maximum ground storey drift of Model B1 under MCE is 3% and 2.9% in the X and Y
directions, respectively. On the other hand, the corresponding drifts are decreased to 2.09% and 1.98% in Model B2. Hence, the
installation of BRBs in Model B2 has effectively mitigated the maximum ISD under both DBE and MCE. Moreover, it is also observed
that the influence of ground motion characteristics on drift demands is more pronounced in the soft ground storey of Model B1 than
that of Model B2.
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Fig. 11. Maximum ISD profile under MCE for (a) Model B1, (b) Model B2.
under MCE, as shown in Fig. 13. The obtained results display larger dispersion on the RS than on the FS. However, the dispersions of
the obtained results are comparatively less in Model B2 than in Model B1. The installed BRBs in Model B2 contribute to both the
stiffness and ductility of the structure, where stiffness reduces the eccentricity in the elastic stage and ductility provides sufficient
energy dissipation reducing the torsional response in the inelastic stage.
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Fig. 12. Maximum normalised displacement at first-floor under DBE for (a) Model B1, (b) Model B2.
Fig. 13. Maximum normalised displacement at first-floor under MCE for (a) Model B1, (b) Model B2.
Fig. 14. Plastic hinge distribution under DBE for (a) Model B1, (b) Model B2.
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Fig. 15. Plastic hinge distribution under MCE for (a) Model B1, (b) Model B2.
Fig. 16. Displacement-time history at first-floor level under (a) DBE, (b) MCE.
∑ ∑
Wi+ + Wi−
μcum = (11)
Ny Δ y
where, Δmax is maximum displacement of BRB; Wi is energy in cycle i; Ny and Δy are first yield force and yield displacement of BRB,
respectively.
Usami et al. [58] suggested that the limiting values of μmax and μcum of BRBs were 25 and 400, respectively. In the present study, the
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Fig. 17. Maximum axial force distribution of BRBs under DBE.
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Fig. 18. Maximum axial forces distribution of BRBs under MCE.
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limiting value of μmax is computed as 20 based on Eq. (9) and Eq. (10) for maximum strain of 4%, and the limiting value of μcum is
computed as 592 based on the loading protocol suggested by ANSI/AISC 341–10 (2010) [59]. For the selected ground motion record
RSN 1212, the value of μmax is found to be 17.9 under MCE. The corresponding value of μcum is computed as 419, as per Eq. (11).
Therefore, the limiting values of μmax and μcum of the BRBs are adequate to meet the imposed maximum displacement demand and
cumulative displacement demand under the selected ground motion.
8. Conclusion
In this study, seismic retrofitting of a torsionally coupled RC building with soft ground storey has been carried out. Contribution of
the lateral stiffness of the staircase is incorporated in the numerical modelling of the sample building. Short yielding core BRBs are
installed in the ground storey and distributed on both the FS and RS of the building to minimize the eccentricity at the first-floor and
the lateral drift response associated with the soft-storey. The enhanced stiffness and energy dissipation of the short yielding core BRBs
are utilized to effectively mitigate the seismic damage level in the soft ground storey. Displacement-based design method is adopted for
the design of the BRBs to control the drift response associated with the soft ground storey under DBE. The seismic performances of the
sample building before and after retrofit, under both DBE and MCE are evaluated by carrying out nonlinear dynamic analysis. The
observations of this analysis show that the installation of short yielding core BRBs has minimized the maximum ISD, torsional
response, residual drifts in the soft ground storey. The retrofit design adopted for this study has effectively improved the seismic
performance of the sample building mitigating the seismic vulnerability induced by the soft storey and torsional coupling of lateral
modes. The following conclusions drawn from the present study are:
• The installation of short yielding core BRBs in retrofitted building Model B2, reduces the drift demand significantly in the soft
ground storey under both DBE and MCE. Under DBE, the mean values of maximum ISDs occurred in the ground storey are 0.87%
and 0.74% in the X and Y direction, respectively, which are limited within the prescribed target drift level (1%). Further, the
corresponding drifts display 2.09% and 1.98% under MCE.
• The eccentricity at the first-floor level is reduced from 18% to 0.13% due to the installation of BRBs in the ground storey and it
results in the decoupling of torsionally coupled lateral modes in the retrofitted building Model B2. Further, the mean values of the
maximum normalised displacements in the X direction are nearly equal to 1.0 on both the FS and RS of the building under DBE and
MCE, which ensures the reduction of the torsional response in the retrofitted building.
• The installation of BRBs has improved the performance level of plastic hinges in the ground storey and redistributed the plastic
hinges in the upper storeys. Under DBE, plastic hinges formed in the ground storey columns lie within the range of B-IO and IO-LS
level. Further, under MCE, a large number of plastic hinges display CP-C level of performance and very few number of plastic hinges
are formed within the range of C-D level in the ground storey columns.
• The residual drifts in Model B2 are significantly minimized under DBE and MCE ground motions because of the employment of
BRBs in the ground storey. Short yielding core BRBs contribute to increase the stiffness of the ground storey; which facilitates the
reduction of the associated residual drifts.
• The maximum axial forces, maximum ductility demand and cumulative ductility demand of BRBs under MCE are found to be lesser
than the corresponding limiting values for ground motion record RSN 1212. Thus, it can be concluded that the BRBs employed for
seismic retrofitting of the sample building have sufficient capacity to withstand the seismic demand.
Data availability
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