Abstract:
Reinforced concrete buildings are widely used in seismic regions due to their lower
construction cost and ductile behavior under lateral loads. However, the seismic
performance of these buildings is highly dependent on their design and implementation.
Seismic hazards pose a significant risk to structures in earthquake prone areas, and it is
essential to ensure that the buildings are constructed with adequate seismic resistance. In
the recent past, earthquakes have caused significant damage to poorly constructed and
designed reinforced concrete buildings, dictating the need to improve the seismic
performance of such types of buildings. Past survey of buildings reveals huge disparity
between the design and its implementation for reinforced concrete buildings in term of
concrete strength, clear cover, concrete mixing, water cement ratio, stirrups spacing,
lapping zones, hook angles, bar sizes etc. Furthermore, it is noted that several old buildings
were constructed either without any seismic provisions using outdated codes or just based
on mason’s experience. Such buildings are susceptible and vulnerable to seismic hazards
which may result in collapse and loss of life. This research focuses on assessment of an
existing (old building) and one prototype/model building by incorporating design and
implementation disparity issues. To determine their performance, their static push over
analysis (POA) and dynamic (NLTHA, IDA) analyses are conducted. Analysis results are
then utilized to rehabilitate and retrofit these buildings to improve their seismic
performance. Results show that by adopting selected retrofitting techniques, old buildings with poor design construction quality history can be rehabilitated to withstand seismic
forces, thus saving precious lives.
