Category

EN

P18

Which Structural Design Best Resists Earthquakes?

Abstract

This project was designed to test the ability of different structural

designs to resist lateral loads. The application ofthis is to earthquake

engineering, dueto the fact that earthquakes apply lateral loads to

structures. The exeperimentation was done by constructing model

buildings out of popsicle sticks. Two types of building designs were used

in the experiment an, x-braced structure and a cube structure as a control.

Each building was tested five times ona homemade shake table that was

designed to simulate earthquake forces.

To determine which structure best resisted lateral loads, each was

shaken at the same level of inetensity ountil failure of the structure. Failure

was constituted primarily by the detachment of any of the four walls from

the rest of the building. This was not always a clear cut definition, but

there was little ambiguity on whether a structure had failed or not.

After the failure of a structure, the building wouldbe reassembled and

put back onto the shake table. This was repeated five times for each

structural design, giving a total of ten trials.

When experimentation was completed it was very clear that the x-

braced structures had best resisted lateral loads due to the fack that each

trial of the x-braced structures exceeded those of the cube design. Not

only did the times for the x-braced structure exceed those of the cubed

structures everytime, but also exceeded by a large increment.

Approximately one minute longer for each trial.

Bibliography

Works Cited

"Engineering Frequently Asked Questions." Northern Steel Buildings.

Northern Steel Buildings. Dec. 2008.

Reckerimger, Doug. Telephone interview. 2 Feb. 2009.

Tayser, Dave. Telephone interview. 9 Jan. 2009.

"Tips to Design Earthquake Resistant Structures." Tips to Design

Earthquake Resistant Structures. 4 Jan. 2009.

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