PERFORMANCE-BASED SEISMIC DESIGN OF HOSPITAL BUILDINGS USING DAMPERS

Abstract

Hospital buildings play a crucial role in post-earthquake scenarios by providing life-saving medical services. However, the seismic resilience of these structures is often compromised due to the conventional force-based design approach. Most designers avoid performing non-linear analysis, opting for simpler methods. To ensure the safety and protection of vital structures like hospital buildings, it is essential to apply the modern design techniques such as Performance-Based Design. This approach prioritizes displacement-based design over the traditional force-based methods, enhancing the seismic resilience of these critical facilities. In general, the most important issue related with the response of a structure, in the event of an earthquake, is dissipation of energy, imparted by the earthquake. The study explores the application of damping systems as a proactive strategy to mitigate seismic demands and enhance the overall structural performance. Using dampers, we can improve the damping, stiffness, and strength in such a way that the structure can remain in elastic range and still dissipate the energy imparted by the earthquake. The NDMA guidelines and FEMA 577 offer principles for designing hospital facilities. Dampers are used to help reduce the peak floor acceleration (PFA) of a structure. Given that non-structural equipment is of prime importance in hospital buildings, we have incorporated dampers into our design. In ASCE 41-17 and ASCE 07-22 both have provisions for damper modelling. This dissertation compares seismic performance of four hospital buildings. Two of them are two storey whereas the other two are seven storey tall. In each set of the two buildings, one building is designed for IS codes whereas the other one is designed for NDMA guidelines. Linear dynamic analysis is performed to design the buildings, as per the selected guidelines. Non-linear static (Pushover) analysis is performed to study the ductility and over strength in the building. The seismic performance levels of the buildings are estimated using the guidelines of ASCE 41-17.