Seismic Performance of Reinforced Concrete Structures at Different Damage Levels

Abstract

Performance ofreinforced concrete structures fora broad range of seismic events is a matter of importance. Assessment of the performance of a structure is done by considering various deformations and damage levels. This study represents a plan or a process in performance-based design to evaluate the behaviour or the performance level as an acceptance criterion of a reinforced concrete structure for seismic events, considering the likelihood of occurrence of a major seismic event pertaining to its place based on the past records of earthquakes and their probabilistic seismic hazards. Story drift ratios were considered as a design parameter corresponding to the different performance levels established by FEMA 356 (2000). The prescribed acceptance criteria for different performance levels gives an understanding of damages to be incurred by a reinforced concrete structure under a particular magnitude of earthquake considering its design lifetime. This helps in designing the structure for a particular seismic event at the desired level of performance encompassing the economies involved in its design