Geology Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 12
Optimum Design of a New
Hysteretic Dissipater
Dora Foti
Technical University of Bari, Italy
Riccardo Nobile
University of Salento, Italy
ABSTRACT
In this chapter, a new seismic protection device is proposed. It is designed to dissipate the energy enter-
ing a structure subject to seismic action through the activation of hysteresis loops of the material that
composes it. These devices are characterized by a high capacity to absorb the seismic energy and the
ability to concentrate the damage on it and, consequently, to keep the structure and the structural parts
undamaged. Moreover, after a seismic event they can be easily replaced. In particular, this chapter pro-
poses a new shear device that shows the plasticity of some areas of the device at low load levels. In order
to maximize the amount of dissipated energy, the design of the device was performed by requiring that
the material be stressed in an almost uniform way. In particular, the device is designed to concentrate
energy dissipation for plasticity in the aluminum core while the steel parts are responsible to make stiffer
the device, limiting out-of-plane instability phenomena. The geometric configuration that maximizes the
energy dissipation has been determined using a structural optimization routine of finite element software.
INTRODUCTION
design criteria, giving the possibility of signifi-
cantly reducing the seismic forces. The result is
the design of economic structures that perform
satisfactorily during a severe earthquake. How-
ever, ductility means damage both in the structural
and non-structural elements. Furthermore, the
damage may cause the temporal or total arrest of
the building. Therefore, in recent years, research
Concept of Structural Control
Traditional techniques for the design of building
structures are based on experimentation and on the
damage observed during earthquakes. Structural
ductility and redundancy are the basis of modern
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