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Report - PEER - University of California, Berkeley

Report - PEER - University of California, Berkeley

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EARTHQUAKE ACTIONS IN SEISMIC CODES: CAN CURRENTAPPROACHES MEET THE NEEDS OF PBSD?Julian J. BOMMER ∗ABSTRACTThe successful implementation <strong>of</strong> performance-based seismic design (PBSD) will require itsincorporation into seismic design codes in order to achieve application to all new constructionsand possibly also to existing buildings. Since PBSD has the objective <strong>of</strong> limiting structural andnon-structural damage under different levels <strong>of</strong> earthquake loading, the requirements for thespecification <strong>of</strong> design seismic actions inevitably exceed the current approach embodied innearly all design codes <strong>of</strong> an acceleration spectrum that approximates the uniform hazardspectrum for a return period <strong>of</strong> 475 years, modified to account for energy dissipation throughinelastic deformations. PBSD will require multiple levels <strong>of</strong> loading to be specified in codesand since the correlation between spectral acceleration and structural damage is poor theground motions will need to be represented in alternative formats, primarily displacements.Current code formats could be adapted to meet the needs <strong>of</strong> PBSD but the presentation <strong>of</strong> theseismic actions in this way could become rather cumbersome. At the same time, theintroduction <strong>of</strong> PBSD should be taken as an opportunity to review and improve the way inwhich earthquake ground shaking is characterized for design. Considering the requirements <strong>of</strong>PBSD and the shortcomings in current code specifications, alternative formats for presentingseismic actions are proposed.Keywords: Seismic design codes; Earthquake actions; Performance-based seismicdesign.1. INTRODUCTIONPerformance-based seismic design (PBSD) is essentially the formalization <strong>of</strong> <strong>of</strong>tencited objectives <strong>of</strong> designing structures to withstand minor or frequent earthquakeshaking without damage, moderate levels <strong>of</strong> shaking with only non-structural damageand severe shaking without collapse and a threat to life safety (ATC, 1978). In theVision 2000 document (SEAOC, 1995) this is elegantly stated as the “coupling <strong>of</strong>expected performance level with expected levels <strong>of</strong> seismic ground motions”. Tworequirements regarding the representation <strong>of</strong> earthquake actions for PBSD are thenimmediately apparent: several levels <strong>of</strong> seismic shaking must be specified and the∗ Civil & Environ. Engineering, Imperial College London, SW7 2AZ, UK. Email:j.bommer@imperial.ac.uk469

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