SYNOPSIS

Earthquake is a natural phenomenon occuring with all uncertanities. Engineering

design aims to link economics, social, environmental and safety factor to produce the best
solution. India is a large country. Nearly two thirds of its area is earthquake prone. A large
part of rural and urban buildings are low-rise buildings of one two three stroyes. any of
them may not be adequately designed from engineers trained in earthquake engineering.
ost loss of life and property due to earthquakes occur due to collapse of buildings. !he
number of dwelling units and other related small-scale constructions might double in the
ne"t two decades in India and other developing countries of the world. !his amplifies the
need for a simple engineering approach to make such buildings earthquake resistant at a
reasonably low cost.
!he behaviour of a building during earthquakes depend critically on its overall
shape, si#e and geometry, in addition to how the earthquake forces are carried to the
ground. $ence, at the planning stage itself, architects and structural engineers must work
together to ensure that the un favourable features are avoided and a good building
configuration is chosen. !he main ob%ective of seismic resistant construction is that the
structure does not collapse during mild earthquakes. !his also helps in preventing
catastrophic failure of the structure giving sufficient warning during severe earthquakes
thereby saving precious lives.
In this presentation emphasis will be given to the performance of un engineered
buildings during earthquake and some methods to reduce the damages during earthquake.
EARTHQUAKE RESISTANT CONSTRUCTION
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Earthquake is a natural phenomenon occurring with all uncertainties. Among all
the natural calamities, the most devastating one is earthquake. &uring the earthquake,
ground motions occur in a random fashion, both hori#ontally and vertically, in all
directions radiating from epicenter. !hese ground motions cause structures to vibrate and
induce inertia forces on them. $ence structures in such locations need to be suitably
designed and detailed to ensure stability, strength and serviceability with acceptable levels
of safety under seismic effects.
!he interest of an engineer in earthquakes is mainly from design point of view. $e
studies them so that the structure he builds can safely withstand the earthquake shocks and
the associated erratic ground motion.
At present, the principle of earthquake-resistant design of building has two aims'
(. !he building shall withstand with almost no damage to moderate earthquake which
have probability of occurring several times during life of a building.
). !he building shall not collapse or harm human lives during severe earthquake
motions which have a probability of occuring less than once during the life of the
building.
In the former case deformation of the structures remain within the elastic range.
In the latter case, they may e"ceed the elastic limit and the building should be designed
with sufficient ductility to survive collapse.
In order to satisfy these aims, building design should conform following rules'
*a+ !he configuration of the building *,lan and elevation+ should be as simple as
possible.
*b+ !he formation should generally be based on hard and uniform ground.
*c+ !he members resisting hori#ontal forces should be arranged so that torsional
deformation is not produced.
*d+ !he structure of the building should be dynamically simple and definite.
*e+ !he frame of the building structure should have adequate ductility in addition to
required strength.
*f+ &eformations produced in a building should be held to values, which will not
provide obstacles to safety use of building.
2.0 Classification
Intensity of an earthquake is measured by an instrument called -ichter .cale.
/lassifications of earthquakes are as follows'
Slight: agnitude up to 0.1 on the -ichter .cale
Moderate: agnitude 2.3 to 4.1
Great: agnitude 5.3 to 5.1
Very Great: agnitude 6.3 and above
- An earthquake of magnitude below ).3 on the -ichter .cale usually can7t be
felt .
- An earthquake of magnitude below 0.3 on the -ichter .cale don7t cause any
damage.
- An earthquake of magnitude over 2.3 on the -ichter .cale usually can cause
minor damage.
- An earthquake of magnitude 4.3 and above is considered strong and cause
substantial damage.
- An earthquake of magnitude 5.3 and above is a ma%or earthquake and renders
worst possible damage.
Seisic Desi!n P"iloso#"$ fo% &'il(in!s)
.everity of ground shaking at a given location during an earthquake can be minor,
moderate and strong. -elatively speaking, minor shaking occurs frequently, moderate
shaking occurs occasionally and strong shaking rarely. 8or instance, on average annually
about 633 earthquakes of magnitude 2.3-2.1 occur in the world, while the number is only
about (6 for magnitude range 5.3-5.1, and the rare earthquake may occur only once in 233
years or once in )333 years. As we know that the life of the building itself may be only 23
or (33 years, a conflict arises' whether to design the building to be 9earthquake proof:
where in there is no damage during the strong but rare earthquake shaking or should we do
away with the design to building. /learly, the former approach is too e"pensive and the
second approach can lead to a ma%or disaster. $ence, the design philosophy should lie
somewhere in between these two e"tremes.
Seisic Ris* to &'il(in!s in In(ia)
!he construction may generally be classified into two types'
(. Non-Engineered ;uilding /onstruction
). Engineered /onstruction including building and infrastructure
Non-Engineered buildings are those which are spontaneously and informally
constructed in various countries in the traditional manner without any or little intervention
by qualified architects and engineers in their design. .uch buildings involve field stone,
fired brick, concrete blocks, adobe or rammed earth, a combination of wood with these
traditional locally available materials in their construction . /ement and lime are
sometimes used as mortar. -einforced concrete lintels, floor, roof slabs and beams are also
being increasingly used. In some cases, use of reinforced columns and beams is also made
particularly for shopping centers and school buildings, but here also a post beam type
simple concept is frequently adopted in a non-engineered manner without taking into
consideration the stability of the system under hori#ontal seismic forces. asonry
buildings of all types, e"cept those constructed with earthquake resisting elements, are at
the greatest risk of heavy damage in seismic #oneIII and of destruction to collapse in #ones
I< and <.
Classification of Seisic +ones in In(ia)
!he earthquake resisting features specified to be incorporated while constructing
any new building depend on the seismic intensity, #one in which the building is located,
the base soil and the functional use of the building, whether considered important or
ordinary. !he e"tra cost of these resisting features will vary accordingly.
India is divided into 2 seismic #ones in ascending order of magnitude of
earthquake. !he map was taken up for further revision after the =athur earthquake of (11>.
the resulting revised map published in I.'(61>-)33)*part I+ where in the number of #ones
has been reduced to 0 i.e. II to < only, #one I being merged in #one II , and #one III now
further e"panded in the peninsular area.
!he seismic #one map shows that of the total land area of the country, seismic #one
< covers ()?, #one I< (6? and #one III about )5?, thus 25? could be sub%ected to
damaging e earthquake intensity, masonry
building in particular.
In(ian Seisic Co(es)
!he Indian .tandard /ode to
be followed for earthquake resistant
structures are as follows'
I. (61>-)33), Indian Standard Criteria for
Earthquake Resistant Design of Structures
(5
th
Revision)
I. 0>)4-(11>, Indian Standard Code of
Practice for Earthquake Resistant Design
and Construction of Buildings (2
nd
Revision)
I. (>6)5-(11>, Indian Standard uidelines
for I!"roving Earthquake Resistance of #o$
Strength %asonr& Buildings
I. (>1)3-(11>, Indian Standard Code of
Practice for Ductile Detaling of Reinforced Concrete Structures Su'(ected to Seis!ic
)orces
I. (>1>2-(11>, Indian Standard uidelines for Re"air and Seis!ic Strengthening of
Buildings
Seisic Effects on St%'ct'%es)
Ine%tia fo%ces in st%'ct'%es)
Earthquake causes shaking of the ground. .o the building resting on it will
e"perience motion at its base. 8rom
Newton7s I =aw of otion, even though
the base of the building moves with the
ground, the roof has a tendency to stay in its original position. ;ut since the walls and
columns are connected to it, they drag the roof along with them. !his tendency of the roof
to continue to remain its previous position is known as ine%tia. In the building, since the
walls or columns are fle"ible, the motion of the roof is different from that of the ground.
Ho%i,ontal an( -e%tical S"a*in!)
Earthquake causes shaking of the ground in all three directions- along two
hori#ontal directions *" @y+ and the vertical direction *#+. &uring the earthquake, the
ground shakes randomly back and forth along each of these directions. All structures are
primarily designed to carry the gravity loads in the vertical direction. $ence, most
structures tend to be adequate against vertical shaking. $owever, hori#ontal shaking along
" and y directions remains a concern. .tructures designed for gravity loads, in general,
may not be able to safely sustain the effects of hori#ontal earthquake shaking. $ence it is
necessary to ensure adequacy of the structures against hori#ontal earthquake effects.
Ca'ses of Ea%t".'a*e Daa!e)
!he conventional masonry,
particularly in un reinforced and non-
engineered structures, being very weak
in resisting tensile and shear stresses,
leads to disastrous collapse of the entire
buildingA structure, causing heavy
damage to property and loss of lives.
!he main deficiencies in the
conventional non- engineeredA un-
reinforced masonry construction and
other reasons for the e"tensive damage
in such buildings are'
(. $eavy dead weight and very
stiff buildings, attracting large
seismic inertia forces.
). <ery low tensile strength,
particularly with poor mortars.
>. =ow shear strength, particularly with poor mortars.
0. ;rittle behavior in tension as well as compression.
2. Beak connection between wall and wall.
4. Beak connection between roof and wall.
5. .tress concentration at corners of doors and windows.
6. Cverall un symmetry in plan and elevation of the building
1. Dn symmetry due to imbalance in the si#es and positions of openings in the wall.
(3. &efects in construction, such as use of sub standard materials, unfilled %oints
between bricks.
/.0 &e"a0io% of &%ic* 1ason%$ 2all
asonry buildings are brittle structures and one of the most vulnerable of the
entire building stock under strong earthquake shaking. !hus, it is very important to
improve the seismic behavior of masonry buildings. A number of earthquake-resistant
features can be introduced to achieve this ob%ective.
Eround vibrations during earthquakes causes inertia forces at locations of mass in
the building. !hese forces travel through the roof and walls to the foundation. !he main
emphasis is on ensuring that these forces reach the ground without causing ma%or damage
or collapse. Cf the three components of a masonry building *roof, wall and foundation,
8ig( *a++, the walls are most vulnerable to damage caused by hori#ontal forces due to
earthquake. A wall topples down easily if pushed hori#ontally at the top in the direction
perpendicular to the plane *termed weak direction+, but offers much greater resistance if
pushed along its length *termed strong direction, 8ig ( *b++.
$ori#ontal inertia forces developed at the roof transfers to the wall acting either in
the weak or in the strong direction. If all the walls are not tied together like a bo", the
walls loaded in their weak direction tend to topple. *8ig )*a++
!o ensure good seismic performance, all walls must be %oined properly to the
ad%acent walls. In this way, walls loaded in the weak direction can take advantage of the
good lateral resistance offered by walls loaded in strong direction *8ig )*b++. 8urther, walls
also need to be tied to the roof and foundation to preserve their overall integrity.
I#%o0in! &e"a0io% of 1ason%$ 2alls
asonry walls are slender because of their small thickness compared to their
height and length. A simple way of making these walls behave well during earthquake
shaking is by making them act together as a bo" along with the roof at the top and
foundation at the bottom. A number of construction aspects are required to ensure this bo"
action.
8irstly, connections between the walls should be good. !his can be achieved by
*a+ Ensuring good interlocking of the masonry courses at the %unction.
*b+ Employing hori#ontal bands at various levels, particularly at the lintel level.
.econdly, the si#e of the doors and window opening need to be kept small. !he smaller the
opening, larger is the resistance offered by the wall.
!hirdly, the tendency of wall to topple when pushed in the weak direction can be reduced
by limiting its length-to-thickness and height-to-thickness ratios. &esign codes specify
limits to these ratios. A wall that is too tall or too long in comparison to its thickness, is
particularly vulnerable to shaking in its weak direction. *8ig *>++
3.0 I#o%tance of Reinfo%ceents in 1ason%$ &'il(in!
!he walls, if constructed with plain masonry would be incapable of resisting the
magnitude of hori#ontal shear and bending forces imposed on them during earthquakes.
8or this reason, in the modern reinforced masonry systems, reinforcing steel is
incorporated to resist the shear and tensile stresses, so developed. Bhen these walls are
sub%ected to lateral forces acting on them, they behave as fle"ural members spanning
vertically between floors and hori#ontally between pilastersA lateral walls. !herefore
reinforcement in both vertical and hori#ontal directions is required to be provided to
develop resistance against torsion.
Role of Ho%i,ontal &an(s
$ori#ontal bands are the most important earthquake-resistant feature in masonry
buildings. !he bands are provided to hold a masonry building as a single unit by tying all
the walls together. !here are four types in a typical masonry building named after their
locations in the building. !hey are'
*a+ ,linth band' !his should be provided in those cases where the soil is soft or uneven
in their properties, as it usually happens in hilly areas. !his band is not too critical.
*b+ =intel band' !his is the most important band and covers all door and window
lintel.
*c+ -oof band' In buildings with flat reinforced concrete or reinforced brick roofs, the
roof band is not required because the roof slab itself plays the role of a band.
$owever, in buildings with flat timber or /EI sheet roof, a roof band needs to be
provided. In buildings with pitched or sloped roof, the roof band is very important.
*d+ Eable band' It is employed only in buildings with pitched or sloped roofs.
Desi!n of 4intel &an(s
&uring earthquake shaking, the lintel band undergoes bending and pulling actions.
!o resist these actions, the construction of lintel band requires special attention. ;ands can
be made of wood including bamboo strips+ or of reinforced concrete *-/+ *8ig.6+F the -/
bands are the best. !he straight lengths of the bands must be properly connected at the
wall corners. !his will allow the band to support walls loaded in their weak directions by
the walls loaded in their strong direction. .mall lengths of wood spacers *in wooden band+
or steel links *in -/ bands+ are used to make the straight lengths of wood runners or steel
bars act together. In wooden bands, proper nailing of straight lengths with spacers is
important. =ikewise, in -/ bands, adequate anchoring of steel links with steel bars is
necessary.
In(ian Stan(a%(s)
!he Indian .tandards I.'0>)4-(11> and I.'(>6)6-(11> provide si#es and details of the
bands. Bhen wooden bands are used, the cross-section of runners is to be at least
52mm">6mm and the spacers at least 23mm">3mm. Bhen -/ bands are used the
minimum thickness is 52mm, and at least two bars of 6mm diameter are required, tied
across with steel links of at least 4mm diameter at a spacing of (23mm centers.
Role of -e%tical Reinfo%ceents in 2alls)
Even if hori#ontal bands are provided, masonry buildings are weakened by the
openings in their walls *8ig *1++. &uring earthquake shaking, the masonry walls get
grouped into > sub-units, namely .pandrel masonry, Ball ,ier masonry and .ill masonry.
Bhen the ground shakes, the inertia force causes the small-si#ed masonry wall
piers to disconnect from the masonry above and below. !hese masonry sub-units rock
back and forth, developing contact only at the opposite diagonals *8ig. (3*a++. !he rocking
of a masonry pier can crush the masonry the corners. -ocking is possible when masonry
piers are slender, and when weight of the structure above is small. Ctherwise, the piers are
more likely to develop diagonal *G-type+ shear cracking *8ig. (3*b++F this is the most
common failure type in masonry buildings.
&uring strong earthquake shaking, the building may slide %ust under the roof,
below the lintel band or at the sill level. .ometimes, the building may also slide at the
plinth level.
Ho5 -e%tical Reinfo%ceent Hel#s6
Embedding vertical reinforcement bars in the edges of the wall piers and anchoring
them in the foundation at the bottom and in the roof band at the top *8ig ((+, forces the
slender masonry piers to undergo bending instead of rocking. In wider wall piers, the
vertical bars enhance their capability to resist hori#ontal earthquake forces and delay the
G-cracking. Adequate cross-sectional area of these vertical bars prevents the bar from
yielding in tension. 8urther, the vertical bars also help protect the wall from sliding as well
as from collapsing in the weak direction.
P%otection of O#enin!s in 2alls)
!he most common damage, observed after an earthquake, is diagonal G-cracking
of wall piers, and also inclined cracks at the corners of door and window opening. Bhen a
wall with an opening deforms distorts and becomes more like a rhombus. .teel bars
provided in the wall masonry all around the openings restrict these cracks at the corners
*8ig. ()+. In summary, lintel and sill bands above and below openings and vertical edges,
provide protection against this type of damage.
St%'ct'%al Desi!n)
!hree important aspects to be considered in the design of earthquake resistant
structures are given below'
(. !he structure should be ductile, like the use of steel in concrete buildings. 8or
these ductile materials to have an effect, they should be placed where they undergo
tension and thus are able to yield.
). Apart from ductility, deformability of structures is also essential. &eformability of
structures is also essential. &eformability refers to the ability of a structure to
dispel or deform to a significant degree without collapsing. 8or this to happen, the
structure should be well- proportioned, regular and tied together in such a way that
there are no area of e"cessive stress concentration and forces can be transmitted
from one section to another despite large deformations. 8or this to happen,
components must be linked to resisting elements
>. &amageability is another aspect to be taken into consideration. !his means the
ability of a structure to withstand substantial damage without collapsing. !o
achieve this ob%ective 9minimum area which shall be damaged in case a member of
the structure is collapsed: is to be kept in view while planning. /olumns shall be
stronger than beams for that purpose and it is known as st%on! col'n an( 5ea*
7ea conce#t.
Ti#s fo% Ea%t".'a*e8Resistant Desi!n)
!he building plan should be in a regular shape such as square or rectangular.
No wall in a room should e"ceed 4.3m in length. Dse pilasters or cross walls for
longer walls. In hilly terrain, it should not e"ceed >.2m in length.
!he height of each storey should be kept below >.)m.
&on7t use bricks of crushing strength less than >2kgAcm
)
for single storeyed
building and of 23kgAcm
)
for )-> storeyed building. Cnly solid and sound bricksA
concrete blocks should be used
,rovide a -././ band of 0: thickness
throughout the run along wall at lintel level
passing over doors and windows.
!he thickness of load bearing wall should be at
least )33mm
!he clear width between a door and nearest
window should not be less than 433mm.
=ocation of a door or window from edge of a
wall shall be 433mm minimum.
9.0 Concl'sion)
Earthquake resistant construction is important in earthquake prone area
!he building can resist earthquake forces with almost no damage
!he building shall not collapse or harm human lives during severe earthquake
motions.
$owever these structures will be uneconomical.
Refe%ences
urthy, /.<.-.*)33>+' II!H-;!,/ 9Earthquake !ips:, Indian /oncrete
Institute Iournal,<ol.0, Iuly-.ept. )33> No., pp.)5->).
urthy, /.<.-.*)33>+' II!H-;!,/ 9Earthquake !ips:, Indian /oncrete
Institute Iournal,<ol.0, Cct.-&ec. )33> No., pp.>(->0.
Arya, A..., *)33>+' 9.eismic .tatus of asnory ;uildings in India and their
-etroffiting:, /ivil Engineering @ /onstruction, Cct.)33>, pp.>)-02.
;hagavan,N.E., .reenath,$.E., -ama /handra urthy,A., <imalandam,<.
*)33>+, 9A Novel /oncept of -einforcing the ;rick asonry as .hear Ball
.tructural .ystem for Earthquake -esistant /onstruction:, Iournal,/ivil
Engineering @ /onstruction, Cct.)33>, pp.43-44.