COMPILATION

OF
RETROFITTING METHODS

SUBMITTED BY:
CLARISSA ABIGAIL R. MANDOCDOC
CE-5202

ENGR. RHEA S. DE OCAMPO

INSTRUCTOR
 EARTHQUAKE RETROFITTING:

The primary purpose of earthquake retrofitting is to keep your home from being
displaced from its concrete foundation — making the building safer and less prone to
major structural damage during an earthquake. Existing homes need to be retrofitted
because our understanding of the effects of earthquakes as well as construction
techniques have improved after the homes were built.

The above diagram shows how earthquake forces can effect your home in three ways.
FOUNDATION BOLTING
Foundation bolting typically means
that bolts are added to improve the
connections between the wooden framing
members of a building and its concrete
foundation. Usually this means adding
bolts through the piece of wood that lies flat
on top of the foundation, referred to as the
sill or mudsill, into the concrete. There may
be no existing bolts, or the existing bolts
may be either weakened or too far apart to
be strong enough for earthquake
resistance.
Careful planning, placement and
installation of foundation bolts are critical
for good bolting strength. It is important to use the proper type of bolt corresponding to
the existing conditions of the home and its foundation. The expected type of bolt load
or stress is another important consideration for bolt selection.

Two types of foundation bolts are typically used — expansion bolts and epoxy-
set bolts.

Expansion Foundation Bolts

Expansion type foundation bolts, also known as mechanical foundation anchor
bolts, are the basic type of bolt used in earthquake retrofitting to anchor the mudsill to
the foundation — they cost less to install, but require good concrete strength to work
well. They are typically used in houses with newer foundations or when the concrete
is in good repair.
The current ABAG Standard Plan A for earthquake retrofitting specifies that
expansion bolts may be used as long as their installation does not cause cracking of
the concrete. In these cases the mechanical type anchor bolt is very effective when
the bolt is properly installed according to the manufacturer’s specifications.

Epoxy-set Foundation Bolts

Epoxy-set foundation bolts work better than mechanical anchor bolts in older
homes where the concrete may be weaker than in a newer home. They also perform
better when the earthquake force is expected to cause an uplift — a situation where
the movement pulls the bolt upward and out of the concrete. In addition, epoxy anchors
can be longer and therefore inserted deeper into the concrete. This is particularly
important if there is additional base framing (blocking) added between the cripple wall
studs for the structural plywood anchorage of a shear wall (cripple wall bracing).
Photo: Mechanical type anchor bolt with square plate washer

Plate Washers
The requirement for clamping washers installed with
retrofit anchor bolts has been recently upgraded. It is now
mandatory to use hot-dipped galvanized 3" x 3" x ¼" square
plate washers under the anchor bolt nut. This allows the
mudsill to be clamped more securely to the foundation.
The use of this large clamping washer is important
because it has been observed in recent earthquakes that the
older type of round washer commonly found in houses built
prior to the mid 1990s, sometimes pulled through the mudsill
because they weren’t large enough to provide adequate
holding strength.

Foundation Plates
Sometimes there is not adequate vertical clearance
under a home to properly anchor the mudsill to the foundation
with conventional anchor bolts. Simpson Strong-Tie has
several anchors which can be used in situations like these.
The most commonly used one is called the Universal
Foundation Plate or UFP10. These plates are installed at
intervals similar to anchor bolts in retrofit applications.

CRIPPLE WALL BRACING

Most houses have a short wood-framed wall in the
sub-area crawl space. This wall my be anywhere from a
few inches to several feet in height, running upward from
the top of the concrete foundation to the bottom of the main
floor. In construction language, this is referred to as a
cripple wall. Cripple wall collapse is a main source of
earthquake related failure. The collapse of this wall will
often result in the main floor dropping to the ground. The
house is vaulted off to the side of the foundation as the
cripple wall simply rolls out from under it.
Stiffening or bracing of the cripple wall to keep if
from collapsing during seismic movement is a very
important part of earthquake retrofitting. The bracing is
accomplished by attaching structural grade plywood tightly
to the wall framing. In engineering language, this strong or stiffened wall is referred to
as a shear wall.
The stiffening effect is accomplished in the lengthwise direction of the plywood,
which means that plywood runs along the side walls of a house will brace it in the front-
to-back direction while plywood run along the front and back walls will brace the house
in the side-to-side direction. Accordingly, it is important to brace all sides of a house
for the best seismic protection.
Finally, following the principle that a chain is only as strong as its weakest
length, it is also important to complete the connection from the foundations, through
the walls, and into the overhead floor framing. This will provide for good load transfer.
Load transfer is an engineering term which in everyday language means that the
effects of the earthquake movements are transferred from one of the buildings
components into the next – ground to foundation, foundation to sill, sill to wall, wall to
floor. Good detailing of all of these connections is an important part of retrofitting
technique.

FOUNDATION HOLDOWN BRACKETS

Some houses also require additional
holdown brackets to anchor the shear walls.
Holdowns are specially constructed right-
angle brackets connecting from the cripple
wall framing into the foundation. As the
bracket name implies, they are designed to
resist a shear wall lifting or rolling effect,
which may also occur during seismic activity.
Generally, the need for holdowns is a
function of the height-to-width dimensions of
a shear wall configuration.
Simpson Holdowns are usually
installed at the ends of shear walls. They are
not needed at all shear wall locations.
Installation is done with an extra-long and more deeply set epoxy-anchored bolt, which
provides for better resistance to the lifting stresses. If one is in doubt about the need
for holdowns, there is no harm in installing them except for the added cost. However,
a good understanding of shear wall mechanics is helpful in deciding whether to save
the cost and work of holdown installation.

Homes without Cripple Walls

Not all houses have cripple walls. In many newer houses, and some older ones,
the floor framing (joist) rests directly on the mudsill. Compared to houses with cripple
walls, houses built in this manner are considered to be slightly less vulnerable to
displacement from their foundations. There is still significant risk, however. The
connection between the floor framing and the foundation consists of a series of
 “toenails” which are often too weak to withstand strong
seismic movement and the house can slide off its
foundation. Even slippage of a few inches can do major
damage to the house, allowing portions of it to sag and
cause structural damage or to sever utility connections
such as gas, water, sewer and electricity which extend
from the ground into the house.
There are several methods available for improving
the connection of the framing to the foundation when a
house doesn’t have cripple walls. The choice of which
connecting system is most practical for a given house
comes down to a host of variables and ultimately includes
a judgment on cost effectiveness. Older homes vary widely
in their access conditions, framing size and configuration
of the foundation, etc., and there
is usually not a “single” correct
way to improve this connection.

SIMPSON STRONG-TIE RETROFIT

CONNECTORS
One method is to install Simpson UFP10 mudsill
anchor plates in conjunction with Simpson L70/L90 clips
connecting the mudsill to the rim joist. The spacing depends
on the size and weight of the house. A second method is to
anchor the floor joist system directly to the foundation using
Simpson FJA anchors.

ANGLE IRON STRUTS AND FOUNDATION BOLTING

A custom connection upgrade is to use Angle
Iron Struts, which connect the floor joists directly to
the foundation in a similar fashion to the Simpson
FJA anchors. Earthquake Safety devised the angle
iron strut connection in the early 80s with input from
several colleagues who were structural engineers.
They offer a significant increase in connection
strength, and for many projects they provide the most
economical upgrade available for the existing
conditions. The calculated strength of the angle iron
is higher than the Simpson FJA anchors. These are
not over-the-counter connectors, but have to be
custom made at a steel fabricator.
 The angle iron struts are installed in such a way as to provide both a vertical (lift
resisting) and lateral (slide resisting) anchor for the house. The struts reinforce any
weakness in the original sill bolts and extend the anchor more completely into the
house’s main floor platform.
Many houses, especially hillside houses, have both cripple walls and areas
where the floor sits directly on the foundation. In this case, a combination of retrofitted
improvements may be called for, including mudsill bolting, Simpson mudsill plates
holdowns, plywood shear bracing and angle iron struts.

SOFT STORY SITUATIONS (installing plywood bracing on a wall)

Another condition found in many homes,
especially those with attached garages, is referred to as
a soft story. This is a situation in which a living space of
the house, a bedroom for example, has been built over
a large opening such as a garage door. Such an
opening has little or no stiffness or shear strength. Thus,
comes the term “soft story”, meaning a story of a home
built over a wall area that is “soft"” in its resistance to
lateral movement.
Soft story conditions can sometimes be improved
by installing plywood bracing on a wall that is next to and inline with the opening. If
the configuration of the home doesn’t lend itself to this solution an engineered steel
moment frame can be an option.

LOCAL INTERVENTION METHODS

SHOTCRETE (GUNITE)
Shotcrete is used as a repair method for
RC and masonry structures. There are two
distinct types of shotcrete; dry‐mix and wet‐mix.
Shotcrete can be applied to almost any surface; it
can also be used in combination with other retrofit
schemes (e.g. RC jacket). Because of its
generally low water–cement ratio and high‐
velocity impact, it achieves excellent bond to most
competent surfaces.
Deficiencies in shotcrete applicability
usually fall into one of the following five categories4: (i) failure to bond to the receiving
surface, (ii) de‐lamination at construction joints or interfaces of various application layers,
(iii) incomplete filling of the material behind the reinforcing steel, (iv) slough due to excess
mixing water (which can generate voids) and (v) weak interface between the concrete
and steel. The impact velocity of the material to the application surface is dependent upon
both the exit velocity and the distance of the nozzle from the surface. Where bond is
important, equipment must be at the proper impact angle of about 90° and reasonably
close to the application surface. Further, the surface must be clean, sound and damp.
When the shotcrete strikes the application surface (or other hard objects such as
reinforcing steel), some of the larger and harder aggregate particles tend to ricochet.
These particles are referred to as rebound and are composed primarily of the larger
aggregate particles, although some cement and water are included. Because of the
nature of its composition, rebound is not capable of obtaining significant strength and
should not be allowed in the final work.
Many factors affect the amount of rebound such as: (i) orientation of the receiving
surface, (ii) shotcrete mix design, (iii) amount of reinforcing steel embedment, (iv)
thickness of the cross‐section, (v) impact velocity, and (vi) spraying technique.

STEEL PLATE ADHESION

Steel plate adhesion is mainly
used in the case of beams. Both shear
and flexural strength enhancement can
be achieved. When thick steel plates are
needed, it is advisable to use several
thin layers instead, to minimize
interfacial shear stresses. A sound
understanding of both the short‐ and
long‐term behavior of the adhesive used
is required. In addition, reliable
information concerning the adhesion to concrete and steel is required. The execution of
the bonding work is also of great importance to achieve a composite action between the
adherents. Prevention of premature de‐bonding or peeling of externally bonded plates is
a most critical aspect of design5-7.

STEEL JACKETING
The steel jacketing option
involves the total encasement of the
column with thin steel plates placed at a
small distance from the column surface,
with the ensuing gap filled with non‐
shrink grout8, 9. An alternative to a
complete jacket is the steel cage
alternative10, 11. Steel angles are
placed at the corners of the existing
cross‐section and either transversal
straps or continuous steel plates are welded on them. In practice, the straps are often
laterally stressed either by special wrenches or by preheating to temperatures of about
200–400°C, prior to welding. Any spaces between the steel cage and the existing
concrete are usually filled with non‐shrink grout. When corrosion or fire protection is
required, a grout concrete or shotcrete cover may be provided.

The corrugated steel jacketing technique can be applied for the rehabilitation of
columns and beam–column joints12. Deficient connections are encased by the steel
jacket and the gap between the concrete and the steel jacket is filled with non‐shrink
grout. A gap is provided between the beam jacket and the column face to minimize
flexural strength enhancement of the beam; which may cause excessive forces to develop
in the joint and column.

(a) Steel jacketing; (b) steel cage technique using steel straps or (c) steel plates

GLOBAL INTERVENTION TECHNIQUES

ADDITION OF WALLS
Addition of new RC walls is
one of the most common methods
used for strengthening of existing
structures. This method is efficient in
controlling global lateral drift, thus
reducing damage in frame members.
During the design process, attention
must be paid to the distribution of the
walls in plan and elevation (to achieve
a regular building configuration),
transfer of inertial forces to the walls
through floor diaphragms, struts and collectors, integration and connection of the wall into
the existing frame buildings and transfer of loads to the foundations. Added walls are
typically designed and detailed as in new structures. To this end, in the plastic hinge zone
at the base they are provided with boundary elements, well‐confined and detailed for
flexural ductility. They are also capacity‐designed in shear throughout their height and
over‐designed in flexure above the plastic hinge region (with respect to the flexural
strength in the plastic hinge zone, not the shear strength anywhere), to ensure that
inelasticity or pre‐emptive failure will not take place elsewhere in the wall before plastic
hinging at the base and that the new wall will remain elastic above the plastic hinge zone.

The most convenient way to introduce new shear walls is by partial or full infilling
of strategically selected bays of the existing frame45. If the wall takes up the full width of
a bay, then it incorporates the beams and the two columns, the latter acting as its
boundary elements (Fig. 5). In case only the web of the new wall needs to be added,
sometimes by shotcreting against a light formwork or a partition wall is performed. In the
latter case, shotcrete is normally used for increased adhesion between the existing and
the added material. An alternative to the cast‐in‐place infill wall technique is the addition
of pre‐cast panels. The pre‐case infill wall system should be designed to behave
monolithically, and the infill wall should be designed with sufficient shear strength to
develop flexural yielding at the base of the wall46.

Cast‐in‐place infill walls

A major drawback of the addition of walls is the need for strengthening the
foundations to resist the increased overturning moment and the need for integrating the
wall with the rest of the structure. Foundation intervention is usually costly and quite
disruptive, thus rendering the application of this technique unsuitable for buildings
without an existing adequate foundation system.
EXTERNAL BUTRESSES
To reduce or eliminate the
disruption to the use of a building,
external buttresses may be
constructed to increase the lateral
resistance of the structure as a
whole. Such an intervention
scheme, in common with the
construction of RC walls, requires a
new foundation system.
The foundation scheme would possibly be eccentric footings (eccentric with
respect to the axis of the buttress to avoid excavation under the building). The two most
intricate problems in strengthening by building a set of external buttresses are: (i) the
buttress stability may be critical since it is not actually loaded vertically downwards in the
same way that the structure is. The vertical action on the buttress is only its own weight.
This increases the possibility of uplifting of the foundations and may even cause over‐
turning, (ii) the connections between the buttresses on the one hand and the building on
the other is far from straightforward. To insure full interaction and load sharing when the
structure is subjected to lateral actions, the buttress should be connected to the floors
and columns at all levels. The connection area will be subjected to unusual levels of
stresses that require special attention.

BASE ISOLATION
Seismic isolation is
mostly adopted for
rehabilitation of critical or
essential facilities, buildings
with expensive and valuable
contents and structures
where performance well
above performance levels is
required. Seismic isolation
system significantly reduces
the seismic impact on the building structure and assemblies. Generally, the isolation
devices are inserted at the bottom or at the top of the first floor columns. Retrofitting
mostly requires traditional intervention; in the first case the addition of a floor in order to
connect all the columns above the isolators while in the second case the strengthening
of the first floor columns (enlarging of the cross‐sections, addition of reinforcing bars or
construction of new resistant elements). Nevertheless, inserting an isolator within an
existing column is not so simple because of the necessity of cutting the element,
temporarily supporting the weight of the above structure, putting in place the isolators and
then giving back the load to the column, without causing damages to persons and to
structural and non‐structural elements.

Recently, efforts have been made to extend this valuable earthquake resistant
strategy to inexpensive housing and public buildings54. The results of a joint research
program conducted by the International Rubber Research and the Development Board
(IRRDB) of United Kingdom show that the method can be both cost effective and
functional for the protection of small buildings in high seismicity regions. A comparative
study conducted by Bruno & Valente55 on conventional and innovative seismic protection
strategies concluded that base isolation provides higher degrees of safety than energy
dissipation does, regardless of the type of devices employed. Moreover the comparison
between conventional and innovative devices showed that shape memory alloys‐based
devices are far more effective than rubber isolators in reducing seismic vibrations.

Alternative retrofit strategies for seismic upgrading

CRS METHOD (CARBON FIBER RETROFIT SYSTEM FOR CHIMNEY)

CRS Method for chimney is a seismic retrofit technique for existing reinforced
concrete chimney using carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) sheet and strand.
Flexural strength of the chimney is improved by gluing with CFRP sheet and safety margin
for thermal stress is increased by winding with CFRP strand. CRS Method for chimney
uses carbon fiber (CF) sheet and strand as the
reinforcing material.
The construction process of CRS Method
for chimney is as follows: (1) removal of lightning
conductor and ladder, (2) substrate treatment
and/or arrangement of concrete surface, (3)
gluing carbon fiber sheet in the longitudinal
direction, (4) winding carbon fiber strand
impregnated with epoxy resin along the hoop
direction, (5) restoration of the lightning conductor
and ladder, (6) painting according to provisions for
safety of airplanes. Figure 1 illustrates the basic
concept of CRS Method for chimney by gluing CF
sheet and winding CF strand. Photos of Figure 2 show the general view by a scaffold lift
and the retrofitting works on the scaffold lift.

Example of application

MARS SYSTEM (MENDING APPLICATION OF REINFORCED SHEETS)

MARS system is the method of

reinforcing existing concrete structures with
FRP (fiber-reinforced plastic) sheets that are
strong, lightweight, and superior anti-
corrosive. FRP sheets, by wrapping around
surfaces of concrete structures, increase the
durability and the ductility of structural
members. MARS uses carbon fiber sheet
which are arranged in regular order, and
made to carbon fiber dry sheet.

Typical construction details

①Concrete surface treatment (edge

cutting more than r=20mm)
②Primer coating
③Matrix resin coating
④CFRP sheet gluing
⑤Matrix resin coating
AF SYSTEM (ARAMID FIBER RETROFITTING SYSTEM)
AF System is a seismic retrofit technology for existing reinforced concrete columns
using aramid fiber sheets against earthquake loading and was certified by JBDPA (The
Japan Building Disaster Prevention Association). Deformability of the column members
can be improved by confining with aramid fiber sheets. AF System uses woven aramid
fiber sheets as the reinforcing material. Aramid fibers are arranged to the axial direction
of the sheets. Figure shows an aramid fiber sheet and Table 1 lists their design
specification values. Aramid fiber sheets are characterized by light weight, high strength,
no corrosion, and non-conductivity.

Aramid fiber sheet

Typical construction procedure

Attaching aramid fiber sheet

ACRYPAIR SYSTEM
Acrypair System is an advanced technology for
strengthening reinforced concrete structures using
carbon fiber sheets and methyl methacrylate (MMA)
resin. It is effective for concrete and RC materials and
provide the ease and speed of applications
construction.
Rehabilitation and maintenance of existing RC
structures recently become the subject of wide
interest. The use of composite wraps on concrete
materials presents an economical and efficient means
of strengthening the structures. Means using
continuous fiber materials, particularly carbon fiber
sheets, are one of the effective approaches. The CF
sheet method involves attaching the sheets to RC and
epoxy resins typically use as matrix and adhesives. However the method using epoxy
resins have restriction on field application because of slow curing reaction, especially at
low temperatures such as below 5℃. To eliminate such restriction, alternative resin
systems, which are acrylic resins, have been developed. The new resin systems have
excellent curing properties such as rapid reaction and low-temperature curing ability.

PITACOLUMN METHOD
The PITACOLUMN method is a completely
external type earthquake-proof reinforcing method
targeted at low- to mid-rise reinforced concrete
buildings. This method is a low cost, short
construction period, and environmentally friendly
method. Since it is not required to works inside a
building for reinforcement physically at each
phase, no transportation of interior equipment and
removal and/or installment
of existing fixtures are
needed. Therefore it allows
continuous use of the
building. Reinforcing
structure is a reinforced
concrete member containing
a steel plate, and the
method is surpassing in
maintenance and does not
require any special finish
comparable to that of the
existing structure. The
reinforcement working
procedure is as follows;
drive post-installed anchors
into the external surface of
the existing structure, attach a steel plate by using these anchors and arrange reinforcing
bars around the plate, and then cast concrete to complete.

AOKI SEISMIC RETROFIT METHOD BY MEANS OF ENERGY

DISSIPATION BRACES

In this seismic retrofit method,

external energy dissipation braces
(braces consisting of steel pipes and
friction dampers embedded in the pipes)
are installed on the external walls of an
existing building to be retrofitted so as to
absorb earthquake energy input to the
building and thereby enhance its
seismic performance (Photo 1). One
advantage of this method is that by
using friction dampers as response control devices, earthquake energy can be absorbed
efficiently even under small amplitudes of the story drift angle (around 1/2000 to 1/1500
rad). This makes it possible to reduce the maximum response story drift angle of existing
buildings to about 1/200 rad. Since friction dampers absorb earthquake energy efficiently,
damper strength; frictional force of the damper, can be specified to 200 to 400 kN per unit
so that the expected effect of strengthening can be attained simply by installing external
damping braces to the external walls of the building. Although the conventional
strengthening methods require removing sashes and interior and exterior finishes and
reinstalling them, the newly developed method makes it possible to use the building
without interruption while retrofit work is in progress. Thus, manpower requirements can
be reduced significantly, and both cost and construction period can be also reduced. In
addition, this retrofit method is environmentally considerate because the volume of waste
materials to be disposed at which the
interior and exterior parts are removed is
small and noise level is low.
Photo 2 shows an example of the
external damping brace installation.
External damping braces are installed on
the existing structural frame (main
structure) through anchorage bases. The
space between the anchoring base and
the side of the existing structural frame is
filled with grout and the anchorage base
is fastened to the main structure by using
prestressing steel bars.

SEISMIC RETROFIT FOR EXISTING R/C BUILDINGS USING SNE-

TRUSS
SNE-Truss is a seismic retrofit technology, which reinforce existing R/C buildings
from the outside of the building using aluminum alloy space grids latticed wall. The
purpose of the reinforcement by SNE-Truss is to improve the seismic capacity of existing
R/C buildings by the in-plane strength and stiffness of this aluminum latticed wall. Fig.1
shows a computer graphic drawing of existing R/C buildings reinforced by SNE-Truss.
As for the main characteristics of SNE-Truss can be stated as follows:
(1) Because of outer reinforcement for existing R/C buildings, the work of retrofit can be
carried out in residence in the existing R/C buildings.
(2) The low specific gravity and a high strength to weight ratio of aluminum can be held
low the dead load added by the reinforced member of SNE-Truss to the existing R/C
buildings and its foundations.
(3) The high performance of corrosion resistance of aluminum can be maintained the
façade of the existing R/C buildings being fine sight.
TARS (TAISEI ANCHOR- LESS RETROFIT SYSTEM)

TARS is a seismic retrofit system for existing R/C buildings to improve a horizontal
retained capacity and a stiffness with a moderate ductility, by settling a stiff infill to a bare
frame without dowel anchors cohered by epoxy resin at connections.
Two types of the infill are used, one is a steel framework with H section interconnecting
braces and the other is a concrete shear wall. These infill are firmly connected to the
inside of a bare frame by grouting with high strength mortar. Shear transfer at the
horizontal connections simply depends on a resistance caused friction in compression
area, because the basic measure of the TARS involves nothing but the grouting mortar
to settle the infill. Some variations of constraints at the horizontal connections are
described below if more enhancement of the shear capacity is required.
1. Constraining forces which are given with PC bars directly connecting the steel
frameworks of upper and lower story.
2. Semi-cylindrical cotters which are carved top and bottom surface of a beam.
3. Embedded bolts which are fixed with the grouted mortar into the carved holes of a
beam in the vertical direction.
Shear tests on the connection for a R/C beam and a steel of the framework were
carried out to investigate its abilities of shear transfer with these constraints.

Overall view of a specimen after loading

OFB (Outer-frame brace)

OFB is a new seismic strengthening
method using Outer-frame brace. Seismic
strengthening of the building can be carried out
easily without decreasing the serviceability and
quality of living condition. We can occupy the
building during retrofit construction works.
The braces are attached outside the
structural frames of existing buildings. The
connecting beam was cast on the existing frame,
and the anchorage device was jointed to the connecting beam. The braces were tied to
the anchorage device with pin joints at both ends. The existing building, connecting beam
and anchorage device were joined under normal stress conditions by pulling the
prestressing bars.

SEISMIC RETROFIT TECHNOLOGY FOR STEEL STRUCTURES USING

TOMOE FRICTION DAMPER (TFD)

The aim of this

retrofitting technology is
to improve seismic
resistant performance of
existing steel structures
by giving damping.
Once a great earthquake occurs, TFD installed in a structure controls the structural
deformation by absorbing dynamic energy. The performance of TFD and how to install
TFD into a structure is validated by DPBA. This retrofitting method is not applicable for
high-rise buildings due to the capacity of
TFD.
TFD changes the dynamic energy into heat by the friction between the two metal
parts, the ‘dice’ and ‘rod’ inserted into the dice. Figure 2 illustrates the principle. Figure
illustrates the force-displacement relation. It can be regarded as rigid-plastic bilinear
where the elastic modulus is very high. This leads superb efficiency in energy absorption
because the energy absorption occurs for very small displacement.
The friction load of TFD is 100 and 200KN and axial extension range is within ±
100mm. The influences of velocity, amplitude and initial temperature on the friction load
are not large and negligible for ordinary use.

TFD is installed into a structure by two forms, shear- link and brace forms. Ordinary
details, not specially developed, used for steel structures are applied. However, when
designing and constructing the details, it must be reminded that the advantage of TFD is
shown only when the rigidity and strength of the connections between TFD and the
existing structure are sufficiently secured.
PPMG-CR (SEISMIC RETROFIT TECHNOLOGY OF COLUMNS WITH A
SPECIAL POLYMER-CEMENT MORTAR)

PPMG-CR is a seismic retrofit technology

for existing columns using a special polymer-
cement mortar and shear reinforcements.
Targeted columns are of reinforced concrete
buildings and steel encased reinforced concrete
buildings with grid and lattice frames. Shear
strength and ductility of columns are greatly
improved by jacketing retrofit using shear
reinforcements and the special polymer-cement
mortar (Magneline- Type II) or using steel plate
and the special polymer-cement mortar
(Magneline-Type I). Jacketing by steel plate can
particularly contributes to mitigation of the axial
force limit.
PPMG-CR is a seismic retrofit technology using welded wire fabric as shear
reinforcement or steel plate jacketing on existing columns. Figure 1 shows two types of
construction: the welded wire fabric jacketing with subsequent plastering of Magneline-
Type II and steel plate jacketing with grouting of Magneline-Type I.

BAMBOO-BAND RETROFITTING TECHNIQUE

Bamboo-band retrofitting technique is simple enough to be understood and applied

by layman without any prior special expertise. Bamboo-band mesh retrofitting techniques
enhance the seismic capacity of the adobe masonry building significantly. This retrofitting
system consists of vertical and horizontal bamboo used as external reinforcing. At first
bamboo band mesh prepare on a square grid in a way that one band crosses over another
band in different layers at subsequent crossing points. This process was quite similar to
the basket weaving process. Straws place at approximately 200 mm pitch. Holes can be
prepared by drilling through the wall. The prepared mesh is then installed on both outside
and inside of the wall and wrapped around the comer of the house. The inside and outside
meshes are connected by the Polypropylene strings (PP strings) which were passed
through the hole.
Experiments have shown that the retrofitted masonry building by this method could
withstand over twice larger input energy than what non-retrofitted specimen can do.
However, bricks surrounding the bamboo cannot provide proper protection of bamboo
meshes. Low cost and no need for special workers are considers as the main advantages
of this method.
 Preparing Bamboo-band mesh and application

CONFINEMENT

In this retrofitting method, tie

columns confine the URM wall at
corners, intersections, and the border
of openings. In some countries like
Iran, this method applies to the new
masonry construction. However,
because of the minor effects of using
columns alone for the confinement of
walls, it is necessary to apply a
horizontal element like a beam to the
system. This method improves the
ductility and energy dissipation of a
masonry structure. The intensity of
this improvement depends on the
relative rigidity between the masonry
and the surrounding frame and
material properties.

Scientists have done many studies about the performance of this method.
Karantoni and Faradis by elastic finite element analysis showed that tie columns alone
(without tie beams) do not have a significant positive effect on walls behavior. Chuxian et
al discovered that confinement prevents disintegration and improves ductility and energy
dissipation of URM walls, but has limited effect on the ultimate load resistance. Also
Tomazevic and Klemenc proved that before cracking, the confinement effect can be
neglected. Zezhen et al find that at ultimate load, the confinement increased the lateral
resistance by a factor of 1.2. However, for walls with higher aspect ratio, the confinement
increased the lateral resistance by a factor of 1.5. In addition, the confinement improved
the lateral deformations and energy dissipation by more than 50%.
CENTER CORE
Center Core method is advanced method for rehabilitation of masonry buildings.
This method is a nondestructive method which could be achieved without evacuation of
the buildings. First, vertical holes with given intervals are perforated on the walls to the
footing and then reinforcing steel bars are embedded in the holes and cement grout will
be injected finally to create bond strength between wall and bars. With existing
technology, this core can be drilled precisely through the entire height of two or three-
story masonry wall. The drilling is a dry process with the debris removal handled by a
vacuum and filter system that keeps the dust to a minimum. After placing the
reinforcement in the center of the hole, a filler material is pumped from the top of the wall
to the bottom such that the core is filled from the bottom under pressure controlled by the
height of the grout. The placement of the grout under pressure provided by the height of
the core provides a beneficial migration of the grout into all voids adjacent to the core
shaft. This reinforced homogeneous vertical beam provides strength to the wall with a
capacity to resist both in-plane and out-of-plane loading. Grout material itself consists of
a binder material (e.g. epoxy, cement, and polyester) and a filler material like sand.
Abrams and Lynch proved that this technique doubles the resistance of URM wall in a
static cyclic test. Although the high lateral displacement achieved during the test, the
energy dissipated was limited. Some other experiments showed that ductility and out-of-
plain behavior of the retrofitted wall was improved.

Left: Plan Detail of Center Core method in Masonry Wall

Right: Applying Center Core method for existing building