Earthquake Effects on Buildings

In Earthquake Effects on Buildings, you'll learn ...

• Why the period of an earthquake wave is important for determining the seismic forces acting on a building
• How resonance can cause severe damage to a building – even in a relatively mild earthquake
• How a response spectrum is used to identify the resonant frequencies at which a building will undergo peak accelerations
• The significance of damping, equal force distribution and the avoidance of stress concentrations in seismic design of a building

Overview

Preview a portion of this course before purchasing it.

Credit: 2 CPD

Length: 25 pages

This course explains how various aspects of earthquake ground motion affect structures and also how certain building attributes modify the ways in which the building responds to the ground motion. The interaction of these characteristics determines the overall seismic performance of the building: whether it is undamaged; suffers minor damage; becomes unusable for days, weeks, or months; or collapses with great loss of life.

Explanations of some characteristics of ground motion are followed by descriptions of several material, structural, and building attributes that, by interacting with ground motion, determine the building's seismic performance.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:

• Explain basics of inertia forces and acceleration
• Identify duration, velocity and displacement associated with seismic acceleration
• Analyze how soil properties affect the amplification of earthquake shaking
• Describe natural periods of buildings and other structures
• Assess the phenomenon of resonance and why it causes so much damage to structures during an earthquake
• Define a site response spectrum
• Summarize damping and explain why it is important in seismic design
• Interpret how ductility affects the ability of a building to withstand an earthquake without collapsing
• Apply drift-design principles to high-rise buildings
• Examine force distribution and the damage of stress concentrations
• Determine torsional forces in asymmetrical buildings
• Evaluate the importance of enforcing quality control procedures at all phases of design and construction

Certificate of Completion

You will be able to immediately print a certificate of completion after passing a multiple-choice quiz consisting of 10 questions. CPD credits are not awarded until the course is completed and quiz is passed.