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The response of veterans hospital building 41 in the San Fernando earthquake
Author(s) -
Rutenberg Avigdor,
Jennings Paul C.,
Housner George W.
Publication year - 1982
Publication title -
earthquake engineering and structural dynamics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.218
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1096-9845
pISSN - 0098-8847
DOI - 10.1002/eqe.4290100303
Subject(s) - structural engineering , geology , shear force , geotechnical engineering , transverse plane , soil structure interaction , structural load , shear (geology) , seismology , engineering , finite element method , petrology
During the 9 February, 1971 San Fernando earthquake, Building 41 of the Veterans Administration Hospital was in an area of very strong snaking; being directly over a portion of the causative fault; it is estimated that the building experienced a maximum base shear of 60 to 130 per cent of the weight of the structure. It survived with very minor structural damage, although designed with a lateral force coefficient of only 10 per cent. The study attempts to reconcile these facts by analysis of the transverse response of the building. A code‐oriented, lateral force analysis is only partially successful in this reconciliation in that it indicates first yield at lateral loads of 15–20 per cent of the weight of the structure, with a capacity of 35–45 per cent if redistribution of loads among the walls is permitted. The capacity against static overturning is 45–50 per cent. A dynamic analysis of a fixed‐base three‐dimensional linear model of the structure gives essentially the same results. A third study of a two‐dimensional, dynamic model incorporating partial uplift and soil yielding indicates that the successful response of the building is attributable to the large strength built into the structure and the beneficial effects of non‐linear soil‐structure interaction.