Design and Testing of an Earthquake Simulation System

Abstract

It is a well-known fact that Turkey is on a seismically active region. In order to kick-off structural dynamics research in TOBB Economy and Technology University which would focus on improving earthquake response of structures, an experimental earthquake simulation setup and a three floor building model is created as a senior year graduation project. There were two main parts of the study; the first part is the design and integration of components of an earthquake simulation system. The second part is the analysis and design of a three floor building model (scale ?1/10) with its first natural frequency close to an actual residential three floor reinforced concrete building. After manufacturing of the building model the natural frequencies of the test model is measured and compared with the finite element model predictions. The earthquake testing of the model attached to the hydraulic piston is also performed. The hydraulic piston movement is measured with an LVDT and the building floor sways are measured using an accelerometer. Also, a simple cantilever type of tuned dynamic vibration absorber is placed on the third floor and the effectiveness of the tuned dynamic vibration absorber on decreasing building floor accelerations will be measured.