Seismic behavior characteristic of high damping rubber bearing through shaking table test

Abstract

We investigated a high damping rubber bearing (HDRB) that mitigates damage to buildings and bridges from earthquakes. An HDRB can bear large loads for long periods of time and is capable of large deformations during an earthquake. The characteristics of the HDRB considered in this research include a very high damping capacity, with an equivalent damping factor of more than 15 % for a large earthquake. Moreover, we examined various dependency properties such as compressive stress, frequency, and repeated loading. To evaluate seismic isolation with an HDRB on several earthquake waves, we performed a shaking table test. In this test, deck acceleration was measured by accelerometers. Shear forces on piers were surveyed by using load cells. Furthermore, the seismic capacity of an isolated system with an HDRB was compared with a non-isolated system through shaking table tests. The results show that deck acceleration and shear force were relatively reduced by the HDRB.