Seismic vulnerability of masonry infilled reinforced concrete frame structures

Abstract

Despite intense worldwide research in the area of masonry infilled frame structures during the past half a century, displacement-based non-linear analyses of masonry infilled frames with explicit consideration of infill panels as structural elements is far from common practice in earthquake resistant design of such structures. The displacements are of particular interest from the viewpoint of performance-based design (PBD), the emerging paradigm for the next generation of standard codes of practice for earthquake resistant design. The present paper is based on an analytical study of the seismic performance and vulnerability of typical planar masonry infilled reinforced concrete (R/C) frames considering the effect of distribution of masonry infill panels over the elevation of the R/C frame using rational displacement based analysis methods such as non-linear dynamic time-history analysis based on realistic and efficient hysteretic models of the structural elements. The results of the displacementbased analyses are used to develop seismic vulnerability curves in probabilistic terms for the populations of typical medium-rise masonry infilled reinforced concrete (R/C) framed buildings. The proposed seismic vulnerability curves are termed as fragility curves in the present study that provide useful tools for predicting life and economic losses in the event of a future earthquake. © 2011 WIT Press.