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Seismic Response and Stability of the Rocking Frame

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Computational Methods, Seismic Protection, Hybrid Testing and Resilience in Earthquake Engineering

Part of the book series: Geotechnical, Geological and Earthquake Engineering ((GGEE,volume 33))

Abstract

This paper investigates the planar rocking response of an array of free-standing columns capped with a freely supported rigid beam in an effort to explain the appreciable seismic stability of ancient free-standing columns which support heavy epistyles together with the even heavier frieze atop. Following a variational formulation the paper concludes to the remarkable result that the dynamic rocking response of an array of free-standing columns capped with a rigid beam is identical to the rocking response of a single free-standing column with the same slenderness; yet with larger size – that is a more stable configuration. Most importantly, the study shows that the heavier the freely supported cap-beam is (epistyles with frieze atop), the more stable is the rocking frame regardless the rise of the center of gravity of the cap-beam; concluding that top-heavy rocking frames are more stable than when they are top-light. This “counter intuitive” finding renders rocking isolation a most attractive alternative for the seismic protection of bridges with tall piers; while its potential implementation shall remove several of the concerns associated with the seismic connections of prefabricated bridges.

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Acknowledgments

Financial Support for this study has been provided by the action “Aristeia” of the “OPERATIONAL PROGRAMME EDUCATION AND LIFELONG LEARNING” and is co-funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) and National Resources of Greece.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Division of Structures, University of Patras, Patras, GR-26500, Greece

    Nicos Makris

  2. ETH Zürich, IBK, Wolfgang-Pauli-Strasse 15, CH-8093, Zürich, Switzerland

    Michalis F. Vassiliou

Authors
  1. Nicos Makris
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  2. Michalis F. Vassiliou
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nicos Makris .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Structural, Geotechnical & Building Engineering (DISEG), Politecnico di Torino, Turin, Italy

    Gian Paolo Cimellaro

  2. Civil & Env. Engineering and Mech. Engineering, Rice University, Houston, Texas, USA

    Satish Nagarajaiah

  3. Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of California, Davis, California, USA

    Sashi K. Kunnath

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Makris, N., Vassiliou, M.F. (2015). Seismic Response and Stability of the Rocking Frame. In: Cimellaro, G., Nagarajaiah, S., Kunnath, S. (eds) Computational Methods, Seismic Protection, Hybrid Testing and Resilience in Earthquake Engineering. Geotechnical, Geological and Earthquake Engineering, vol 33. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-06394-2_15

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