Numerical simulation of the seismic response and soil–structure interaction for a monitored masonry school building damaged by the 2016 Central Italy earthquake

Abstract

Despite significant research advances on the seismic response analysis, there is still an urgent need for validation of numerical simulation methods for prediction of earthquake response and damage. In this respect, seismic monitoring networks and proper modelling can further support validation studies, allowing more realistic simulations of what earthquakes can produce. This paper discusses the seismic response of the “Pietro Capuzi” school in Visso, a village located in the Marche region (Italy) that was severely damaged by the 2016–2017 Central Italy earthquake sequence. The school was a two-story masonry structure founded on simple enlargements of its load-bearing walls, partially embedded in the alluvial loose soils of the Nera river. The structure was monitored as a strategic building by the Italian Seismic Observatory of Structures (OSS), which provided acceleration records under both ambient noise and the three mainshocks of the seismic sequence. The evolution of the damage pattern following each one of the three mainshocks was provided by on-site survey integrated by OSS data. Data on the dynamic soil properties was available from the seismic microzonation study of the Visso village and proved useful in the development of a reliable geotechnical model of the subsoil. The equivalent frame (EF) approach was adopted to simulate the nonlinear response of the school building through both fixed-base and compliant-base models, to assess the likely influence of soil–structure interaction on the building performance. The ambient noise records allowed for an accurate calibration of the soil–structure model. The seismic response of the masonry building to the whole sequence of the three mainshocks was then simulated by nonlinear time history analyses by using the horizontal accelerations recorded at the underground floor as input motions. Numerical results are validated against the evidence on structural response in terms of both incremental damage and global shear force–displacement relationships. The comparisons are satisfactory, corroborating the reliability of the compliant-base approach as applied to the EF model and its computational efficiency to simulate the soil–foundation–structure interaction in the case of masonry buildings.

A comparative study on a complex URM building: part I—sensitivity of the seismic response to different modelling options in the equivalent frame models

“…13 Comparison of damage predicted by software for the spandrels and piers of W6 for the BS5/A and BS5/C: + Y analysis capacity to withstand horizontal actions. Considering the serious damage level suffered by the structure and the intensity of the seismic event (discussed in more detail in Brunelli et al 2021), it appears reasonable to compare it with the damage predicted at the last step of the pushover analyses.…”

“…It was severely damaged by the seismic sequence that affected Central Italy in 2016/2017, mainly exhibiting a global box-type behavior with cracks concentrated in piers and spandrels. The structure, now demolished because of the serious damage suffered, was the subject of a permanent seismic monitoring system by the DPC through the OSS (acronym of the Italian name "Osservatorio Sismico delle Strutture") (Dolce et al 2017) and was analyzed in other literature works with the aim of an accurate numerical simulation of its actual response (Cattari et al 2019;Graziotti et al 2019;Ferrero et al 2020;Brunelli et al 2021).…”

Innovative Materials in Italy for Eco-Friendly and Sustainable Buildings

“…Italy is one of the countries with the greatest seismic risk in the Mediterranean, due to the frequency of earthquakes that have historically affected its territory and the intensity that some of them have reached, resulting in a significant social and economic impact [ 1 , 2 ]. Earthquakes and telluric phenomena are frequent and have affected various regions from North to South.…”

Simulation of building damage distribution in downtown Mashiki, Kumamoto, Japan caused by the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake based on site-specific ground motions and nonlinear structural analyses

“…An accurate prediction of seismic damage to buildings on a regional scale is important for modern city planning and post-earthquake rescue, which will help to mitigate direct/indirect seismic losses (Hori 2011;Lu et al 2014). Currently, existing approaches for seismic damage evaluation of buildings on a regional scale mainly include the damage probability matrix method (e.g., Ulrich et al 2014;Rojahn et al 1985;Yakut et al 2006;Polese et al 2015;Palanci and Senel 2019;Del Gaudio et al 2020), the spectrum method (Jalayer et al 2010;FEMA 2012), and methods based on time history analysis (e.g., Kawase 2002, 2004;Yoshida et al 2004;Benavent-Climent et al 2014;Lu and Guan 2017;Brunelli et al 2020). After the 1995 Hyogo-ken Nanbu Earthquake (hereafter Kobe earthquake), several researchers statistically analyzed the damage survey data to study the relationship between the structural characteristics and building damage ratios (e.g., Hayashi et al 2000;Murao and Yamazaki 2000;Miyakoshi 2002).…”