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Seismic Assessment, Behavior and Retrofit of Heritage Buildings and Monuments pp 37–59Cite as

The Dynamics of the Rocking Frame

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Part of the book series: Computational Methods in Applied Sciences ((COMPUTMETHODS,volume 37))

Abstract

This paper investigates the planar rocking response and stability analysis of an array of free-standing columns capped with a freely supported rigid beam. Part of the motivation for this study is the emerging seismic design concept of allowing framing systems to uplift and rock along their plane in order to limit bending moments and shear forces. Following a variational formulation the paper reaches 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 of 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.

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Acknowledgements

Financial support for this study has been provided by the research project “Seismio Rock Bridge” which is implemented under the “ARISTEIA” action of the “OPERATIONAL PROGRAMME EDUCATION AND LIFELONG LEARNING” and is co-funded by the European Union (European Social Fund) and Greek National Resources.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil, Environmental and Construction Engineering, University of Central Florida, Orlando, USA

    Nicos Makris

  2. Department of Civil Engineering, University of Patras, Patras, Greece

    Nicos Makris

  3. Institute of Structural Engineering (IBK), Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETHZ), Zurich, Switzerland

    Michalis F. Vassiliou

Authors
  1. Nicos Makris
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  2. Michalis F. Vassiliou
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Correspondence to Nicos Makris .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Earthquake Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Athens, Greece

    Ioannis N. Psycharis

  2. Dept of Civil and Environmental Eng., University of Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus

    Stavroula J. Pantazopoulou

  3. Institute of Structural Analysis & Antiseismic Research, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Athens, Greece

    Manolis Papadrakakis

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Makris, N., Vassiliou, M.F. (2015). The Dynamics of the Rocking Frame. In: Psycharis, I., Pantazopoulou, S., Papadrakakis, M. (eds) Seismic Assessment, Behavior and Retrofit of Heritage Buildings and Monuments. Computational Methods in Applied Sciences, vol 37. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16130-3_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16130-3_2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-16129-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16130-3

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