Triaxial shake table testing of an integrated low-damage building system

Lessons from recent earthquakes have provided a tough reality check of the traditional seismic design approach and technologies, highlighting the urgent need for a paradigm shift of performance-based design criteria and objectives toward low-damage design philosophy and technologies for the whole building system. Modern society is asking for “earthquake proof” resilient buildings that are able to withstand seismic events without compromising their functionality. The EU-funded SERA (Seismology and Earthquake Engineering Research Infrastructure Alliance for Europe Project) project discussed in this paper provided the opportunity to develop and validate within the European context an integrated seismic low-damage prototype, including main structure and non-structural elements, for the next generation of high-performance buildings. This paper presents an overview of the research, involving three-dimensional shake table tests of a two-storey 1:2 scaled timber-concrete post-tensioned dissipative low-damage structure “dressed” by earthquake-resistant gypsum/masonry partitions and glass/concrete facades. Specimen details, construction and assembly phases, test setup, and experimental results are discussed. After many cycles of input motions at increasing levels of seismic intensity (higher than Collapse Prevention Limit State), the integrated building system exhibited a very high seismic performance. The experimental campaign carried out at the National Laboratory of Civil Engineering in Lisbon confirmed the unique potential of low-damage technologies and the opportunity for their widespread implementation into design practice.