SEISMIC ENGINEERING|STRUCTURAL STRENGTHENING| VULNERABILITY RESILIENCE

The course has several strands: it introduces the concepts of risk and resilience of the built environment to earthquake and other natural hazards. It...

Structural Vulnerability and Resilience (CEGE0051)

The course has several strands: it introduces the concepts of risk and resilience of the built environment to earthquake and other natural hazards. It introduces the concept of loss mitigation at different scales and for different domains. It provides tools for the assessment of seismic behaviour of non-seismic designed structures, within the framework of Probabilistic Performance Based Assessment. It provides procedures and tools for the computation of their fragility and vulnerability. It compares assessment approaches and safety requirements from different codes in earthquake prone countries worldwide. It presents traditional and novel strengthening techniques and technologies for seismic retrofitting. It develops criteria for the choice of appropriate strengthening interventions and methods for the detailed design of such interventions for a range of substandard structures, using the concepts of capacity based design and performance based design. Particular attention is paid to Reinforced Concrete Structures and Unreinforced Masonry Structures.

Learning Outcomes

Ability to identify structural deficiencies in existing structures exposed to seismic action
 Understanding of socioeconomic consequences of structural damage and the process of recovery
 Proficiency in computing response of existing concrete and masonry structures to seismic performance target for given seismic intensity and return period
 Proficiency in deriving fragility and vulnerability functions for single structures or structural types
 Proficiency in the design of most common strengthening techniques for RC structures and load bearing masonry structures

The module provides students of the MSc Biodiversity and Global Change, and MRes Biodiversity, Evolution and Conservation, with foundational knowledge on the...