Unsymmetricity effects on seismic performance of multi-story buildings

Abstract The unsymmetrical configurations in buildings lead to non-uniform distributions in their strength, mass, and stiffness, and they are consequently prone to damage during seismic hazards. In this study, the seismic performance of multi-story buildings with 5, 8, 10, and 12 stories of square, ‘L’, ‘T’, and ‘U’-shaped buildings have been investigated. The research deals with the variation of the natural time periods and how it affects the seismic performance of unsymmetrical multi-story buildings. The coupled and uncoupled equations of motion, based on the symmetricity of the buildings about both axes, were solved to obtain natural time periods that influence the spectral acceleration of the ground accelerations. Six important ground accelerations were considered. Nonlinear static analysis, such as pushover analysis, was also carried out on all the buildings. Comparisons were made on the seismic behavior of both the symmetrical and unsymmetrical structures. The results revealed that the spectral acceleration influences dynamic responses, such as base shear, base moment, base torsion, roof displacement, roof rotation, and story drifts of the buildings. Moreover, it was found that even though the ‘L’-shaped buildings are unsymmetrical about both axes, they are less vulnerable than the ‘T’ and ‘U’-shaped buildings, which are unsymmetrical about one axis.