Effect of Shear Walls Length on the Behavior of Reinforced Concrete Structures

On May 21, 2003, a powerful earthquake with a moment magnitude of Mw=6.8 struck the city of Boumerdes, which is located roughly 50 km east of Algiers, the capital city of Algeria. 2,278 people lost their lives as a result of the earthquake, which also caused several buildings and infrastructures to collapse. Structures with reinforced concrete (R/C) frames did not withstand the earthquake, according to post - seismic observations. In order to reduce risks related to this type of construction, the revised version of the Algerian Seismic Code (RPA 99 Version 2003) restricted the use of RC frame structures to two - story buildings or structures that were eight meters or taller. Over this threshold, shear walls must either fully or partially resist the earthquake loads. To comply with this new requirement, engineers adopted a new construction system by using small length shear walls arranged in L shape at the corners of the building. In order to assess the efficiency of this shear walls configuration, a series of numerical analysis has been performed using the finite element method where the shear walls length was varied from 0.60 m to 2.00 m. For the purpose of this study a typical three - story building constructed in Algeria's most seismically active region, Algiers and the surrounding area, has been selected for this investigation.