Seismic Isolation of Residential Homes in Developing Countries using Basic Materials
Open Access
Author:
Davis, Lindeon Sherlock
Area of Honors:
Civil Engineering
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Gordon Patrick Warn, Thesis Supervisor Eric Todd Donnell, Thesis Honors Advisor
Keywords:
seismic earthquake pure-friction Haiti sliding isolation system masonry low cost
Abstract:
On January 12th, 2010, a magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake hit the country of Haiti severely damaging many of the residences and displacing a significant portion of the Haitian population. The objective of this study is to investigate the feasibility of using basic materials to achieve seismic isolation to protect residential homes from damage during an earthquake. This thesis will focus on reviewing existing literature on the performance of residential homes in Haiti during this particular earthquake. As well, literature will be analyzed to populate a coefficient of friction table for the interface of pairs of various low cost materials. In addition, there will be hypothetical designs of seismic isolation systems using 2010 AASHTO guidelines and a comparison of the cost of each particular system for its respective friction coefficient.
The intended long-term outcome of this research is to demonstrate the feasibility of a cost-effective approach to seismically isolated residential homes in developing countries prone to earthquakes. The key point of this proposal is to identify mating materials that provide the most benefit in terms of seismic protection at the lowest cost.
