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Fluid Viscous Dampers

White Paper

79. FLUID VISCOUS DAMPERS: AN EFFECTIVE WAY TO SUPPRESS PEDESTRIAN-INDUCED MOTIONS IN FOOTBRIDGES

Fluid viscous dampers have found commercial applications on buildings and bridges subject to seismic and/or wind storm inputs. They are now being used as well on footbridges to suppress undesirable pedestrian induced vibrations. This paper provides a brief overview of fluid damping technology with specific case studies for pedestrian bridges now equipped with fluid viscous dampers. These viscous dampers are used to suppress the feedback between the pedestrians and the bridge and/or wind induced vibrations. On-site tests show that fluid viscous dampers provide significant gains in performance at relatively low cost.

White Paper

71. SEISMIC PROTECTION WITH FLUID VISCOUS DAMPERS FOR THE TORRE MAYOR, A 57-STORY OFFICE TOWER IN MEXICO CITY, MEXICO

The new 57 story Torre Mayor Building is the now the dominant structure in the Mexico City skyline. It is also the first tall building to utilize large Fluid Viscous Dampers as a primary means of seismic energy dissipation. A total of 98 dampers are used, including 24 large dampers, each rated at 570 tonnes of output force, located in the long walls of the building. The short walls utilize 74 smaller dampers, each rated at 280 tonnes of output force. The damping technology successfully implemented for Torre Mayor is now being used on five other tall buildings, including three in the USA, and two in Japan.

Case Study

70. SEISMIC REHABILITATION OF HISTORIC CONCRETE STRUCTURE WITH FLUID VISCO-ELASTIC DAMPERS

This paper presents the nonlinear seismic analysis, development, and implementation of an innovative seismic retrofit strategy for a six story nonductile reinforced concrete 145,000 square foot historic building. Dynamic and nonlinear static analytical results verified that the building had a weak soft story with inadequate post yield capacity and large torsional response. Hotel Stockton, in Stockton, CA, is also torsionally irregular. The analysis indicated that the existing building was not seismically adequate to withstand anticipated lateral forces generated by earthquake excitations at the site. A “collapse prevention” performance upgrade for a 475-year return event was developed. Nonlinear fluid viscous dampers were placed at the first story level to reduce the seismic demand and obtain a more uniform response. Viscoelastic fluid viscous dampers were strategically placed at one side of the building to reduce the torsional irregularity of the building. This cost effective retrofit significantly improved the seismic performance of the building.

Case Study

67. U.S. DESIGN OF STRUCTURES WITH DAMPING SYSTEMS

This paper presents an earthquake design procedure and a case study of the Vacaville Police Headquarters. The design goal for this essential facility was to provide immediate occupancy after a 475-year return seismic event. The project also required construction cost within typical code conforming buildings. A combination of Special Moment Resisting Frames (SMRF) and Fluid Viscous Dampers (FVDs) was used as the lateral force resistance system. This system, as described by Gimmel, Lindorfer, and Miyamoto, (2002) results in cost efficiency and superior seismic performance. The 2000 NEHRP (FEMA, 2000) guideline was used to design the project, since it is considered to be a state-of-art procedure for seismic damping devices. This project was the first structure in the United States to use this advanced procedure.

Case Study

66. DAMPER RETROFIT OF THE LONDON MILLENNIUM FOOTBRIDGE

The Millennium Footbridge was opened to the public on June 10, 2000 – the first new bridge across the River Thames in historic London in more than a century. Nearly 100,000 people used the new bridge in its first day of operation. On June 12, 2000, the Millennium Bridge was ordered closed, due to hazardous deck motions. Seemingly random pedestrian footfalls were causing resonance of the bridge deck, with lateral accelerations measuring up to 0.25 g. The selected method of retrofit was to add fluid damping to the bridge. This paper describes how this was done, including testing of the bridge with groups of up to 2,000 people.

White Paper

65. VISCOUS DAMPER DEVELOPMENT AND FUTURE TRENDS

Viscous dampers can protect structures against wind excitation, blast and earthquakes. Viscous damper technology originated with military and aerospace applications. Approximately 20 years ago it was found that the same fluid viscous dampers that protect missiles against nuclear attack and guard submarines against near miss underwater explosions could also protect buildings, bridges and other structures from destructive shock and vibration. This paper describes fluid damper technology, analysis considerations, installation methods and development work in progress.

Case Study

64. VIRTUAL BASE ISOLATION BY BUILDING SOFTENING WITH DRIFT CONTROL PROVIDED BY FLUID VISCOUS DAMPERS

In many metropolitan areas, mid rise buildings are constructed adjacent to existing buildings, and incorporate concrete shear walls to act as a barrier between the two buildings. The orientation of these shear walls often causes severe torsional response within the building. The addition of a few well placed nonlinear Fluid Viscous Dampers (FVD’s) can significantly decrease the torsional excitation, thereby increasing building performance. This paper describes the retrofit of an 18-story steel frame building that exhibits severe torsional response from the “property line” condition at the lower two stories. FVD’s significantly reduce the displacement and acceleration of the second and third floors of the building, where sensitive telecommunications equipment is being housed. They reduce the demand and drift on the stories above with no additional construction required on these floors. FVD’s offer a very economical and effective means of mitigating undesirable building response due to torsional irregularities. Their use would be effective in the retrofit of many existing buildings with similar “property line” conditions.

White Paper

63. VIRTUAL BASE ISOLATION BY BUILDING SOFTENING WITH DRIFT CONTROL PROVIDED BY FLUID VISCOUS DAMPERS

The paper describes “virtual isolation” for buildings with one or more soft stories. Using the 1999 SEAOC Blue Book (SEAOC, 1999) recommendations for passive energy dissipation, the building’s Lateral Force Resisting System (LFRS) is designed for strength requirements only, resulting in a relatively flexible LFRS, while Fluid Viscous Dampers (FVD) are incorporated to limit story drifts to acceptable levels. There are many benefits to this “virtual isolation” system. With the elimination of the maximum drift requirements, the moment frames are substantially lighter than a traditionally framed building, thus lowering the structural steel cost of the LFRS. The long period structure also produces significantly reduced forces in the foundation elements. Velocity and displacement are reduced significantly through the use of the FVDs, which protects the sensitive contents of the building. These benefits lead to a reduced response resulting in an enhanced performance level during a major seismic event.

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