Assessment of Seismic Vulnerability for a Hospital Building Using Field Data and Various Numerical Analyses Considering Bidirectional Ground Motion Effects
Source abstract
Abstract
For the assessment of seismic effects on RC buildings, the real structural condition has to be modelled as accurately as possible. Medical facilities and hospitals have to resist seismic actions and remain operational after seismic events. For this reason, a detailed seismic vulnerability assessment of a hospital building located in Orihuela, Spain, is presented in this paper using a combination of field monitoring data and numerical analysis. Ambient noise measurements from field monitoring using Raspberry Shake-based sensors are used to capture dynamic characteristics that describe the building behaviour. Data from these sensors were used to update and refine the finite element model of the structure for a detailed analysis of the building’s seismic performance. The different analytical procedures included both elastic and inelastic modelling, as well as static and dynamic assessments, to provide an exhaustive evaluation of the building’s behaviour under seismic loads. In the numerical model, the effect of masonry infill walls is considered, taking into account detailed material properties and structural configurations. Furthermore, the study carefully selects ground motion records representing two limit states—Damage Limitation (DL) and Severe Damage (SD)—to conduct an extensive seismic analysis. In each limit state applied to the structure, there are 14 bidirectional ground motions with components alternately directed along the two principal directions of the building. This analysis evaluated the structural response, focusing on torsional effects, inter-storey drift ratios, and the seismic performance of individual components. The results were compared to other analysis types, considering both overall and localised behaviour, to determine the reliability of different approaches. The findings support the idea that field monitoring data should be combined with advanced modelling techniques to achieve a more accurate evaluation of the building’s seismic vulnerability, considering bidirectional effects.
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Research context
OpenAlex topics: Seismic Performance and Analysis · Masonry and Concrete Structural Analysis · Structural Response to Dynamic Loads
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
Multidisciplinary Institute for Environmental Studies, University of Alicante, Ctra. San Vicente del Raspeig, s/n, 03080 Alicante, Spain
Department of Continuum Mechanics and Theory of Structures, Universitat Politècnica de València, Camino de Vera, s/n, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Department of Physics, Systems Engineering and Signal Theory, University of Alicante, Ctra. San Vicente del Raspeig, s/n, 03080 Alicante, Spain
University Institute of Physics Applied to Sciences and Technologies, University of Alicante, Ctra. San Vicente del Raspeig, s/n, 03080 Alicante, Spain
Department of Applied Physics, University of Alicante, Ctra. San Vicente del Raspeig, s/n, 03080 Alicante, Spain
Independent Researcher, Municipality of Orihuela, 03300 Orihuela, Spain
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Alicante, Ctra. San Vicente del Raspeig, s/n, 03080 Alicante, Spain
Department of Architectural Constructions, University of Alicante, Ctra. San Vicente del Raspeig, s/n, 03080 Alicante, Spain
Funding
European Regional Development Fund (FEDER), the Spanish Government · Research Group VIGROB-116 (University of Alicante) · Regional Government of Valencia (Ministry of Education, Culture, Universities and Employment)
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