EARTHQUAKE RESISTANT DESIGN OF STEEL STRUCTURES

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EARTHQUAKE RESISTANT DESIGN OF STEEL STRUCTURES

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Earthquakes are natural phenomena, which cause the ground to shake. The earth’s
interior is hot and in a molten state. As the lava comes to the surface, it cools and new
land is formed. The lands so formed have to continuously keep drifting to allow new
material to surface. According to the theory of plate tectonics, the entire surface of the
earth can be considered to be like several plates, constantly on the move. These plates
brush against each other or collide at their boundaries giving rise to earthquakes.
Therefore regions close to the plate boundary are highly seismic and regions farther from
the boundaries exhibit less seismicity. Earthquakes may also be caused by other actions
such as underground explosions.
The Indian sub-continent, which forms part of the Indo-Australian plate, is pushing
against the Eurasian plate along the Himalayan belt. Therefore, the Himalayan belt is
highly seismic whereas peninsular India, which is not traversed by any plate boundary, is
relatively less seismic. Earthquakes became frequent after the construction of Koyna dam
and this is regarded as a classic case of man-made seismicity. However, the Latur
earthquake of 1993, which occurred in what was previously considered to be the most
stable region on the earth implies that no region is entirely safe from devastating
earthquakes.
Earthquakes cause the ground to shake violently thereby triggering landslides, creating
floods, causing the ground to heave and crack and causing large-scale destruction to life
and property. The study of why and where earthquakes occur comes under geology. The
study of the characteristics of the earthquake ground motion and its effects on engineered
structures are the subjects of earthquake engineering. In particular, the effect of
earthquakes on structures and the design of structures to withstand earthquakes with no or
minimum damage is the subject of earthquake resistant structural design. The secondary
effects on structures, due to floods and landslides are generally outside its scope.
The recent earthquake in Kutch, Gujarat on 26 Jan 2001 has not only exposed the
weaknesses in the Indian construction industry but also the lack of knowledge about
earthquake engineering among all concerned. Taking advantage of the fear caused by the
earthquake in the minds of both the common people and the engineering community, a
number of people who have no knowledge about earthquake engineering have made
totally absurd statements with regard to earthquake resistant design. Examples are given
below:

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