Earthquake SafetyBy: Victor Abravanel

Approaches to Safety•Determining an earthquakes occurrence

before it actually happens?!

•Relief efforts in place before the actual event.

•Being prepared for tsunami related events.

•Rendering buildings less susceptible to earthquake related damages. *Focus of presentation*

Predicting Earthquakes• At this point there are no highly effective predictors other

than seismograph readings a few seconds before a major event.

• General earthquake averages can be predicted but this is not useful towards population evacuations.

http://imgarcade.com/1/seismogram/

Relief Efforts in Place• Have agencies in

place ready to aid in the case of a major earthquake.

• Can include multilateral aid.

• Image on right of the

US army providing water to Haiti.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:2010_Haiti_earthquake_relief_efforts_by_the_US_Army.jpg

Tsunami Preparations • Tsunamis can follow an

earthquake and will result in massive damage.

• Tips:• Prepare emergency kits in

advance.• Stay away from the beach.• Head for high ground.• Do not fight the current.

Grab onto something and go for a ride.

http://www.secretsofthefed.com/tsunami-bomb-tested-off-new-zealand-coast/

Earthquake Resistant designs

•Site choice

•Structural components

•Ductility

•Active mass damping

•Seismic invisibility cloak

Site Choice• Bedrock is the ideal place to build structures because of

its firmness.

• Soft or filled-in soil can undergo liquefaction during an earthquake and behave like a liquid.

Site Choice

Structural components• Create a continuous load path so that forces can be

transferred from the frame of the house to the foundation.

• Insertion of shear panels can provide additional strength against lateral loads acting on structures.

• Buildings can also be built with metal springs, ball bearings and rubber pads.

• Symmetry to prevent torsional stress and equally distribute forces.

Ductility• Ductility refers to a

materials ability to undergo plastic deformation.

• Brick and concrete have low ductility and so are not ideal for earthquake safety.

• Steel-reinforced concrete

or structural steel are much more ductile. They can absorb more energy without breaking.

http://www.ndt-ed.org/EducationResources/CommunityCollege/Materials/Mechanical/Tensile.htm

Active Mass Damping

•One of the more technologically advanced methods for creating earthquake-resistant buildings.

•On the right is the

Taipei 101 building in Taiwan. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

File:Taipei101.portrait.altonthompson.jpg

Active Mass Damping• Consists of including a

heavy mass near the top of the building that is attached to viscous dampers that act as shock absorbers.

• When the building begins to oscillate the mass will move in the opposite direction, reducing the amplitude of the mechanical vibration.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/Taipei_101_Tuned_Mass_Damper.png

Seismic Invisibility Cloak• Concentric plastic rings

are installed underground in the top three feet of soil.

• Harder layers are further from the building. Each time the wave hits a softer layer it is deflected off its initial path.

• Once past the building the

waves can continue on their path.

http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2009-10/earthquake-proof-skyscraper

Questions?

Sources

• Retrieved March 24th, 2014 from http://science.howstuffworks.com/engineering/structural/earthquake-resistant-buildings.htm

• Retrieved March 24th, 2014 from http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2009-10/earthquake-proof-skyscraper

• Retrieved March 24th, 2014 from http://www.safestronghome.com/earthquake/02.asp

• Tsunami. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved March 24th, 2014 from http://www.wikihow.com/Prepare-for-a-Tsunami

• Earthquake prediction. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved March 24th, 2014 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthquake_prediction