Designing an Earthquake-Proof Home Approximately 8,000 people each year are killed by earthquakes. Around 1, 300,000 earthquakes occur per year (two per day) with magnitudes of 2.9 or lower. Eighty percent of the earth’s largest earthquakes occur near the “Ring of Fire” which is a region in the Pacific Ocean where many tectonic plates meet. The average earthquake lasts around 60 seconds. Landslides, tsunamis, avalanches, and volcanoes can all result from an earthquake. As part of my Earth and Environmental Science class I had to build an earthquake proof model. After researching earthquake resistant design techniques I came up with model design and purchased my supplies. With my dad’s help, I had to cut the wood to fit my model design. I built my model around the base-isolated concept. Base isolation is one of the most important advanced techniques of earthquake resistant design. A base isolated model is supported by bearing pads which are placed between the buildings and building’s …show more content…
During the construction process my Gabel roof collapsed. After some additional research I decided to rebuild my model with a flat roof. I layered my roof with shingles to give the roof a slight pitch. I also constructed my model with wooden support columns in an attempt to strength the walls and the overall structure. I tried to incorporate a “unibody” design, in which every element of the structure contributes to the strength of the structure. I used rubber cement to attach the walls and columns to each other and the foundation. I also used a special adhesive material to further support my columns. These features made my model stiffer and stronger, leading to a better seismic performance. I also placed an earthquake safe box in my model. Here I plan to store a first aid kit, water, food, flashlight, batteries, fire extinguisher, blankets, money, candles, matches, clothing, toilet paper and a few family
Skyscrapers are amazing! Architectural defeats. Wonders of the world. How are they able to withstand even the strongest of winds and earthquakes?
Problem Statement: Earthquakes are a natual part of the environment. They do,however,cause devistating effect on the environment. Since Earthquakes can not be avoided, maybe there is a way to determine when they are going to occur so precautions can be taken to get people to safety and protect as much of
To test the load handling capabilities of the structure, two separate loads were applied independently. First, a standard brick with the dimensions of 3-5/8” x 2-1/4” x 8” and an approximate weight of 4.5 pounds was place on top of the structure to observe the effects. The structure was able to support this distributed load with ease, causing no visible bending, breaking, or failures. The brick was then removed before performing the second test. To perform the second test, the structure was suspended across two tables, with a string attached to the center of one side of the truss systems. The standard brick was then attached to the rope to create a vertical load. After carefully attaching the brick to the string, the structure began to bend before eventually failing, causing the structure to break in
1.0 Terms of Reference This formal report has been written for students, government agencies and engineering development companies. Forecasting it to be completed before the 18th May 2015, It serves the purpose of assisting and providing insight to people conducting researches pertaining to this specific topic, whether it is to understand the previous errors made in construction or to improve static structural building standards based on history failures. As acknowledged by the writer, this chosen topic is one of which contains ample debates ranging from a diverse band of perceptions. Hence, the scope of this report will purely cover how the World Trade Centre collapsed on September the 11th 2001 from scientific; mathematical, structural and
Protecting your possessions against earthquake damage isn’t something most people spend a lot of time thinking about, but personal storage area preparation prior to an earthquake can help ensure your possessions don’t incur costly damage.
If we make buildings with better structures and designs it will save more lives and cause less damage. The speaker was trying a design where you would not see on the surface which most people would like. First, on http://science.howstuffworks.com/engineering/structural/earthquake-resistant-buildings6.htm,An
Risk management of natural hazards is the attempt to prevent unnecessary deaths and destruction due to a natural phenomenon such an earthquake. This natural phenomenon is extremely (nearly impossible) to predict when they will happen however by looking at plate movements and boundaries as well as historical events an understanding can be grasped to the whereabouts of these natural hazards, therefore risk management strategies can be put in place to try and prevent death and destruction. As stated by Holden (2005), the Earth’s lithosphere is divided into a series of rigid plates and the boundaries of these plates is where most of the world’s earthquakes happen. As seen in Figure 1 the plates are ‘delineated by the distribution of earthquakes’
As we live in an earthquake prone region, it is important that our house is prepared for such disasters. The safety and precautionary measures need to be taken, otherwise there will be a continuous threat of physical and property damage in future. Reasonable investment today will reduce future cost and increase safety of the house. Moreover, investment in safety will increase value of the property, possibly increasing market price of the house in future. Hence, there are various positive outcomes of expenditures to make the house more secure.
Fanella, D. (2011). Reinforced concrete structures: analysis and design / David A. Fanella. New York: McGraw-Hill, c2011.
Whether one sees the decision as idiotic or logical, a Portugal University felt the best way to avert future environmental hazards was through the damaging of living bodies. Nowadays, scientists understand that the occurrence of earthquakes are natural and will happen regardless of human interference; however, this science is nearly a recent d...
In the early morning hours on January 17th, 1994 a very violent tremble took place across Los Angeles, California area that left fifty-seven people dead, more than 7,000 injured, more than 20,000 homeless and left over 40,000 buildings damaged. Around 4:30 a.m. a horrific 6.7 magnitude earthquake, that tested building codes and earthquake-resistant construction, shook Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura, and Orange Counties with the most intense damage occurring in Sherman Oaks and Northridge. The earthquake caused several bridges and overpasses to collapse closing sections of the Santa Monica Freeway, Simi Valley Freeway, Golden State Freeway, and the Antelope Valley Freeway. There were also several fire outbreaks throughout the San Fernando Valley, Malibu, and Venice area because of underground gas lines that had been ruptured during the earthquake that caused additional damage.
The type of basement I have chosen for this design is an in ground basement because I think it is best suited and will create so much room underneath the building. The ground that the two storey basement building is located on is water logged so the foundations will have to be able to take the whole weight of the building without any future movement from the soil, so I have decided to use secant piles because I think they are the most suitable for this type of ground because they will proved excellent waterproofing and won’t move.
Earthquakes are vibrations felt at the surface of the earth which are caused by disturbances of the energy in the earth's interior. These vibrations are known as seismic waves. (Skinner Robinson McVerry 1) There are different type sof seisimc waves such as Primary (P) waves, whcih travel the fastest, Secondary (S) waves which cause the earth to vibrate vertically, Surface (L) waves. P and S waves are "affected by changes in the density and the rigidity of the materials through which they pass." (Columbia Encyclopedia) Earthquakes vary in their intensity and duration. Often times they are strong enough to cause massive destriction. Tall buildings often suffer as a result of these natural disasters. In recent years this has become a larger and larger threat with both the number of large buildings, and their number of occupants increasing. In an effort to try to minimize the damage caused by earthquakes many some engineers focus primarily on designing and constructing earthquake resistant buildings. Earthquake engineers have gathered much of their information from analyzing past earthquakes, and learning which buildings can and can't withstand the tremors. The goals of these engineers is to design buildings that can withstand moderate earthquakes and obtain minimal damage, and that the buildings will not collapse lowering the probability of human deaths.
Taher, R. (2011). General recommendations for improved building practices in earthquake and hurricane prone areas. San Francisco, CA: Architecture for Humanity Retrieved from
Earthquakes belong to the class of most disastrous natural hazards. They result in unexpected and tremendous earth movements. These movements results from dissemination of an enormous amount of intense energy in form of seismic waves which are detected by use of seismograms. The impact of earthquakes leaves behind several landmarks including: destruction of property, extensive disruption of services like sewer and water lines, loss of life, and causes instability in both economic and social components of the affected nation (Webcache 2).