Seismic Retrofitting Strategies for Soft-Ground-Storied Building

During seismic events, high-rise buildings with soft ground storey are vulnerable to damage as there is a sudden change of stiffness along its height. In this study, different types of energy dissipation devices, which include lower toggle bracing, double-bracing fluid viscous damper, single-bracing fluid viscous damper and single-bracing friction damper, and traditional infill wall are implemented in a 12 storied soft-storey building to assess their influences on reduction of building’s responses during seismic events. These retrofitted buildings are analysed bi-directionally with various ground motion time history of Kolkata region, India. It is seen that energy dissipation devices proved to be better than traditional infill wall due to the fact that the devices enhance the damping capacity as well as stiffness strengthening to the building while traditional infill wall enhances only stiffness strengthening to the building.