Displacement controlled rocking behaviour of rigid objects

Abstract

The capacity of a gravity structure to counter seismically induced overturning can only be estimated with good accuracy using a dynamic analysis of the rotational (rocking) motion involving large displacement theory. Seismic assessment employing quasi-static analysis can be overly conservative if the reserve capacity of this type of rocking structure to displace without overturning is not taken into account. It was revealed through dynamic testing on a shaking table that the overturning hazards of ground shaking are best represented by the peak displacement demand (PDD) parameter and that the vulnerability to overturning instability decreases with the increasing size of the object when the a..