Seismic behaviour of reinforced concrete chimneys
Riva P.
CICIND REPORT Vol. 17, No. 1, 2001
Order No: CR-211
In this paper the non-linear analysis of a 200m concrete chimney subjected to different strong earthquake records, both natural and artificial, is presented. The chimney was designed according to ACI 307 for an effective peak velocity-related ground acceleration equal to 0.25g. The results of the analyses show that the chimney behaviour for earthquakes characterised by PGA ranging from 0.37g to 0.64g is predominantly linear elastic. Only in a few instances, for earthquakes showing greater low frequency content, has some non-linear behaviour been observed. The results obtained show that the design resulting from a strict application of the code prescriptions may be excessively conservative. Finally, the results presented give useful indications for the development of future seismic codes, which mighty lead to a more rational seismic design of tall concrete chimneys.