Modeling the Effects of Soil-Structure Interaction on a Tall Building Bearing on a Mat Foundation


Examining soil-structure interaction can result in more efficient structural designs.


LEWIS E

DGERS, MASOUD SANAYEI & JOSEPH L. ALONGE






he interaction of a building, its foundation

and the underlying soils may have important

effects on the behavior of each of these components

as well as on the overall system behavior. For example,

the relative stiffness of a building structure, its mat

foundation and the soils that support the foundation

will influence the stresses and displacements

of both the structure and soil. Soil-structure

interaction (SSI) effects are sometimes

neglected by the use of a structural

model supported on a fixed base. Other


simple models assume an ideally flexible or

infinitely rigid foundation on an elastic subsoil.

An investigation of the effects of SSI on the

stresses and displacements in the structure

and the soil of a model fifty-story steel frame

structure with a concrete mat foundation

bearing on a deformable soil was undertaken

as a means of best understanding how to perform

and apply SSI analyses. The study included

investigating the effects of the stiffnesses

of the building, its mat foundation and an

elastic subsoil on the stresses, internal

forces and displacements of the building,

foundation and subsoils. The soil-structure

model also considered the effects of foundation

embedment. Development of Computer Models

The study of SSI was conducted with a building

frame model developed within the context

of research on the effects of increased wind


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