28 research outputs found
EU-NICE, Eurasian University Network for International Cooperation in Earthquakes
Despite the remarkable scientific advancements of earthquake engineering and seismology in many countries,
seismic risk is still growing at a high rate in the world’s most vulnerable communities. Successful practices have shown that a community’s capacity to manage and reduce its seismic risk relies on capitalization on policies, on
technology and research results. An important role is played by education, than contribute to strengthening
technical curricula of future practitioners and researchers through university and higher education programmes.
In recent years an increasing number of initiatives have been launched in this field at the international and global
cooperation level. Cooperative international academic research and training is key to reducing the gap between
advanced and more vulnerable regions. EU-NICE is a European Commission funded higher education
partnership for international development cooperation with the objective to build capacity of individuals who
will operate at institutions located in seismic prone Asian Countries. The project involves five European
Universities, eight Asian universities and four associations and NGOs active in advanced research on seismic
mitigation, disaster risk management and international development.
The project consists of a comprehensive mobility scheme open to nationals from Afghanistan, Bangladesh,
China, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, North Korea, Philippines, and
Sri Lanka who plan to enrol in school or conduct research at one of five European partner universities in Italy,
Greece and Portugal. During the 2010-14 time span a total number of 104 mobilities are being involved in
scientific activities at the undergraduate, masters, PhD, postdoctoral and academic-staff exchange levels.
This high number of mobilities and activities is selected and designed so as to produce an overall increase of
knowledge that can result in an impact on earthquake mitigation. Researchers, future policymakers and
practitioners build up their curricula over a range of disciplines in the fields of engineering, seismology, disaster
risk management and urban planning. Specific educational and research activities focus on earthquake risk
mitigation related topics such as: anti-seismic structural design, structural engineering, advanced computer
structural collapse analysis, seismology, experimental laboratory studies, international and development issues in
disaster risk management, social-economical impact studies, international relations and conflict resolution
A development cooperation Erasmus Mundus partnership for capacity building in earthquake mitigation science and higher education
Successful practices have shown that a community’s capacity to manage and reduce its seismic risk relies on
capitalization on policies, on technology and research results. An important role is played by education, than contribute to
strengthening technical curricula of future practitioners and researchers through university and higher education programs. EUNICE
is a European Commission funded higher education partnership for international development cooperation with the
objective to build capacity of individuals who will operate at institutions located in seismic prone Asian Countries. The project
involves five European Universities, eight Asian universities and four associations and NGOs active in advanced research on
seismic mitigation, disaster risk management and international development. The project consists of a comprehensive mobility
scheme open to nationals from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia,
Maldives, North Korea, Philippines, and Sri Lanka who plan to enroll in school or conduct research at one of five European
partner universities in Italy, Greece and Portugal. During the 2010-14 time span a total number of 104 mobilities are being
involved in scientific activities at the undergraduate, masters, PhD, postdoctoral and academic-staff exchange levels.
Researchers, future policymakers and practitioners build up their curricula over a range of disciplines in the fields of earthquake
engineering, seismology, disaster risk management and urban planning
TSUNAMI LOADING ON BUILDINGS WITH OPENINGS
Reinforced concrete (RC) buildings with openings in the masonry infill panels have shown superior performance to those without openings in the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. Understanding the effect of openings and the resulting tsunami force is essential for an economical and safe design of vertical evacuation shelters against tsunamis. One-to-one hundred scale building models with square shape in plan were tested in a 40 m long hydraulic flume with 1 m x 1 m cross section. A mild slope of 0.5 degree representing the beach condition at Phuket, Thailand was simulated in the hydraulic laboratory. The model dimensions were 150 mm x 150 mm x 150 mm. Two opening configurations of the front and back walls were investigated, viz., 25% and 50% openings. Pressure sensors were placed on the faces of the model to measure the pressure distribution. A high frequency load cell was mounted at the base of the model to record the tsunami forces. A bi-linear pressure profile is proposed for determining the maximum tsunami force acting on solid square buildings. The influence of openings on the peak pressures on the front face of the model is found to be practically insignificant. For 25% and 50% opening models, the tsunami forces reduce by about 15% and 30% from the model without openings, respectively. The reduction in the tsunami force clearly demonstrates the benefit of openings in reducing the effect of tsunami on such buildings
TSUNAMI WAVE LOADING ON A BRIDGE DECK WITH PERFORATIONS
Tsunamis have damaged bridges to various extents in the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. This paper reports an experimental investigation of the effect of perforations in the girders and parapets on the horizontal tsunami loads. The results reveal that the maximum pressures impinging on the front face of the pier and deck are 4.5 and 3 times the hydrostatic pressure at 80mm nominal wave heights. The percentage of force reduction of the bridge deck with 10% perforated girders and 60% perforated parapets is found to be close to the percentage of perforation area in the deck. However, it is also noted that perforations in the bridge deck can substantially reduce the tsunami forces acting on it throughout the force time history. Thus, less damage to the bridge is anticipated for the bridge deck with perforations in girders and parapets