Yaan Wanga,b, Ming Wanga,b, Kai Liua,b, Wen Panc, Xiaodong Yangc
a State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Beijing Normal University, 100875 Beijing, China
b Academy of Disaster Reduction and Emergency Management, Ministry of Civil Affairs and Ministry of Education, 100875 Beijing, China
c School of Civil Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, 650500 Kunming, China
Abstract:Rammed-earth dwellings are widely used in rural areas worldwide; with poor mechanical properties and weak seismic resistance, these structures are vulnerable to earthquakes. This study presents a method for reinforcing existing rammed-earth buildings by strengthening the walls with externally bonded fibers. Shaking table tests were conducted to study the seismic performance of two rammed-earth model structures – with and without reinforcement. We observed the crack patterns, failure modes, changes in dynamic properties, in-plane deformation, wall response, and roof–wall interaction in the models. The results confirm that the seismic resistance of rammed-earth structures reinforced using the proposed method was substantially improved.
KEY WORDS: Rammed Earth; Seismic Retrofitting; Shake Table Test; Dynamic Response.
Published in Bulletin of Earthquake Engineering, DOI: 10.1007/s10518-016-9996-2
