Altair Case Studies Seismic Retrofit Design Optimization for Unreinforced Masonry Structures

	Seismic Retrofit Design Optimization for Unreinforced Masonry Structures Altair

Seismic Retrofit Design Optimization for Unreinforced Masonry Structures

Altair

Technology Category	Sensors - Level Sensors Sensors - Vibration Sensors
Applicable Industries	Buildings Construction & Infrastructure
Applicable Functions	Product Research & Development
Use Cases	Building Automation & Control Structural Health Monitoring
Challenge	The challenge was to develop an effective seismic retrofit design for a hypothetical unreinforced masonry structure. This was part of a bachelor's project by Davide Gamberini, a student at Politecnico di Milano University's ACTLAB, the Architecture Computation and Technology Laboratory. The focus of the project was on unreinforced masonry structures, which are common in historic buildings in Italy. Given Italy's reputation as one of the most earthquake-prone regions in Europe, there was a pressing need to develop improved retrofitting strategies to preserve the country's cultural heritage. The challenge was to analyze the structure of a hypothetical unreinforced masonry building and find structural improvements to enhance the building's seismic performance. Read More
About Customer	The customer in this case study is Davide Gamberini, an architecture student at Politecnico di Milano University's ACTLAB. For his bachelor's project titled 'Topology Optimization for Structural Collapse Recovery', he studied unreinforced masonry structures, common to historic buildings in Italy. With Italy being one of the most earthquake-prone regions in Europe, his research aimed to develop improved retrofitting strategies for preserving an important part of Italy’s cultural heritage. Davide had always been fascinated by the synergy between structural engineering and architectural design and was confident that Inspire would provide a simple, fast solution to finding the structural improvements needed to enhance the building’s seismic performance. Read More
Solution	Davide Gamberini used solidThinking Inspire to quickly and easily find the ideal shapes and materials for three design concepts. He started with a simple model: a two-story load-bearing brick façade with four openings. He based his design concept around three scenarios, each simulating different earthquake damage and loading conditions. He explored a range of structural solutions by running analyses of each scenario with three different materials: premixed Ultra–High Performance Concrete (UHPC), steel, and Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (CFRP). The resulting stress patterns corresponded to two distinct forms, which would give form to the proposed structural enhancements. He examined the results for displacement and maximum shear stress to determine which material would provide the best seismic protection; volume, surface area, and feasibility of fabrication were also considerations. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Sensors - Level Sensors

Sensors - Vibration Sensors

Applicable Industries

Buildings

Construction & Infrastructure

Applicable Functions

Product Research & Development

Use Cases

Building Automation & Control

Structural Health Monitoring

Challenge

The challenge was to develop an effective seismic retrofit design for a hypothetical unreinforced masonry structure. This was part of a bachelor's project by Davide Gamberini, a student at Politecnico di Milano University's ACTLAB, the Architecture Computation and Technology Laboratory. The focus of the project was on unreinforced masonry structures, which are common in historic buildings in Italy. Given Italy's reputation as one of the most earthquake-prone regions in Europe, there was a pressing need to develop improved retrofitting strategies to preserve the country's cultural heritage. The challenge was to analyze the structure of a hypothetical unreinforced masonry building and find structural improvements to enhance the building's seismic performance.

About Customer

The customer in this case study is Davide Gamberini, an architecture student at Politecnico di Milano University's ACTLAB. For his bachelor's project titled 'Topology Optimization for Structural Collapse Recovery', he studied unreinforced masonry structures, common to historic buildings in Italy. With Italy being one of the most earthquake-prone regions in Europe, his research aimed to develop improved retrofitting strategies for preserving an important part of Italy’s cultural heritage. Davide had always been fascinated by the synergy between structural engineering and architectural design and was confident that Inspire would provide a simple, fast solution to finding the structural improvements needed to enhance the building’s seismic performance.

Solution

Davide Gamberini used solidThinking Inspire to quickly and easily find the ideal shapes and materials for three design concepts. He started with a simple model: a two-story load-bearing brick façade with four openings. He based his design concept around three scenarios, each simulating different earthquake damage and loading conditions. He explored a range of structural solutions by running analyses of each scenario with three different materials: premixed Ultra–High Performance Concrete (UHPC), steel, and Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (CFRP). The resulting stress patterns corresponded to two distinct forms, which would give form to the proposed structural enhancements. He examined the results for displacement and maximum shear stress to determine which material would provide the best seismic protection; volume, surface area, and feasibility of fabrication were also considerations.

Impact #1	The use of Inspire in the design process increased the architecture student’s sense of empowerment. Thanks to Inspire’s user-friendly interface and workflow, Davide didn’t need advanced knowledge of structural engineering to perform sophisticated structural analyses and topological optimizations. The software was easy to learn and use, so he didn’t need a deep understanding of structural engineering to take advantage of it. Professor Paoletti, who supervised the project, agreed that Inspire was the perfect tool for Davide’s project, as it challenged him to use a non-traditional tool in a traditional sector, pushing him to re-evaluate his usual design choices. The use of Inspire also has potential implications for improving retrofitting strategies, as it allows users to explore many design options to find the best solution with relative ease and efficiency.

Impact #1

The use of Inspire in the design process increased the architecture student’s sense of empowerment. Thanks to Inspire’s user-friendly interface and workflow, Davide didn’t need advanced knowledge of structural engineering to perform sophisticated structural analyses and topological optimizations. The software was easy to learn and use, so he didn’t need a deep understanding of structural engineering to take advantage of it. Professor Paoletti, who supervised the project, agreed that Inspire was the perfect tool for Davide’s project, as it challenged him to use a non-traditional tool in a traditional sector, pushing him to re-evaluate his usual design choices. The use of Inspire also has potential implications for improving retrofitting strategies, as it allows users to explore many design options to find the best solution with relative ease and efficiency.

Benefit #1	Simplified and expedited the design process. With Inspire’s guidance, Davide narrowed nine concepts down to three in just a few days.
Benefit #2	Inspire provided feedback on the designs at the very early stages of the project, putting Davide on the right path from the start.
Benefit #3	Davide was able to run analyses of each scenario with three different materials, providing a range of structural solutions.

Benefit #1

Simplified and expedited the design process. With Inspire’s guidance, Davide narrowed nine concepts down to three in just a few days.

Benefit #2

Inspire provided feedback on the designs at the very early stages of the project, putting Davide on the right path from the start.

Benefit #3

Davide was able to run analyses of each scenario with three different materials, providing a range of structural solutions.

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Overview

Seismic Retrofit Design Optimization for Unreinforced Masonry Structures

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit