Performance assessment and strengthening proposal of an existing building

Due to major-scale earthquakes, revisions of earthquake resistant structural design methods have periodically been made in seismic codes. It is known that many existing buildings are located in active seismic zones in all parts of the world. Severe damage to structural members, with partial or total collapse of buildings, has been observed in past earthquakes. Consequently, the evaluation of seismic performance and strengthening techniques of the existing buildings according to various seismic codes has become a global issue in structural engineering. With the development of computer technology, non-linear methods have been offering increasingly reliable evaluation procedures in the performance-based assessment of buildings. In this study, non-linear performance analysis of an existing typical mid-rise reinforced concrete building is first performed according to Turkish Building Earthquake Code-2018 and American Standard, ASCE. After evaluation of damage to structural members, the building is strengthened by steel braces and the analysis is performed once again. The SAP2000 finite elements analysis software is utilized in the solutions. Damage ratios of structural members as well as modal properties and storey drift ratios are determined and compared according to both codes, and it is concluded that the proposed strengthening method could be a significant alternative in such buildings.