Effects of Earthquakes On Concrete Buildings in Kuwait: Naser S. Almutairi
Effects of Earthquakes On Concrete Buildings in Kuwait: Naser S. Almutairi
Effects of Earthquakes On Concrete Buildings in Kuwait: Naser S. Almutairi
com
ISSN : 2248-9622 Vol. 8, Issue 10 (Part -III) Oct 2018, pp 34-41
ABSTRACT
Most residential low rise buildings in Kuwait are constructed using reinforced concrete and infill walls. The
behaviour of concrete buildings under seismic loading is dependent on ductility and stiffness of concrete
buildings which depends on the quality of materials used in construction, the level of technology adopted in
design and construction and the workmanship. This paper presents a research done on the effects of earthquakes
on concrete buildings in Kuwait. Most buildings are constructed in river valleys where the soil formations are
mass deposits of silt and sand, and the sites are characterised by shallow water tables. Weak sites produce
higher amplification factors as compared to firm grounds in an event of ground movements.
Design and construction of concrete buildings resistant to earthquakes depends on the risk involved in loss of
life and the probability of occurrence of earthquakes in the area. In Kuwait City, tall buildings have been
constructed with earthquake resistant features in accordance to local earthquake design code to enable them
stand without damage in the event of a minor earthquakes, bear damages without failure in case of major
earthquakes and fail completely with warnings in case of extreme earthquakes (PRASAD, 2018).
Al Hamra Tower is the tallest building in Kuwait and currently the 16 th tallest building on the planet at 1352 ft.
Built with reinforced concrete, Al Hamra Towers is one of the tallest structures built with concrete. Soil
conditions on site are composed of sandy silty loose soil subsurface of a depth of approximately 1.4 m and a
high water table of approximately 2m below surface level. The rock below is made of sandstone and siltstone.
The foundation is composed of a raft and piles system. To resist earthquakes and other lateral loads the structure
consists a complex cast in situ reinforced concrete shear wall which transfers lateral loads to the foundation
(CLAUS, et al., 2007).
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Date Of Submission:02-10-2018 Date Of Acceptance: 13-10-2018
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deficient spacing between them. Pounding of ductility and tensile strength of concrete elements
adjacent structures in the event of strong to withstand seismic forces is achieved by use of
earthquakes is not typically considered and more steel reinforcements in the concrete elements
often than not causes very sudden damages despite (Chandradhara, 2018). Structural concrete elements
that seismic action maybe regularly considered in used in building constructions include slabs,
basic design (Ehab, et al., November 2014). beams, columns, shear walls and connections.
In metropolitan urban areas, structures are The main reason of failure in reinforced
frequently close since there is a limited land spaces concrete structures under seismic loads is failure to
available and utilization of land shouldbe consider their ductility in design. Research from
maximised because of the high population. Hence, previous seismic failures of reinforced concrete
for metropolitan urban areas situated in locales of design it has been noted that use of poor concrete,
dynamic seismicity, the hammering of adjacent weak reinforcement of beam and column joints
buildings may represent a conceivably major issue. (Isler, October 12-17, 2008), soft storey and short
Hammering of adjacent reinforced concrete columns increases the chances of failure in
buildings structures during tremor excitations is occurrence of earthquakes.
one of the reasons for structural damages and
collapse of storeys. This lateral impact from the III. SEISMICITY IN KUWAIT
adjacent buildings if not considered in design may Kuwait is a state located on the Arabian
cause excessive damages of the struck storey or Gulf at the north-western end and on the Arabian
complete collapse of the whole structure (Ates, et Peninsula at the north-eastern part. Due to its
al., 23June2013). closeness to the Zagros belt, its exposed to risk of
The main causes of seismic failures and seismicity and this warrants the need for seismic
damages can be classified into: Design considerations in the design of structures within
inadequacies (delicate story, deficient horizontal Kuwait. The Zagros belt is capable of generating
bracing, short columns, strong beam weak column earthquakes of magnitudes up to 7.5 on Richter
connections, vertical or level inconsistencies, and scale. Kuwait is also prone to local earthquakes of
so forth.) and construction faults (poor magnitude 5 on the Richter scale usually
workmanship, poor quality control, deficient shear originating from the southern part of the Minagish
reinforcements in columns, deficient strength of oilfields. (SADEK, 2004) An earthquake of
material, short columns.). magnitude 4.8 took place at Minagish oil field
which was felt at Kuwait City causing a lot of
II. CONCRETE terror on 2nd June, 1993. This location experienced
Due to its outstanding properties, again earthquakes of magnitudes 3.9 and 4.2 on
reinforced concrete is one of the most widely used September 1997 and 30th December, 1997
construction material worldwide.Concrete is a respectively (Pascucci, et al., October 12-17, 2008).
composite material produced by mixing cement,
fine aggregates and coarse aggregates with water.
Fresh concrete can be shaped to take the desired
form unlike other construction materials. However,
concrete possess low tensile strength. (World
Housing Encyclopedia, 2006)Reinforced concrete
is a composite construction material in which
reinforcement steels bars are used in concrete to
improve the tensile strength of the concrete
elements.
Concrete constructions calls for a set level
of workmanship, expertise and technology.
However, most residential buildings around the
world are built without the required assistance from
engineers and architects (The Constructor, 2017).
These buildings pose death risks to the individuals
living among them especially in seismic prone
areas.
Concrete is hard material but breaks easily Figure 1 Kuwait seismic hazard map adopted from
when subjected to tensile stresses due to its low (SADEK, 2004)
tensile strength. Ductility is necessary for a
material to deform without loss in strength or a Insufficient and missing data on seismic
sudden failure in occurrence of earthquakes. The activity in Kuwait presents a challenge to engineers
[6]. Dr. Rabee, F., April 2015. Earthquakes - [13]. Pascucci, P., Free, M. W. & Lubkowski,
Kuwait University Seismic Network and Z. A., October 12-17, 2008. SEISMIC
Seismic Hazard in Kuwait and the HAZARD AND SEISMIC DESIGN
Arabian Peninsula. Shuweikh, Kuwait REQUIREMENTS FOR THE
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November 2014. Earthquake Pounding Conference on Earthquake Engineering.
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Naser S. Almutairi "Effects Of Earthquakes On Concrete Buildings In Kuwait " 'International Journal
of Engineering Research and Applications (IJERA) , vol. 8, no.10, 2018, pp 34-41