Download (PDF)

1| NEES Network Site Activities 1.0 Network Summary Purposed to improve the understanding of earthquakes and tsunamis and their effects on our nation’s infrastructure, NSF created The George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES). NEES is a shared national network of 14 experimental facilities, collaborative tools, and earthquake simulation software. Together, these resources provide the means for collaboration and discovery in the form of more advanced research based on experimentation and computational simulations of the ways buildings, bridges, utility systems, coastal regions, and geomaterials perform during seismic events. At the core of NEES are fourteen geographically-distributed research sites, each offering unparalleled experimental capabilities. The laboratory types include: Shake Table Facilities University of Minnesota University at Buffalo, SUNY Geotechnical Centrifuge University of California, San Diego Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute University of Nevada Reno University of California, Davis Large-Scale Structural Field Experimentation and Monitoring Cornell University University of California, Los Angeles Lehigh University University of California, Santa Barbara University at Buffalo, SUNY University of Texas, Austin University of California, Berkeley Tsunami Wave Basin University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign Oregon State University Through the results of cutting-edge experimentation across the network, NEES strives to develop and implement effective means of earthquake and tsunami risk mitigation. In addition, NEES looks to educate the community through the development strategic education, training, and outreach events. Though NEES looks to become the prototypical example of dissemination of knowledge to a broad range of audiences, the success of NEES is dependent on the quality and excellence of research done at the site level. Volume 3 of the NEEScomm annual report details the accomplishments and activities during the 2013 fiscal year across the network. This volume includes highlights of the unique capabilities of each of the fourteen facilities across the network, network financial and metric summaries for fiscal year 2012 and 2013, and site activity narratives. Additionally, highlights from selected projects are included to emphasize the impact of the research occurring across the network. 1 Volume 2: NEES Network Site Activities 1.1 Facility Highlights Introduction This section contains highlights of the capabilities present across the network. The descriptions of the capabilities are separated in the five major types of facilities: Shake Table Facilities, Large Scale Laboratories, Geotechnical Centrifuges, Mobile/Field Laboratories, and the Tsunami Research Facility. All fourteen of the NEES equipment sites are represented and demonstrates the state-of-the-art capabilities of the network. 1.1.0 Shake Table Facilities – Earthquakes on Demand! NEES@Buffalo – Shake Table and Large Scale Structural Testing Facility Hosted within the University at Buffalo’s Structural Engineering and Earthquake Simulation Laboratory (SEESL), the NEES@Buffalo facility features twin reconfigurable, 0-100Hz, six degree-of-freedom shake tables with a capacity of 50 metric-tons each (Figure 1). The tables are equipped with extension frames providing a 7 meter x 7 meter deployable surface area. The versatility of the NEES@Buffalo facility allows for the twin shake tables to be rapidly repositioned along a 38 meter-long trench (accommodating a maximum specimen length of 36.5 meters). Additionally, when used in conjunction with the 9 meter-high reaction wall, the facility supports Real Time Dynamic Hybrid Testing (RTDHT). This unique one-of-a-kind capability permits researchers to seamlessly integrate analytical models with large-scale dynamic tests, permitting a more complete investigation of full-scale structural systems than was previously possible. Figure 1: Shake Table 1 at NEES@Buffalo during the “NEESR-GC: Seismic Risk Mitigation for Ports” project. (Rix et al., CMS-0530478) 2 NEES@UNR – Four (Anywhere) On The Floor The NEES@UNR facility is highlighted with four large shake-tables; three bi-axial shake tables and one six-degree-of-freedom table. The tables are 4.3 meters x 4.5 meters and operate between 0 and 50 Hz with a maximum payload capacity of 45 metric-tons. The facility is capable of testing conventional structural and non-structural systems by using the biaxial tables in large-table-mode, and operating them as a single unit. Exclusive to the NEES@UNR facility, the tables also have the flexibility to be positioned anywhere in the laboratory, which enables testing of long, spatially distributed, structural and geotechnical systems. Researchers have utilized these capabilities for the dynamic testing of a 110- ft long, four span concrete bridge (Figure 2). Figure 2: Shake Table 1, 2, and 3 at the NEES@UNR facility during the “NEESR-SG; Seismic Performance of Bridge Systems with Conventional and Innovative Materials” project. (Saiidi et al., CMMI #0420347) 3 Volume 2: NEES Network Site Activities NEES@UCSD – The Sky Is The Limit Offering the largest shake table in the U.S., the NEES@UCSD boasts the largest outdoor shake table in the world. LHPOST (the Large, High-Performance Outdoor Shake Table) has been designed with performance characteristics that permit the accurate reproduction of strong near-source earthquake ground motions for the seismic testing of systems at full-scale or very large-scale. The table is 7.6 meters x 12.2 meters and operates between 0 and 33 HZ with a maximum payload capacity of 2000 metric tons. Having virtually no vertical limitations, LHPOST has enabled the testing of structures that could not be accommodated inside a conventional laboratory. Seismic testing of full scale wind turbines, multi-story structures, and various other large-scale building systems is now possible due to the capabilities provided by NEES@UCSD. Figure 3: The Large High-Performance Outdoor Shake Table (LHPOST) at NEES@UCSD 4 1.1.1 Large Scale Structural Laboratories – Force to be Reckoned With! NEES@Cornell – Lifelines Testing NEES@Cornell, known as the Large-Scale Lifelines Testing Facility (Figure 4), is a unique, world-class resource for research, education, and outreach focused on underground lifeline response to large ground deformation and the seismic performance of highly flexible above-ground structures using advanced materials and construction. The site consists of a large-scale test basin driven by large stroke actuators to simulate large ground deformations as caused by severe earthquakes and a storage/conveyor system for moving and storing soil in a controlled environment. Earthquakes can rupture underground pipelines causing disruption of vital services such as water supplies and oil and natural gas transmission pipelines. The breaching of gas lines can also result in fires. The combined effect of loss of water supply and fires from gas lines can be catastrophic; even life threatening. NEES@Cornell’s experience, versatility, creativity and facilities allow it to support very challenging research projects that address these problems. Figure 4: Lifelines Testing Area at NEES@Cornell 5 Volume 2: NEES Network Site Activities NEES@Lehigh – Real-Time Multi-Directional Hybrid Testing The NEES facility at Lehigh University specializes in real-time multi-directional (RTMD) hybrid seismic testing for earthquake simulation of large-scale structural systems. This technology permits the study of complete structural systems, as opposed to individual components, which provides a great deal more information on the behavior of structures subjected to earthquake forces. Located in the Center for Advanced Technology for Large Structural Systems (ATLSS) (Figure 5), NEES@Lehigh combines real-time multi-directional hybrid seismic testing with real-time analytical simulations, to examine the seismic behavior of large-scale structural components, structural sub assemblages, and super assemblages (systems). This is achieved through the combined use of dynamic actuators, a reaction wall, a strong floor, and high-performance computing. This lab is also designed to support multi-site distributed hybrid testing methods where the substructures involved are at different geographic locations connected by the NEES network. Figure 5: The NEES@Lehigh Strong Wall During the “NEESR-SG: Self-Centering Damage-Free Seismic-Resistant Steel Frame Systems” project. (Sause, CMMI-0420974) 6 NEES@Buffalo – The Large Scale Structural Testing Facility-Enabling Real-Time Dynamic Hybrid Testing The University at Buffalo’s Structural Engineering and Earthquake Simulation Laboratory (SEESL) is equipped with a large reaction wall (175 m2) and floor (340 m2). The strong wall and floor testing area enable a one-of-a-kind two-story nonstructural component simulator (NCS) (Figure 6) and a large uni- axial geotechnical laminar box (5m x 2.75 m x 6 m) (Figure 6). The large testing area and vast capabilities permit the NEES@Buffalo facility to perform extremely diverse and versatile experimentation, including Real-Time Dynamic Hybrid Testing (RTDHT). RTDHT combines shake table and/or dynamic force experiments on substructures with computer simulations of the remainder of the structure. This provides a more complete picture of how earthquakes would affect large structural systems such as buildings and bridges, without the need to physically test the entire structure. Figure 6: The Nonstructural Component Figure 7: The Uni-Axial Geotechnical

Load more