Numerical analysis of seismic behavior of an arched-roof 3D-printed building

Abstract

3D-Printed Concrete (3DPC) can reduce the consumption of materials, construction costs, and implementation time, as well as increase sustainability. Seismic safety is one of the necessities of any structure in a high earthquake hazard zone. The lack of scientific and engineering studies in this area would highlight the importance of studying seismic safety in 3DPC building structures. This paper is focused on the basic specifications of 3DPC buildings under earthquake excitations. The authors conducted a thorough theoretical study due to the pilot nature of the research. A prescriptive evaluation was conducted based on the existing seismic regulations for similar structures. The main goal of the research was to create the necessary platform for applied studies, which was achieved through theoretical investigations and prescriptive evaluations. For this purpose, the finite element modeling of a 3DPC building with an arch roofing system was implemented and analyzed using ABAQUS software. Based on the main results, the most remarkable weakness of such a structure was the material's poor tension behavior. The arrangement of the internal partitions (infill walls), the shear performance of the walls, and the relative displacement of the components were other effective factors of the 3DPC building under seismic loads. The results showed that the truss-like performance of the arch roof in the considered 3DPC building probably caused the undesirable structural responses under the seismic loads.