A Stochastic Earthquake Ground Motion Database and Its Application in Seismic Analysis of an RC Frame-Shear Wall Structure

Abstract

A stochastic earthquake ground motion database comprising twelve groups of simulated ground motions was introduced. Ground motions were generated using the stochastic semi-physical model of earthquake ground motions, based on a cluster analysis of 7778 recorded earthquake ground motion. All twelve groups of simulated earthquake ground motions were validated through the probability density evolution method (PDEM) by comparing their time histories and response spectra. As an application of the proposed database, an 18-story reinforced concrete (RC) frame-shear wall structure was analyzed using one group of simulated earthquake ground motions. The probability densities of the top displacement of the structure were estimated using PDEM, highlighting the significant stochasticity of the structural response. The seismic reliability of the structure was assessed by evaluating the extreme value distribution of the story drift angle. The investigations indicate that the proposed stochastic earthquake ground motion database effectively captures the inherent stochasticity of ground motions. Moreover, it contributes to enhancing the efficiency of reliability assessments for structures.