Study on Quasi-Static Loading Protocols considering the Action Characteristics of Long-Period Ground Motions

Due to abundant low-frequency components of long-period ground motions (LPGMs), long-period structures are susceptible to severe damage. The corresponding time-history displacement responses have significant “large-displacement” and “long-duration” characteristics. These action characteristics essentially reflect the different loading paths imposed on structures of LPGMs from ordinary ground motions (OGMs). Hence, revealing the influence mechanism of the action characteristics on the seismic performance of structural components is the key to investigating the influence of LPGMs on the whole structure. This paper presents a kind of quasi-static loading protocol considering the action characteristics of LPGMs. Firstly, nonlinear time-history analyses on structural systems subjected to 50 selected representative LPGMs were conducted. Inelastic cycles and corresponding amplitudes of time-history displacement responses under LPGMs were statistically analyzed through the rainflow method. Then, considering two of the most significant factors, structural period and target ductility, a prediction model of cycle number and cycle amplitude was obtained by regression. On this basis, the quasi-static loading protocol considering the action characteristics of LPGMs was developed. Proposed protocols can be directly applied to experimental investigations on the seismic performance for structural components under LPGMs.