Seismic vulnerability evaluation of longhu pagoda, sichuan, prc

As an important historical relic of human being, masonry pagoda is the great significance in the eastern and western architectural cultures. These pagodas usually have large self-weight, low material strength, complex structure, which have been seriously affected by nature and man made because of their ages. Most of the existing masonry pagodas in China which have been seriously damaged urgently need detailed structural safety assessment, repair and reinforcement. In this paper, a simplified 3D model was used to evaluate the seismic vulnerability of masonry pagodas reliably. According to the previous numerical research in the field and post-earthquake surveys experience, assume for masonry a Concrete Damage Plasticity CDP material model, pushover analyses and non-linear dynamic analyses are carried out by Abaqus software. The aim is to predict the state, characteristics and distribution of damage of the structure in an accurate way. The approach is applied to Longhu pagoda (built in 1342 AD.) which is the only yuan dynasty masonry pagoda in Sichuan province of China. Longhu pagoda is a brick pagoda with dense eaves, with a square plane and a height of about 33 meters. Affected by the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008, a north-south crack appeared from the bottom to the top of the pagoda >s body. Despite the artificial repair of the cracks, the pagoda still faces the risk of structural damage. Through numerical simulation, the seismic performance of the pagoda can be evaluated, which can not only predict the hidden danger and weak link in its structure, but also provide useful reference for the reinforcement and repair of the pagoda.