Final Design Implementation of Upgrade

After the magnitude 7.4 August 17, 1999, Koceli Earthquake rocked the eastern part of Turkey, the owners of the new International Terminal at Atatürk Airport in Istanbul, opted for a voluntary upgrade for improved seismic performance, beyond the requirements of the local seismic design codes. The location of the Terminal was more than 100 km away from the earthquake's epicenter, and the observed damage was not life-threatening. The voluntary upgrade included strengthening of existing columns above the Arrivals Level and installation of the Friction Pendulum seismic isolation bearings between the roof and its supporting columns. This paper briefly describes the Terminal's structure, identification of potential structural vulnerabilities through various analytical studies and the resulting final upgrade solution. Implementation of the Friction Pendulum seismic isolators as part of the final upgrade solution is presented.