Development of Quasi-Static Loading Protocols for Drift-Sensitive Nonstructural Building Components

Development of performance-based earthquake engineering has made consideration of seismic performance of nonstructural building components necessary. Even if the structural components of a building achieve desirable performance level after an earthquake, failure of its nonstructural components can seriously endanger the performance of the entire building. For the purpose of seismic design and assessment of nonstructural components, determination of realistic seismic demand has a critical role, and should be studied carefully. Different parameters like characteristics of the nonstructural component, its location on the structural system, structural characteristics of the building that the nonstructural component has mounted on, and also site-specific seismicity are all important issues that affect seismic demand expected for a specific nonstructural component. In order to evaluate the seismic performance of nonstructural components, the seismic demand should be determined through a systematic procedure that encompasses all mentioned parameters. The seismic demand can be illustrated by loading protocols that are employed for seismic response evaluation of nonstructural components through laboratory experiments.