![]() ![]() As a result, the building's horizontal acceleration is reduced and suffers far less deformation and damage.Įven with a base-isolation system in place, a building still receives a certain amount of vibrational energy during an earthquake. Bearings attach to the building and foundation via steel plates and then, when an earthquake hits, allow the foundation to move without moving the structure above it. The lead core makes the bearing stiff and strong in the vertical direction, while the rubber and steel bands make the bearing flexible in the horizontal direction. Engineers use a variety of bearing pad designs, but they often choose lead-rubber bearings, which contain a solid lead core wrapped in alternating layers of rubber and steel. One solution involves tying the foundation to the building so the whole structure moves as a unit.Īnother solution - known as base isolation - involves floating a building above its foundation on a system of bearings, springs or padded cylinders. ![]() For example, earthquakes often knock buildings from their foundations. Assuming, however, that the soil beneath a structure is firm and solid, engineers can greatly improve how the building-foundation system will respond to seismic waves. If a building's foundation sits on soft or filled-in soil, the whole building may fail in an earthquake regardless of the advanced engineering techniques employed. ![]()
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