The world’s tallest earthquake simulator tests the limits of leakage

Project Tallwood aims to investigate the resilience of tall buildings by simulating a series of large earthquakes on a full-sized 10-story wooden building. The structure is the tallest full-size building ever constructed and tested on an earthquake simulator. Image courtesy of the University of California, San Diego.

The relationship between earthquakes and man-made structures has been one-sided for as long as humans have been able to build. This relationship is now being tested at UCSD thanks to the Tallwood Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure Project.

The project aims to investigate the resilience of tall buildings by simulating a series of large earthquakes on a huge 10-storey wooden building. The Tallwood structure is the tallest full-size building ever constructed and tested on an earthquake simulator. The seismic vibration table not only tests the resilience of the structure, but also many elements, including the integrity of the glass and the resilience of the window seals.

“Resilient design must also take into account the building’s non-structural systems, which are not part of the structural load resistance system but play a critical role in the building’s function and its ability to recover after an earthquake,” says Kerry Ryan, co-project investigator and professor of engineering at the University of Nevada Reno.

Among the many professionals who have traveled to La Jolla, California, is Lothar Erkins, an engineer with the Winco Window Company. The St. Louis-based custom aluminum window manufacturer provided windows for the project. Erkins says the tests provide the window industry with an ideal opportunity to validate testing on smaller vibration tables and test whether window installation permits are designed to handle actual earthquakes.

“We’re basically trying to validate the engineering assumptions that are being made,” he adds.

The longest full scale earthquake simulator

The first three levels of the building feature non-structural elements, such as curtain walls provided by Technical Glass Products and windows provided by Innotech and Winco. Image courtesy of UC Dan Diego.

The Tallwood vibrating table has the largest load capacity in the world, with load and shake structures up to 2,000 metric tons (4.5 million pounds). Recently, the table underwent an upgrade funded by the National Science Foundation. It now has the ability to replicate the full 3D ground motions experienced during earthquakes, which include all six degrees of freedom: longitudinal, lateral, vertical, roll, tilt, and yaw.

“A swing wall system consists of a solid wood wall panel anchored to the ground using steel cables or rods with large tension forces,” says Schilling Pei, principal investigator and assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at the Colorado College of Mines. “When subjected to lateral forces, the wooden wall panels will sway back and forth – reducing the effects of the earthquake – and then the steel bars will pull the building back into place once the earthquake has passed.”

The tests simulate seismic motions recorded during previous earthquakes covering a range of earthquake degrees on the Richter scale, from magnitude four to magnitude eight. This is done by accelerating the table to at least 1g, which can speed up the top of the building to 3g.

Testing officially begins in early May, Erkins says, and will last about four weeks. The process involves shaking one level before walking into the structure to check for damage. Then the process is rinsed and repeated at different levels.

The first three levels of the building feature non-structural elements, such as curtain walls provided by Technical Glass Products and windows provided by Innotech and Winco.

Integrity Fenestration

The Tallwood vibrating table has the largest load capacity in the world, with load and shake structures up to 2,000 metric tons (4.5 million pounds). Image courtesy of the University of California, San Diego.

Erkins says the test came after the Kobe, Japan earthquake in 1995 that killed more than 6,000 people and the Auckland, New Zealand earthquake several years earlier. Those earthquakes showed that windows, doors, and other non-structural components may not initially show any faults. However, “two to three weeks later, the first heavy rainstorm comes, and suddenly there are major water intrusions in the building,” Erkins says.

He adds that the failure of the glass is clear to all. Cracks and fractures of glass. If the seal just fails, it won’t be noticeable unless you know what to look for. These failures do not appear until you have an excess of air filtration during the winter or excess water filtration during the first heavy rain.

“For window installers, they use various silicone products to seal framing and glazing or dry glazing,” Erkins says. “The materials used and designed licenses are based on prior knowledge and theoretical engineering calculations, but the actual seismic loads are not yet fully understood.”

Erkins adds that Tallwood’s vibration testing is one way to gain a more fundamental understanding so the industry doesn’t over-engineer. As of the second week of testing, Erkins says, no windows have failed yet. However, he explains that his team is currently focusing more on data acquisition. The evaluation will begin after the vibration test is completed.

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