SEISMIC RETROFIT OF EXISTING TELE COMMUNICATION TOWER USING BUCKLING RESTRAINED BRACE(Structures)

Abstract

Wind load was critical for the design of tele-communication tower than earthquake load so far, however, recently expected earthquake load become more critical than wind load according to the latest researches. In these cases, some towers could be damaged with member buckling, so these members need to be reinforced. However, very few retrofit methods have been put in practice for such existing towers. In this paper, a seismic retrofit method for tele-communication towers using buckling restrained braces is discussed, and analytical evaluation of the effect and practical construction record are reported.