Abstract
The modeling of earthquake loads as design inputs for inelastic sdof structures in sites lacking earthquake data is considered. The earthquake load is expanded as a linear summation of past recorded ground motions with unknown coefficients. The resulting nonlinear optimization problem is solved such that the structure inelastic deformation is maximized subject to a set of predefined constraints. The structure force-displacement relation is taken to possess an elastic-plastic behavior. Influences of yield strength and damping ratio on modeling earthquake inputs for inelastic structures and issues related to dissipated energy are explored. Numerical illustrations on modeling critical seismic load inputs for an elastic-plastic frame structure at a firm soil site are provided.
