An analytical study of resonance mechanism in a structure stacking up concrete blocks with rubber mat

Abstract

Structures stacking up concrete blocks are the gravity style structure using the weight. In order to improve the earthquake resistance, increasing the weight is generally conducted. One of the authors proposed a reinforced structure to improve the earthquake resistance by installing a rubber mat between the concrete blocks. It can be expected that this method could control the vibration characteristics and shift the resonance point of structure and spectrum of earthquake. In this study, efficiency and adequacy of the proposed structure has been simulated by a discrete finite element model with frictional modeling. The accuracy of the numerical simulation has been validated with experimental tests. After the test, we conducted an earthquake response analysis in a real size structure.