CESS seminar - Seismic protection in subduction environments
Abstract
Seismic protection is already a mature field in earthquake engineering. Despite their already proved great benefits in reducing the building response, the different technologies have not achieved a level of penetration in construction practice consistent with these benefits. Indeed, the different technologies are still seen by some people in the profession with skepticism, and are sometimes resisted by investors in practice. However, very active subduction environments like the one in the Pacific margin of Chile, are particularly adequate for the use of such technologies, given the large magnitude, frequency, and duration of the ground motions generated over very vast regions of the country. This talk will summarize the innovation trajectory we have traveled in developing and introducing different seismic protection technologies in Chile and elsewhere, and discusses some of the most significant challenges and shortcomings we have encountered in this process. We will touch upon some relevant research gaps in this field, but also the gaps observed in current practice in the country and seismic codes, which may also carry over to other places in the world. It will also introduce some newer ideas in seismic isolation and energy dissipation techniques, keeping in mind a general audience, not only specialists in the field. Toward the end of the presentation, research ideas for the integration of seismic protection in networks under the framework of earthquake risk and resilience evaluation will be presented. The audience will get a reasonably good understanding of the status of seismic protection in Chile, the basic mechanics of the implemented systems, some basic knowledge on the characteristics of subduction ground motions, and the types of challenges I foresee in the future in the field of seismic protection.
Short biography
Juan Carlos de la Llera is currently a visiting professor during the spring semester at EESD, EPFL. He is a professor in Civil Engineering at Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile (PUC) since 1995, M.Sc., and Ph.D. from UC Berkeley (’94). He is also the former 12-year dean of the Faculty of Engineering at PUC, and has a long trajectory as a researcher in the fields of nonlinear structural dynamics, earthquake performance, seismic protection, and earthquake risk and resilience analysis. He has been the founder of several companies that belong to the university, two of them in seismic protection, and over the years have supported many technology-based entrepreneurial activities in the country. He led the national strategy for National Disaster Resilience (2016) that led to the national Public Technological Institute in Resilience, Itrend. His trajectory shows many research and professional awards, and recently his work as an innovative dean in engineering has also been recognized with the highest honors by the Instituto de Ingenieros and the Colegio de Ingenieros. Currently, he is also a member of the Chilean and Pan-American Academy of Engineering.
Seismic protection is already a mature field in earthquake engineering. Despite their already proved great benefits in reducing the building response, the different technologies have not achieved a level of penetration in construction practice consistent with these benefits. Indeed, the different technologies are still seen by some people in the profession with skepticism, and are sometimes resisted by investors in practice. However, very active subduction environments like the one in the Pacific margin of Chile, are particularly adequate for the use of such technologies, given the large magnitude, frequency, and duration of the ground motions generated over very vast regions of the country. This talk will summarize the innovation trajectory we have traveled in developing and introducing different seismic protection technologies in Chile and elsewhere, and discusses some of the most significant challenges and shortcomings we have encountered in this process. We will touch upon some relevant research gaps in this field, but also the gaps observed in current practice in the country and seismic codes, which may also carry over to other places in the world. It will also introduce some newer ideas in seismic isolation and energy dissipation techniques, keeping in mind a general audience, not only specialists in the field. Toward the end of the presentation, research ideas for the integration of seismic protection in networks under the framework of earthquake risk and resilience evaluation will be presented. The audience will get a reasonably good understanding of the status of seismic protection in Chile, the basic mechanics of the implemented systems, some basic knowledge on the characteristics of subduction ground motions, and the types of challenges I foresee in the future in the field of seismic protection.
Short biography
Juan Carlos de la Llera is currently a visiting professor during the spring semester at EESD, EPFL. He is a professor in Civil Engineering at Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile (PUC) since 1995, M.Sc., and Ph.D. from UC Berkeley (’94). He is also the former 12-year dean of the Faculty of Engineering at PUC, and has a long trajectory as a researcher in the fields of nonlinear structural dynamics, earthquake performance, seismic protection, and earthquake risk and resilience analysis. He has been the founder of several companies that belong to the university, two of them in seismic protection, and over the years have supported many technology-based entrepreneurial activities in the country. He led the national strategy for National Disaster Resilience (2016) that led to the national Public Technological Institute in Resilience, Itrend. His trajectory shows many research and professional awards, and recently his work as an innovative dean in engineering has also been recognized with the highest honors by the Instituto de Ingenieros and the Colegio de Ingenieros. Currently, he is also a member of the Chilean and Pan-American Academy of Engineering.
Practical information
- Informed public
- Free
Organizer
- Prof. Olga Fink (IMOS), Prof. Alexandre Alahi (VITA), Prof. Dusan Licina (HOBEL) and Prof. Alain Nussbaumer (RESSLab)
Contact
- Prof. Katrin Beyer (EESD)