Seismic response analysis of precast structures retrofitted with dissipation devices, including qualitative assessment of environmental impact

Reinforced concrete precast industrial buildings can attain a performance enhancement and extend their nominal service life through seismic retrofitting strategies. This work investigates the behaviour of two seismic dissipation devices designed for retrofit of precast buildings, with the aim of testing their effectiveness in improving the seismic response of this construction system, as well as qualitatively assessing their life cycle environmental impact. With reference to a single-storey case study building, a comparative analysis of the seismic response of the structure before and after the retrofit with the two proposed devices was undertaken. Two numerical models of the building, with and without the retrofit, were created in OpenSees and subjected to nonlinear static analyses. The obtained results provided reassurance on the efficacy of the proposed solutions in improving the seismic performance of existing and new precast industrial buildings. Moreover, the potentials of environmental impact reduction of the proposed retrofitting solutions showed that they are attractive under a sustainable viewpoint as well.