Seismic Performance of Indian RC Tall Buildings with Transfer Beam Located in Lower Seismic Zone II

Abstract

From last two decades, India is witnessing rapid urbanisation. Many tall buildings are coming up in tier I and tier II cities of India. To accommodate the functional needs of an occupant, such as car parking, within the same building, two different floor plans are needed. The requirement for unobstructed space for car parking and residential units is fulfilled by discontinuing the closely spaced vertical elements, such as structural walls and columns at certain floor levels. Elements supporting such discontinued elements are known as transfer elements, and buildings with such features are becoming popular in India. Transfer elements introduce stiffness irregularity in the structure, which is undesirable from the design code point of view. The recently introduced tall building code IS 16700 does not have detailed guidelines for analysing and designing such structures. Weather these structures are safe is the question that needs to be answered. With that question in mind, a detailed literature review is carried out to know the global practice of analysing and designing tall buildings with transfer elements located in lower seismic zones of respective countries. Overall, the literature reviewed supports the idea of constructing buildings with transfer elements in the lower seismic zone. However, these recommendations are supported by comprehensive experimental and numerical studies tailored to local seismic hazard and construction practices. newlineTherefore, the motivation of this study is to contribute to the understanding of the global response of RC tall buildings with transfer beams subjected to seismic activity. Particular attention is given to the residential building with RC transfer beam (TB) located in seismic zone II. Along with this, the study also attempts to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of attaching a podium to the buildings under focus. For this purpose, residential buildings inspired by current building stock are analysed and designed using relevant IS codes. And later, the seismic performance