Towards a sustainable infrastructure through smart dampers

Abstract

Development of new technologies for seismic protection will better support the sustainable urban systems. The paper aims in bringing out the efficacy of a Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) device in seismic protection of simply supported short span bridges for strong ground motions. The damper cum restraining device with re-centering capabilities, developed within the laboratory has been pilot tested to verify its performance before actual implementation in the site. Experimental and analytical investigations were carried out on an equivalent Single Degree of Freedom (SDOF) system for a particular narrow band spectrum representing strong ground motion. From the studies it is found that the developed smart damper is very effective for seismic performance enhancement of critical facilities like bridges thus offering great benefits for the sustainable development of urban systems.