Page 321 - Çevre Şehir İklim İngilizce - Sayı 4

Mahmut Bilgehan

in Figure 14b (Özpalanlar, 2004). An increase in the natural period of an
earthquake-isolated building leads to a decrease in acceleration and a growth
in displacement. In this case, an increase in damping results in a decrease in
both acceleration and displacement. The system will also have the rigidity
to ensure the stability of the building under live loads such as gravity, wind,
temperature effects, shrinkage and creep effects.

3.4. The Concept and Importance of Building Safety

Building safety refers to the ability of a structure to protect people’s lives and
properties. Safe structures aims to protect the building and the residents from
natural disasters (earthquake, flood, storm etc.) and human-caused hazards
(fire, explosion, structural collapse etc.) Building safety includes a number
of factors such as building design, material selection, construction process,
maintenance and inspection. Building safety also reduces the economic
effects and promotes more effective and sustainable use of resources.

3.5. Resilience of Structures Against Disasters
The resilience level of structures determines the extent of damage they
may be exposed to in the event of a disaster and their capacity to maintain
their functions. The resilience level of structures depends on the factors such
as structural properties, construction materials, design standards and disaster
risk of the settlement area. Disaster-resilient structures can be made more
durable by using effective design and structural reinforcement techniques.
Earthquakes, which quite often occur in Türkiye, are one of the most
important disaster risks for structures. The resilience level of structures
against earthquake depends on factors such as the ductility of structural
systems, foundation and soil conditions, durability of building materials and
design standards. Earthquake resilient structures are designed to be resistant
to earthquake effects and structural reinforcement methods are applied
in manufacturing them. One of these methods is the strengthening with
moment resisting frames. These systems are reinforced by transforming them
into diagonal frames or adding reinforced concrete shear walls to the load-
bearing system (Figure 15). Sometimes the joints of existing columns may also
need to be reinforced (FEMA P-154, 2015).

310 The Journal of Environment, Urban and Climate