Blasting Effect Based Vibrations on Existing Buildings Specific to Interior Forces with Dynamic Analysis

Abstract

The rock excavation works are mainly performed on blasting in mines or construction sites close to settlements may mostly bring along some environmental problems as well. The increase in dimensions and capacities of blasting activities in parallel to requirements raises the dimensions of the environmental problems. The most important negative effect on the environment is the vibrational motion which is created by the lost energy released from the blasting activity. Because the vibrations occurred due to blasting activities performed close to settlements has the possibility to damage surrounding buildings. Although source of the grievance is mostly seeming to be the blasting activity creating the vibration, it may be the existing buildings in some circumstances which are under their design capacity. In order to review the possible impacts of vibrational effect on surrounding buildings among the blasting based environmental problems; an existing building which is selected as specimen, serves as an office and has RC frame and shear wall system was examined specific to interior forces. The existing buildings were individually examined in terms of design loads and blasting based effects and evaluated as a result of dynamic analyses performed by damage risk finite element method, and it was determined that interior forces which are formed by blasting based vibrations on structural members were at a lower level than the interior forces values obtained from design loads. In case the building gets damaged by the realization of blasting activities, although the effect of blasting activity is determinant, the building should bear the effects in case of such damage.