Seismic Design and Detailing of

Reinforced Concrete Structures

Based on CSA A23.3 - 2004
Murat Saatcioglu PhD,P.Eng.
Professor and University Research Chair
Department of Civil Engineering
The University of Ottawa
Ottawa, ON

Basic Principles of Design

Reinforced concrete structures are designed to
dissipate seismic induced energy through
inelastic deformations
Ve

Ve = S(Ta) Mv IE W / (Rd Ro)

Ve /Rd
Ve /Rd Ro

Basic Principles of Design

Inelasticity results softening in the structure,
elongating structural period
S(T)
S1

S2
T1

T2

Basic Principles of Design

Capacity Demand
It is a good practice to reduce seismic
demands, to the extent possible.
This can be done at the conceptual stage
by selecting a suitable structural system.

To reduce seismic demands

Select a suitable site with favorable soil conditions
Avoid using unnecessary mass
Use a simple structural layout with minimum
torsional effects
Avoid strength and stiffness taper along the height
Avoid soft storeys
Provide sufficient lateral bracing and drift control by
using concrete structural walls
Isolate non-structural elements

Seismic Amplification due to Soft Soil

Liquefaction

Liquefaction

Liquefaction

To reduce seismic demands

Select a suitable site with favorable soil conditions
Avoid using unnecessary mass
Use a simple structural layout with minimum
torsional effects
Avoid strength and stiffness taper along the height
Avoid soft storeys
Provide sufficient lateral bracing and drift control by
using concrete structural walls
Isolate non-structural elements

Use of Unnecessary Mass

Use of Unnecessary Mass

Use of Unnecessary Mass

Use of Unnecessary Mass

To reduce seismic demands

Select a suitable site with favorable soil conditions
Avoid using unnecessary mass
Use a simple structural layout with minimum
torsional effects
Avoid strength and stiffness taper along the height
Avoid soft storeys
Provide sufficient lateral bracing and drift control by
using concrete structural walls
Isolate non-structural elements

Effect of Torsion

Effect of Torsion

Effect of Torsion

Effect of Torsion

Effect of Torsion

Effect of Torsion

Effect of Torsion

Effect of Torsion

To reduce seismic demands

Select a suitable site with favorable soil conditions
Avoid using unnecessary mass
Use a simple structural layout with minimum
torsional effects
Avoid strength and stiffness taper along the height
Avoid soft storeys
Provide sufficient lateral bracing and drift control by
using concrete structural walls
Isolate non-structural elements

Effect of Vertical Discontinuity

Effect of Vertical Discontinuity

To reduce seismic demands

Select a suitable site with favorable soil conditions
Avoid using unnecessary mass
Use a simple structural layout with minimum
torsional effects
Avoid strength and stiffness taper along the height
Avoid soft storeys
Provide sufficient lateral bracing and drift control by
using concrete structural walls
Isolate non-structural elements

Effect of Soft Storey

Effect of Soft Storey

Effect of Soft Storey

Effect of Soft Storey

To reduce seismic demands

Select a suitable site with favorable soil conditions
Avoid using unnecessary mass
Use a simple structural layout with minimum
torsional effects
Avoid strength and stiffness taper along the height
Avoid soft storeys
Provide sufficient lateral bracing and drift control by
using concrete structural walls
Isolate non-structural elements

R/C Frame Buildings without Drift Control

Buildings Stiffened by Structural Walls

To reduce seismic demands

Select a suitable site with favorable soil conditions
Avoid using unnecessary mass
Use a simple structural layout with minimum
torsional effects
Avoid strength and stiffness taper along the height
Avoid soft storeys
Provide sufficient lateral bracing and drift control by
using concrete structural walls
Isolate non-structural elements

Short Column Effect

Short Column Effect

Seismic Design Requirements of

CSA A23.3 - 2004
Capacity design is employed..
Selected elements are designed to yield
while critical elements remain elastic

Design for
Strength and Deformability

Load Combinations
Principal loads:
1.0D + 1.0E
And either of the following:
1) For storage occupancies, equipment
areas and service rooms:
1.0D + 1.0E + 1.0L + 0.25S
2) For other occupancies:
1.0D + 1.0E + 0.5L + 0.25S

Stiffness Properties for Analysis

Concrete cracks under own weight of
structure
If concrete is not cracked, then the structure
is not reinforced concrete (plain concrete)
Hence it is important to account for the
softening of structures due to cracking
Correct assessment of effective member
stiffness is essential for improved accuracy
in establishing the distribution of design
forces among members, as well as in
computing the period of the structure.

Flexural Behaviour of R/C

Flexural Behaviour of R/C

Section Properties for Analysis as

per CSA A23.3-04
Beams
Columns

P
c 0.5 0.6 ' s 1.0
fc Ag

Ie

= 0.40 Ig

Ie

= cIg

Coupling Beams
without diagonal reinforcement

Ave = 0.15Ag
Ie

with diagonal reinforcement

= 0.40 Ig

Ave = 0.45Ag
Ie

= 0.25 Ig

Slab-Frame Element

Ie

= 0.20 Ig

Walls

Axe = wAg

P
w 0.6 ' s 1.0
fc Ag

Seismic Design Requirements of

CSA A23.3 - 2004
Chapter 21 covers:
Ductile Moment Resisting Frames (MRF)
Moderately Ductile MRF
Ductile Shear Walls
Ductile Coupled Shear Walls
Ductile Partially Coupled Shear Walls
Moderately Ductile Shear Walls

Ductile Moment Resisting Frame

Members Subjected to Flexure
Rd = 4.0

Pf Agfc /10

Beam Longitudinal Reinforcement

Beam Transverse Reinforcement

No lap splicing within

this region

Formation of Plastic Hinges

Beam Shear Strength

Beam Shear Strength

The factored shear need not exceed that
obtained from structural analysis under
factored load combinations with RdRo = 1.0
The values of = 45o and = 0 shall be used
in shear design within plastic hinge regions
The transverse reinforcement shall be
seismic hoops

Ductile Moment Resisting Frame

Members Subjected to Flexure and
Significant Axial Load
Rd = 4.0

hshort 300 mm
hshort / hlong 0.4

Pf > Agfc /10

D 300 mm

Longitudinal Reinforcement
Design for factored axial forces
and moments using Interaction
Diagrams

min = 1%

max = 6%

Strong Beam-Weak Column Design

Strong Beam-Weak Column Design

Strong Column-Weak Beam Design

Nominal moment
resistance of columns
under factored axial loads

Probable moment
resistance of beams

nc

M pb

Column Confinement
Reinforcement
Columns will be confined for improved
inelastic deformability

lo

lo 1/6 of clear col. height

If Pf 0.5 c fc Ag ;

lo 1.5h

If Pf > 0.5 c fc Ag ;

lo 2.0h

Columns connected to rigid members such as

foundations and discontinuous walls, or columns
at the base will be confined along the entire height

lo

Poorly Confined Columns

Poorly Confined Columns

Well-Confined
Column

Column Confinement Reinforcement

f'c
s 0.4k p
fyh

Circular Spirals

fyh 500 MPa

Pf
kp
Po

Ag

f'c
s 0.45(
1)
Ac
fyh

Column Confinement Reinforcement

Rectilinear Ties

fyh 500 MPa

A sh

A g f'c
0.2k nk p
sh c
A ch fyh

A sh

f'c
0.09
sh c
fyh

Pf
kp
Po
n

k n n /(n 2)

: No. of laterally supported bars

Spacing of Confinement
Reinforcement

of minimum member dimension

6 x smallest long. bar diameter
sx = 100 + (350 hx) / 3

Spacing of laterally supported longitudinal

bars, hx 200 mm or 1/3 hc

Column Shear
Strength

Column Shear Strength

The factored shear need not exceed that
obtained from structural analysis under
factored load combinations with RdRo = 1.0
The values of 45o and 0.10 shall be
used in shear design in regions where the
confinement reinforcement is needed
The transverse reinforcement shall be
seismic hoops

Shear Deficient Columns

Shear Deficient Columns

Beam-Column Joints

Poor Joint Performance

Computation of Joint Shear

Vx-x that obtained from frame analysis using RdRo = 1.0

Shear Resistance of Joints

Vj 2.2 c f 'c A j
Vj 1.6 c f 'c A j
Vj 1.3 c f 'c A j

Transverse Reinforcement in Joints

Continue column confinement
reinforcement into the joint
If the joint is fully confined by four
beams framing from all four sides,
then eliminate every other hoop. At
these locations sx = 150 mm

Design Example
Six-Storey Ductile Moment Resisting Frame in Vancouver

Chapter 11
By D. Mitchell and P. Paultre

Six-Storey Ductile
Moment Resisting
Frame in Vancouver
Rd = 4.0 and Ro = 1.7
Site Classification C
(Fa & Fv = 1.0)
Interior columns: 500 x 500 mm
Exterior columns: 450 x 450 mm
Slab: 110 mm thick
Beams (1-3rd floors): 400 x 600 mm
Beams (4-6th floors): 400 x 550 mm

Material Properties
Concrete: normal density concrete with 30 MPa
Reinforcement: 400 MPa
Live loads
Floor live loads:
2.4 kN/m2 on typical office floors
4.8 kN/m2 on 6 m wide corridor bay
Roof load
2.2 kN/m2 snow load, accounting for parapets
and equipment projections
1.6 kN/m2 mechanical services loading in 6 m
wide strip over corridor bay
Dead loads
self-weight of reinforced concrete members
calculated as 24 kN/m3
1.0 kN/m2 partition loading on all floors
0.5 kN/m2 mechanical services loading on all
floors
0.5 kN/m2 roofing
Wind loading
1.84 kN/m2 net lateral pressure for top 4 storeys
1.75 kN/m2 net lateral pressure for bottom 2
storeys
The fire-resistance rating of the building is
assumed to be 1 hour.

Gravity Loading

Design Spectral Response

Acceleration E-W Direction
Empirical: Ta = 0.075 (hn)3/4 = 0.76 s
Dynamic: T = 1.35 s but not greater than
1.5Ta = 1.14s

Design of Ductile Beam

Design of Ductile Beam

Design of Ductile Beam

Design of Ductile Beam

Design of Ductile Beam

Design of Ductile Beam

Design of Ductile Interior Column

Design of Ductile Interior Column

Design of Ductile Interior Column

Design of Ductile Interior Column

Design of Ductile Interior Column

Design of Ductile Interior Column

Design of Interior Beam-Column Joint

Design of Interior Beam-Column Joint

Design of Interior Beam-Column Joint

Ductile Shear Walls

Rd = 3.5 or 4.0

if hw / w 2.0; Rd = 2.0
SFRS without irregularities:
Plastic hinge length:1.5 w
Flexural and shear reinforcement
required for the critical section
will be maintained within the
hinging region

hw
Plastic
Hinge
Length

For elevations above the plastic

hinge region, design values will be
increased by Mr/Mf at the top of
hinging region

Ductile Shear Walls

Wall thickness in the plastic hinge:
tw u / 14 but may be limited to

hw

u / 10 in high compression regions

u
w

tw

Plastic
Hinge
Length Because walls are relatively thin
members, care must be taken to
prevent possible instability in
plastic hinge regions

Ductile Shear Walls

Ductile Shear Walls

Ductile Shear Walls

Effective flange width:

f
f distance to adjacent wall web
f of wall height above the section

Wall
Reinforcement

Plastic Hinges
Other Regions
Distributed Reinforcement in Each Direction
Amount
0.0025
0.0025
Spacing

300 mm

450 mm

Concentrated Reinforcement
Where

@ends and
corners

Amount
s 0.015 bwlw
(at least 4 bars) 0.06 (A)
s
be
Hoops
Confine like
columns

@ends
s 0.001 bwlw
s 0.06 (A)be
Like nonseismic
columns

Ductile Shear Walls

Vertical reinforcement outside the plastic
hinge region will be tied as specified in
7.6.5 if the area of steel is more than
0.005Ag and the maximum bar size is #20
and smaller
Vertical reinforcement in plastic hinge
regions will be tied as specified in 21.6.6.9 if
the area of steel is more than 0.005Ag and
the maximum bar size is #15 and smaller

Ductile Shear Walls

At least two curtains of reinforcement will
be used in plastic hinge regions, if:

Vf 0.18c f A cv
'
c

Where;
Acv : Net area of concrete section bounded by
web thickness and length of section in the
direction of lateral force

Ductile Shear Walls

For buckling prevention, ties shall be provided
in the form of hoops, with spacing not to
exceed:
6 longitudinal bar diameters
24 tie diameters
of the least dimension of of the member

Ductility of Ductile Shear Walls

Rotational Capacity, ic> Inelastic Demand, id

f RoRd f w
id
0.004
w

hw

hw

cu w

ic
0.002 0.025
2c

w/2
w

cu

Ductility of Ductile
Shear Walls
f RoRd f w
id
0.004
w

hw

cu w

ic
0.002 0.025
2c

Ductility of Ductile Shear Walls

Ps Pn Pns f A f
c
'
1 1cf cb w
'
1 c c

Ductile Coupled Walls

Mtotal = M1 + M2 + P x

E.Q.

If P x 2/3Mtotal
Coupled Wall

M1
P

M2
P

If P x < 2/3Mtotal
Partially
Coupled Wall

Ductility of Ductile Coupled

Walls

Rotational Capacity, ic> Inelastic Demand, id

f RoRd
id
0.004
hw

cu w

ic
0.002 0.025
2c

w: Length of the coupled wall system

w: Lengths of the individual wall segments
for partially coupled walls

Ductility of Coupling Beams

Rotational Capacity, ic> Inelastic Demand, id

f R o R d cg

id
h w u

ic = 0.04 for coupling

beams with diagonal
reinforcement as per
21.6.8.7
ic = 0.02 for coupling beams without
diagonal reinforcement as per 21.6.8.6

Coupling Beams with Diagonal

Reinforcement

Wall Capacity @ Ends of Coupling

Beams
Walls at each end of a coupling beam shall be
designed so that the factored wall moment
resistance at wall centroid exceeds the
moment resulting from the nominal moment
resistance of the coupling beam.
If the above can not be achieved, the walls
develop plastic hinges at beam levels. This
requires design and detailing of walls at
coupling beam locations as plastic hinge
regions.

Shear Design of Ductile Walls

Design shear forces shall not be less than;
Shear corresponding to the development of
probable moment capacity of the wall or the
wall system
Shear resulting from design load combinations
with RdRo = 1.0
Shear associated with higher mode effects

Shear Design of Ductile Walls

Shear design will conform to the requirements of
Clause 11. In addition, for plastic hinge regions;
If id 0.015

Vf 0.10 c fcbwdv

If id = 0.005

Vf 0.15 c fcbwdv

For id between the above two values, linear

interpolation may be used

Shear Design of Ductile Walls

For plastic hinge regions:
If id 0.015

If id 0.005

For id between the above two values, linear

interpolation may be used

Shear Design of Ductile Walls

For plastic hinge regions:
If (Ps + Pp) 0.1 fcAg

If (Ps + Pp) 0.2 fcAg

For axial compression between the above

two values, linear interpolation may be
used

Moderately Ductile Moment

Resistant Frame Beams
(Rd = 2.5)

Moderately Ductile Moment

Resistant Frame Beams

Moderately Ductile Moment

Resistant Frame Columns
Factored moment
resistance of columns

Column design forces

need not exceed those
determined from factored
load combinations using
RdRo = 1.0

Nominal moment
resistance of beams

rc

M nb

Moderately Ductile Moment

Resistant Frame Columns
Columns will be confined for improved
inelastic deformability

lo

lo 1/6 of clear col. height

lo h
lo 450 mm

lo

Spacing of Confinement
Reinforcement

1/2 of minimum column dimension

8 x long. bar diameter
24 x tie diameters

Crossties or legs of overlapping hoops shall

not have centre-to-centre spacing exceeding
350 mm

Column Confinement Reinforcement

f'c
s 0.3k p
fyh

Circular Hoops

fyh 500 MPa

Pf
kp
Po

Ag

f'c
s 0.45(
1)
Ac
fyh

Column Confinement Reinforcement

A sh

A g f'c
0.15k nk p
sh c
A ch fyh

A sh
Rectilinear Ties

fyh 500 MPa

f'c
0.09
sh c
fyh

Pf
kp
Po
n

k n n /(n 2)

: No. of laterally supported bars

Beam Shear Strength

Beam Shear Strength

The factored shear need not exceed
that obtained from structural analysis
under factored load combinations with
RdRo = 1.0

Computation of Joint Shear

Joint shear
associated with
nominal resistance
of beams

Joint Shear
Joint shear associated with nominal
resistances of the beams and the
columns will be computed and the
smaller of the two values will be used
The joint shear need not exceed that
obtained from structural analysis under
factored load combinations with
RdRo = 1.0

Shear Resistance of Joints in

Moderately Ductile Frames

Vj 2.2 c f 'c A j
Vj 1.6 c f 'c A j
Vj 1.3 c f 'c A j

Transverse Reinforcement in Joints

Longitudinal reinforcement shall have a
centre-to-centre distance not exceeding
300 mm and shall not be cranked within
the joint
Transverse reinforcement shall be
provided with a maximum spacing of 150
mm

Moderately Ductile Shear Walls

Wall thicknesses will be similar to those of
ductile shear walls, except;
u / 10

u / 14

u / 14

u / 20

Ductility limitation will be similar to that

for ductile walls with minimum rotational
demand as 0.003.

Moderately Ductile Shear Walls

Distributed horizontal reinforcement ratio
shall not be less than 0.0025 in the vertical
and horizontal directions
Concentrated reinforcement in plastic
hinge regions shall be the same as that for
ductile walls, except the tie requirements
are relaxed to those in Chapter 7

Shear Design of Moderately Ductile

Walls
Design shear forces shall not be less than the
smaller of;
Shear corresponding to the development of
nominal moment capacity of the wall or the
wall system
Shear resulting from design load combinations
with RdRo = 1.0

Shear Design of Moderately Ductile

Walls
Vf 0.1 cfcbwdv

= 45o

Design Example
Ductile Core-Wall Structure in Montreal

Chapter 11
By D. Mitchell and P. Paultre

Twelve-Storey Ductile
Core Wall Structure
in Montreal
E-W: Rd = 4.0 and Ro =
1.7
N-S: Rd = 3.5 and Ro =
1.6
Site Classification D

Design Spectral Response

Acceleration N-S Direction
Empirical: Ta = 0.05 (hn)3/4 = 0.87 s
Dynamic:
T = 1.83 s but not greater than 2Ta =
1.74s

Torsion of Core Wall

Torsional
Sensitivity

B x max / ave
Max BNS = 1.80
Max BEW = 1.66
Max B > 1.7
irregularity
type 7

Seismic and Wind Loading

Diagonally Reinforced Coupling Beam

Wall Reinforcement Details

Factored Moment Resistance E-W

Factored Moment Resistance N-S

Squat Shear Walls

hw / w 2.0; Rd = 2.0
The foundation and diaphragm components
of the SFRS shall have factored resistances
greater than the nominal wall capacity.
The walls will dissipate energy either;
through flexural mechanism, i.e., V @ Mn
is less than Vr,
or, through shear mechanism, i.e., V @
Mn is more than Vr.
In this case:

Vr 0.2 f'c b w d v

Squat Shear Walls

The distributed reinforcement:
h 0.003

v 0.003

Use two curtains of reinforcement if

Vf 0.18 c f'c b w d v
At least 4 vertical bars will be tied with
seismic hooks and placed at the ends
and at junctions of intersecting walls
over 300 mm wall length with 0.005.

Squat Shear Walls

Shear Design
Vf 0.15 c fcbwdv
=0

= 300 to 450

Vertical reinforcement required for shear:

Ps
v h cot
sf y A g
2

where; h : required horizontal steel

Conventional Construction
Rd = 1.5
Buildings with Rd = 1.5 can be designed as
conventional buildings. However, detailing
required for nominally ductile columns will be
used unless;
Factored resistances of columns are more
than those for framing beams
Factored resistances of columns are greater
than factored loads based on RdRo =1.0
IEFaSa(0.2) < 0.2

Walls of Conventional Construction

Walls can be designed as conventional walls.
However, the shear resistance will be greater
than the smaller of;
the shear corresponding to factored
moment resistance,
the shear computed from factored loads
based on RdRo =1.0.

Frame Members not Considered Part

of the SFRS
Frames that are not part of SFRS, but go for
the ride during an earthquake shall be
designed to accommodate forces and
deformations resulting from seismic
deformations.

Thank You..

Questions or Comments?