Innovative metallic dissipaters for earthquake protection of structural and non-structural components

Dissipaters are used for seismic protection of structural and non-structural components. During an earthquake, the dissipaters will absorb seismic energy, and therefore will prevent damage and downtime to the structure or contents. In this research, a new generation of metallic dissipaters are proposed. The dissipaters offer advantages such as cost-effectiveness, simple fabrication and installation, lighter weight, compactness, redundancy during a very large earthquake, higher ductility, multiple activation mechanism, and good fatigue performance. If required, self-centering can also be incorporated in the dissipaters. The dissipaters can be either brace type or mini plug and play. The paper presents concepts, experimental testing, and seismic performance for the innovative dissipaters. Furthermore, potential applications of these dissipaters in buildings, bridges, and non-structural components, within the context of low-damage seismic design, are also presented.