Substitute-Structure Method for Seismic Design in R/C

A method is proposed to determine design forces for earthquake-resistant design of reinforced concrete structures. The method uses a modified linear model of the structure and recognizes the effect of energy dissipation in the nonlinear range of response. Thus, the designer is provided with a procedure, at the level of linear spectral response analysis, with explicit options about the levels of inelastic response in different elements of a multistory reinforced concrete structure. The paper contains analytical tests of two-story to 10-story frames designed according to the proposed method.