DESIGN OF POLYNOMIAL FRICTION PENDULUM ISOLATOR CONSIDERING MULTIPLE PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES

Previous studies have revealed that sliding isolators with variable curvature (SIVCs) possess better isolation performance than that of conventional isolators, because of their variable mechanical property. However, their applications are hindered by the lack of a systematic design method. To accelerate the implementation of the advanced SIVC technology, this paper proposes a performance-based design method for one type of SIVCs called the polynomial friction pendulum isolator (PFPI). The proposed method that consists of a linear and a nonlinear design stages is able to satisfy multiple performance objectives under dual earthquake levels. In the linear stage, the linearized isolator parameters that comply with design code in the DBE and MCE levels are determined, while in nonlinear stage, the PFPI parameters are determined based on the linearized parameters. Finally, the feasibility of the proposed design method is verified by the dynamic responses of a hysteretic building model with the designed PFPIs.