16.

Stiffness Modifiers

When the structural analysis is conducted considering elastic behavior

of concrete material (Hook’s low:  = E) as in the case of most
engineering software, the flexural cracking of concrete and the
corresponding reduction of the flexural stiffness is not taken into
consideration.

Since the vertical elements (columns and walls) are mostly subjected to
compressive axial forces, they crack less than horizontal elements
(beams and slabs) which are subjected mostly to flexural moments.
The elastic analysis results in:

 Underestimation of the internal forces in the vertical elements

 Overestimation of the internal forces in the horizontal elements.
 Underestimation of the building lateral displacements (sway and
drifts), and deflections of slabs and beams.

The effects of concrete cracking can be considered with the ACI318

(6.6.3.1.1) reduced inertia for vertical and horizontal elements as
follow:

The reduction of inertia may be assigned to the different elements to

affect the direct FE analysis results, or to affect the indirect FE shell
results as explained hereafter:

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16.1 Stiffness modifiers for the FE direct results

 The frame FE (columns, beams, walls as wide columns...): the

reduction of stiffness is assigned for the moments of inertia
about axis 2 (or z) and axis 3 (or y).
 The slabs (represented by plate of shell FE) → the reduction of
stiffness is assigned for the flexural movements m11 (or mxx) and
m22 (or myy).

For the design of reinforced concrete slabs, the torsion moment

m12 (or mxy) should be taken into consideration. If this is not
being done than the slab torsion stiffness should be reduced to
null (0.001). However, if the slab analysis and design are
performed in an integrated software which account for torsion,
than no modification of the torsion stiffness need to be done.

16.2 Stiffness modifiers for the FE indirect shell results

When shell FE represent walls and wall-beams, the modification of

the stiffness modifier, the out of-plane bending along m11 (mxx)
and m22 (myy), will not affect the in-plane main flexural moment
M3 (My) generated from normal stresses s22 (syy) for the walls
(Figure 24), and s11 (sxx) for the wall-beam (Figure 41). The
modification of the stiffness modifier components should
therefore be as follow:

 For The wall-beam: the reduction is assigned to membrane f11

(sxx) direction.

 For The structural walls and the core-walls: the reduction is

assigned to membrane f22 (syy) direction (1), bending m22
(myy) direction, and bending m11 (mxx) direction (2).
(1)
It is to note that when reducing the membrane f22 (syy) modifier
in order to reduce the flexural stiffness for the in-plane moments,
this reduces also the axial stiffness of the walls; thus resulting in
an underestimation of design axial forces of the walls due to the
gravity (dead and live) loads. The columns axial stiffness should

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 be assigned same reduction as for the wall to account for the
reduction of the walls axial capacity.
(2)
Where the floor slabs are assigned rigid diaphragm behavior (no
in-plane moments are generated), m11 (mxx) has no significant
value and may be omitted.

17. Fixity Level for Seismic Analysis

When subjected to lateral earthquake forces, the fixity level of the building
may be defined as the level of maximum internal forces, or the level of
minimum displacements. Based on this definition, the fixity level may not
be necessarily the same as the foundations level, especially for buildings
with basement floors connected to the basement peripheral walls.

In most situations, when the basement floors are connected to the

peripheral basement walls ( the retaining walls) the ground level
represents the fixity level of the building with the reduction of the
earthquake moments on the structural resisting system of the building,
due to the contribution of the basement wall flexural stiffness.

Figure 43. Effect of Basement Floors on the Moment Diagram due to

Lateral Forces

However, during the design phase of the vertical elements, it should be

taken into account the fact that as the earthquake moment decreases

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