A methodology for dynamic analysis of linear structure‐foundation systems with local non‐linearities

An efficient computational technique is presented for the dynamic analysis of large linear structural systems with local non‐linearities. The earthquake response evaluation for many practical structures belongs to this class of problems. The technique provides a rational approach to the earthquake‐resistant design of structure‐foundation systems with predetermined non‐linearities occurring along the structure‐foundation interface. Various possibilities for base isolation systems are naturally fitted within the proposed framework. In particular, we address uplifting of the structure as a natural base isolation concept. We use the dynamic substructuring technique and an efficient numerical algorithm which accommodates non‐proportional damping as a consistent way to reduce significantly the computational effort, which is in sharp contrast to the vast majority of ad‐hoc simplified models used for the same purpose. A numerical example which demonstrates the vibration isolation effect when the uplifting of the concrete gravity dam occurs is also presented.