Multi-point earthquake response of the Bosphorus Bridge to site-specific ground motions

The study presents the earthquake performance of the Bosphorus Bridge under multi-point earthquake excitation considering the spatially varying site-specific earthquake motions. The elaborate FE model of the bridge is firstly established depending on the new considerations of the used FEM software specifications, such as cable-sag effect, rigid link and gap elements. The modal analysis showed that singular modes of the deck and the tower were relatively effective in the dynamic behavior of the bridge due to higher total mass participation mass ratio of 80%. The parameters and requirements to be considered in simulation process are determined to generate the spatially varying site-specific ground motions. Total number of twelve simulated ground motions are defined for the multi-support earthquake analysis (<i>Mp-sup</i>). In order to easily implement multi-point earthquake excitation to the bridge, the practice-oriented procedure is summarized. The results demonstrated that the <i>Mp-sup</i> led to high increase in sectional forces of the critical components of the bridge, especially tower base section and tensile force of the main and back stay cables. A close relationship between the dynamic response and the behavior of the bridge under the <i>Mp-sup</i> was also obtained. Consequently, the outcomes from this study underscored the importance of the utilization of the multi-point earthquake analysis and the necessity of considering specifically generated earthquake motions for suspension bridges.