Effect of plan aspect ratio and structure height on seismic behavior factor evaluation of reinforced concrete frames

The present study addresses the importance of designing buildings to improve their seismic performance, with a focus during earthquakes on how building layouts affect their structural response using nonlinear static pushover analysis. Thirty reinforced concrete buildings of different heights (6, 9 and 12 stories) and aspect ratios ranging from 1 to 10 were constructed using ETAPS 2021 software while adhering to the code guidelines of Algerian Seismic Rules and Eurocode 8. The results after analysis provide valuable insights into the behavioral factors of reinforced concrete structures, which enhances the construction standards to avoid potential risks, with a special focus on evaluating the seismic performance of multi-story structures, which illustrates the role of different designs in the structural response. The results shows that the best seismic performance and the highest shear strength values at the performance point are at small aspect ratios (AR=1 to 3) which result in less displacements, indicating increased stiffness and stability under lateral loads. In contrast, taller buildings with larger aspect ratios showed increased deformation and lower seismic behavior coefficient values, reflecting reduced earthquake resistance. Furthermore, this study gives a comparison between theoretical and seismic behavior factor values of reinforced concrete structures due to sudden constructional behaviors during earthquakes, and stresses the importance of assessing current seismic design rules to address the effect of height and aspect ratio under temblor conditions.