Structural Dynamic & Earthquake Engineering using ETABS

Day 1: Introduction to Structural Dynamics and Free Vibrations

• Introduction to Structural Dynamics concepts
• Static vs Dynamic loads
• Basic equation of motion for a Single Degree of Freedom (SDOF) system
• Undamped free vibration
• Damped free vibration
• Key dynamic properties:
• Natural frequency
• Period of vibration
• Damping ratio
• Workshop: Manual calculation of natural frequency for simple structures
• Practical ETABS Session:
• Creating a simple model
• Extracting natural frequencies and mode shapes

Day 2: Forced Vibration Response and Earthquake Loading

• Forced vibration response of SDOF systems
• Basic concepts of earthquake ground motion
• Introduction to seismic response analysis
• Introduction to Response Spectrum (RS) analysis
• Generating seismic response spectra
• Practical ETABS Session:
• Defining seismic loads according to building codes (e.g., UBC, ASCE 7, Eurocode)
• Setting up load cases for seismic analysis

Day 3: Response Spectrum Analysis in ETABS

• Detailed procedure for Response Spectrum Analysis
• Creating site-specific response spectra
• Application of RS loads to building models
• Understanding and interpreting ETABS outputs:
• Displacement profiles
• Internal forces (moment, shear)
• Base shear forces
• Workshop using ETABS:
• Analyze a simple multi-story concrete building using response spectrum analysis
• Compare static vs dynamic (RSA) analysis results

Day 4: Time History Analysis (Advanced Seismic Analysis)

• Introduction to Time History (TH) analysis
• Selection and scaling of earthquake ground motion records
• Setting up time history load cases
• Practical ETABS Session:
• Importing real earthquake records
• Performing linear time history analysis
• Reviewing time-dependent response results (displacements, forces)

Day 5: Seismic Design and Performance Evaluation

• Seismic design principles based on international codes
• Drift requirements and deformation limits
• Overview of Seismic Performance Assessment
• Introduction to base isolation and energy dissipation systems
• Seismic retrofitting basics for existing structures
• Final Workshop:
• Full project exercise in ETABS:
• Model creation
• Seismic loading
• Dynamic analysis
• Evaluation of compliance with code requirements
• Final Discussion and Course Closing

Note

• Each day includes approximately 40% theory and 60% practical ETABS work.
• ETABS models and practice files will be provided.
• The course can be adjusted to follow specific local or international seismic codes depending on participants’ needs (e.g., IBC, ASCE7, Eurocode 8, etc.).