Simulating seismically isolated buildings under earthquake-induced pounding incidences

Seismically isolated buildings usually experience large horizontal relative displacements during strong earthquakes due to the flexibility that is incorporated, through seismic bearings, at their bases. If the available clearance around a seismically isolated building is, for any reason, limited, then there is a possibility of the building pounding against adjacent structures. This paper, presents a methodology for simulating this problem using numerical methods, in order to investigate the effects of potential pounding on the overall seismic response of seismically isolated buildings.