Seismic response of adjacent buildings connected by nonlinear viscous dampers

In this study, the seismic response of a pair of linear multistory building structures linked to one another at floor levels by nonlinear passive devices is comprehensively evaluated. Three possible height-wise distributions of the connectors were analyzed for wide ranges of values of their characteristic constants. Two response quantities were considered: interstory drift and absolute floor acceleration. Results indicate that, while it is possible to reduce both response quantities in both buildings, the level of response reduction generally decreases with decreasing values of damper exponent α. Results also indicate that the response of the systems is not sensitive to the height-wise distribution of the connecting dampers. Finally, it was also found that the optimal value of the damper exponent α depends on the value of the sum of the damper coefficients of the linking devices (c1+c2= C): while the optimal value of α is 0.80 when the value of C is relatively low, the optimal value of α is 1.00 (i.e., a linear viscous damper) when the value of C is relatively high.