FORECASTING THE HAZARDS OF SEISMIC INDUCED BUILDING COLLAPSE IN LAGOS NIGERIA THROUGH QUALITY OF REINFORCING STEEL BARS
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IAEME Publication
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Building structures are built to support specific class of loads and the design process starts with the choice of the most appropriate combination of materials for optimal
safety, economy, aesthetics and social benefits. Reinforced concrete, comprising of concrete and steel reinforcing bars, is one of the most commonly used materials in the
built environment industry worldwide. The expected quality of these materials used to produce reinforced concrete must be such that they guarantee ductile behaviour during
the expected lifetime of the built structure. However, this is not usually the case in Nigeria, as cases of building collapse due to poor quality materials has been
increasingly reported. Also, recent earth tremors in various parts of Nigeria has brought to the fore the need to consider seismic effects in future building designs in
Nigeria, which until these recent events was considered aseismic. This research attempts to predict the risks of seismic-induced building collapse in Lagos-Nigeria from
the quality of steel reinforcing bars commonly adopted in Lagos. Adopting a uniform seismic intensity similar to the one measured recently in Nigeria, Monte Carlo
simulation method was used, employing MATLAB software, to draw random data of building area, occupancy limits, construction quality and failure probability for the
study area. Results obtained show that as the quality of steel reinforcement decreases, the area to be affected by a moderate seismic occurrence increases together with the
number of people at risk. The implication of this finding is that measures need to be taken to ensure that quality construction materials are used for construction in Lagos
in order to protect lives and minimize damage to properties from possible future earth tremor or earthquake.
Keywords
QC Physics, TA Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General), TH Building construction