Earthquake Engineering

This planar testing wall at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a new addition to the Multi-Axial Full-Scale Sub-Structures Testing and Simulation (MUST-SIM) Facility, part of NSF’s Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation.  Representing three stories at approximately 1/3 scale (6 in. thick, and 12 feet tall), the wall was designed to simulate the bottom three stories of a 10-story structure in tests that create earthquake forces. 

By studying how structures respond to the motions created by earthquakes, yet in a controlled environment, researchers are gathering powerful clues as to how to craft new structures that may eventually withstand seismic assaults.  A video of the facility is available here .

Credit: Daniel  Kuchma, UIUC