Can We Make Buildings Truly Earthquake-Proof?
Summary
TLDRThis SciShow episode explores innovative engineering solutions to protect buildings from earthquakes. It discusses current methods like tuned mass dampers in skyscrapers and shock absorbers using rubber and lead. The show also previews upcoming technologies, including vibrating barriers that absorb vibrational energy and 3D-printed cement structures inspired by nature's resilience. Additionally, the concept of 'earthquake invisibility cloaks' that use rings to deflect seismic energy is introduced, highlighting the potential for future earthquake-resistant architecture.
Takeaways
- đ Earthquakes are currently impossible to predict with certainty, necessitating constant vigilance in areas prone to seismic activity.
- đą Engineers have developed various technologies to protect buildings during earthquakes, such as tuned mass dampers and shock absorbers.
- đïž Tuned mass dampers, like the one in Taipei 101, use massive pendulums to counteract building sway, while shorter buildings often use base isolation systems.
- đ§ Base isolation systems, exemplified by a major airport in Turkey, can reduce earthquake-induced movement by up to 80% using rubber and lead.
- đŹ Engineers are researching advanced technologies like vibrating barriers, which use weights and springs to absorb vibrational energy and protect buildings.
- đïž Vibrating barriers could be particularly useful for historical landmarks that cannot be modified, although they require specific calibration for each building.
- đïž Research is also being conducted on strengthening building materials themselves, such as using carbon nanotubes or 3D-printed cement paste with specific patterns.
- đŠ Nature-inspired designs, like the mantis shrimp's claw, are being incorporated into construction to minimize damage by distributing pressure and preventing cracks.
- 𧿠The concept of 'earthquake invisibility cloaks' involves plastic rings in building foundations that absorb and deflect seismic energy, making the building 'invisible' to earthquakes.
- đ For further learning on engineering challenges, including earthquakes and infrastructure, the Physics of the Everyday course from Brilliant offers in-depth information and interactive content.
Q & A
Why are earthquakes difficult to predict?
-Earthquakes are difficult to predict because they are basically impossible to forecast with any real certainty, making it challenging for scientists to anticipate when the next significant earthquake will occur.
What is a tuned mass damper and how does it help in earthquake protection?
-A tuned mass damper is a large pendulum placed high inside buildings, often skyscrapers, that swings in response to the building's movements. It counteracts external forces, reducing the side-to-side shaking during an earthquake.
Which famous building utilizes a tuned mass damper?
-Taipei 101 in Taiwan is a famous building that uses a tuned mass damper to protect against earthquakes.
How do engineers protect shorter buildings from earthquakes?
-For shorter buildings, engineers often use a system of rubber and lead at the base to isolate the building from the ground, acting as a shock absorber to reduce the impact of an earthquake.
What is a seismic isolator and how does it work?
-A seismic isolator is a device used in the foundation of buildings to reduce the impact of earthquakes. It allows the structure to move independently of the ground, thereby reducing the amount of shaking transferred to the building.
What is the vibrating barrier system proposed for earthquake protection?
-The vibrating barrier system is a proposed technology that uses a weight held by springs in a buried box near a building's foundation. It absorbs vibrational energy during an earthquake, protecting the building from damage.
How can carbon nanotubes be used in earthquake-resistant construction?
-Carbon nanotubes can be used as a construction ingredient to strengthen buildings against earthquakes. They can enhance the material's strength and resilience, making structures more resistant to seismic forces.
What is the inspiration behind the 'architectures' used in 3D-printed cement paste for earthquake resistance?
-The 'architectures' used in 3D-printed cement paste are inspired by the natural structures found in arthropods' shells, such as the mantis shrimp's claw, which distributes pressure through specific patterns to minimize damage.
What is an earthquake invisibility cloak and how does it function?
-An earthquake invisibility cloak is a concept that involves embedding a series of plastic rings into a building's foundation. These rings have specific stiffness and elasticity to absorb and deflect earthquake energy, making the building 'invisible' to the seismic waves.
How do the plastic rings in an earthquake invisibility cloak protect a building?
-The plastic rings in an earthquake invisibility cloak deform and deflect the earthquake's energy along their structure, redirecting the energy around the building, thus protecting the structure and the occupants inside.
What is the significance of the center of mass being below the surface in skyscrapers?
-In many skyscrapers, having the center of mass below the surface helps to stabilize the building and prevent it from toppling over during high winds or earthquakes, as it lowers the building's center of gravity.
Outlines
đïž Earthquake Protection Innovations
This paragraph discusses the unpredictability of earthquakes and the various methods engineers have developed to protect buildings. It highlights the use of tuned mass dampers in skyscrapers, such as the Taipei 101 in Taiwan, which employ massive pendulums to counteract building sway. For shorter buildings, engineers use a system of rubber and lead as shock absorbers, exemplified by a major airport in Turkey that uses 300 isolators to reduce side-to-side movement by 80%. The paragraph also explores new research, including the vibrating barrier system that uses weights and springs to absorb vibrational energy, and the potential for this technology to protect historical landmarks. The importance of calibrating the system to match the building's specific frequency is mentioned, as well as the potential for these systems to reduce acceleration by almost 90%.
đŹ Advancing Earthquake Resilience
The second paragraph delves into additional innovative approaches to earthquake protection. It mentions the exploration of strengthening building materials themselves, such as using carbon nanotubes. A team at Purdue has been researching 3D-printed cement paste with specific patterns inspired by the shells of arthropods, like the mantis shrimp's claw, which distributes pressure to minimize overall damage. The paragraph also introduces the concept of 'earthquake invisibility cloaks,' which use a series of plastic rings in the building's foundation to absorb and deflect seismic energy, effectively making the building 'invisible' to earthquakes. The rings can cover multiple frequencies and protect multiple buildings at once. The technology is still in development, with potential for future implementation. The paragraph concludes with a mention of the Physics of the Everyday course from Brilliant, which covers various engineering challenges, including skyscrapers and suspension bridges, and offers a discount for the first 200 annual Premium subscriptions.
Mindmap
Keywords
đĄEarthquakes
đĄFault Lines
đĄTuned Mass Dampers
đĄSeismic Isolation
đĄVibrating Barrier
đĄCarbon Nanotubes
đĄ3D-Printed Cement Paste
đĄNature-Inspired Materials
đĄEarthquake Invisibility Cloak
đĄInfrastructure
Highlights
Earthquakes are impossible to predict with certainty, making fault line populations vigilant for the next big one.
Engineers have developed inventions to help protect buildings during earthquakes.
Tuned mass dampers, like massive swinging balls, are used in skyscrapers to counteract building movements.
Taipei 101 in Taiwan is a famous building utilizing a tuned mass damper.
For shorter buildings, engineers use rubber and lead systems as shock absorbers at the base.
A major airport in Turkey uses seismic isolation with 300 isolators, reducing side-to-side movement by 80%.
Vibrating barriers, proposed in 2015, are a new system that absorbs vibrational energy like a super-strong shock absorber.
Vibrating barriers could be ideal for historical landmarks that cannot be modified.
The effectiveness of vibrating barriers requires calibration to match a building's specific frequency.
Experiments suggest vibrating barriers could reduce building acceleration by almost 90%.
Research is exploring ways to strengthen buildings themselves, such as using carbon nanotubes.
A team at Purdue has been 3D-printing cement paste into specific shapes to improve concrete's earthquake response.
Nature-inspired patterns in construction, like those found in mantis shrimp claws, are being used to minimize overall damage.
Earthquake invisibility cloaks use plastic rings in building foundations to absorb and deflect seismic energy.
Invisibility cloaks can make a building 'invisible' to earthquakes by deflecting energy around it.
The more rings in an invisibility cloak, the more frequencies of seismic waves it can cover.
The Physics of the Everyday course from Brilliant covers infrastructure, including skyscrapers and suspension bridges.
Brilliant's course offers facts, diagrams, and interactive quizzes on various topics, including skyscrapers and airplanes.
A special offer for an annual Premium subscription on Brilliant is available for the first 200 people signing up through the provided link.
Transcripts
Thanks to Brilliant for supporting this whole week of SciShow!
You can learn more at Brilliant.com/SciShow.
[ INTRO ]
Nature has an entire suite of disasters at its disposal, and some are more difficult
to predict than others.
Like earthquakes.
Earthquakes are basically impossible to predict with any real certainty,
so populations living on or near fault lines are constantly on the lookout for the next
big one.
Still, itâs not like weâre not twiddling our thumbs, just waiting for it to strike.
Engineers have already developed some pretty amazing inventions that help protect buildings
during âquakes, and theyâre working on more.
Hereâs what they have in their arsenal now, along with a sneak peek of whatâs on the
horizon.
Today, there are a few main ways we try and protect buildings from earthquakes.
One is to keep buildings from shaking side to side as much as possible,
and that can be done in several ways.
Many huge skyscrapers utilize massive swinging balls, a.k.a. tuned mass dampers.
Theyâre large pendulums placed high inside buildings, and they sway in response to any
movements the building makes.
That counteracts whatever is happening outside.
The most famous building with one of these is probably Taipei one-oh-one in Taiwan.
For shorter buildings, engineers often choose a different route:
They isolate the base of the building from the ground using a system of rubber and lead
that serves as a shock absorber.
A major airport in Turkey uses this method,
and itâs one of the largest seismically isolated buildings in the world.
It uses three hundred separate isolators that can reduce the side to side âumphâ the
earthquake puts on it by eighty percent.
Which is impressive.
Still, while tuned mass dampers and shock absorbers are great, theyâre not perfect.
So engineers are also exploring new options to really step up their game.
Some of this research builds off of existing ideas.
For example, in two thousand fifteen, one group proposed a new system called vibrating
barrier,
which is like a super-strong version of a regular shock absorber.
You start with a weight held in place by springs.
Then, you stick it all in a box, and bury that box near a buildingâs foundation.
When an earthquake comes along, the weight gets jostled around,
and in doing so absorbs the vibrational energy that would otherwise hit the building.
This kind of tech would be perfect for buildings you canât modify,
like historical landmarks.
But it isnât ready to go primetime yet.
You still have to calibrate the system to absorb a certain frequency, which is specific
to each building.
Thatâs because, depending on a buildingâs mass and what itâs made of,
there are going to be some frequencies that make it vibrate more than others.
So, youâd need to use springs of a specific stiffness.
More massive buildings will also need more massive dampers.
Still, models suggest this could do a lot of good: Some experiments report that this
system could reduce the amount of acceleration a building is subjected to almost ninety percent.
Also, they could protect multiple buildings at once!
So theyâre totally worth researching further.
Of course, there are a thousand ways to solve a problem, so other teams have approached
this earthquake challenge a little differently.
For example, one major field of research involves investigating how to strengthen the buildings
themselves.
Some of that involves using fancy new construction ingredients, like carbon nanotubes.
But thereâs another way to go about it, too.
Like, in twenty eighteen, one team at Purdue announced that they had been 3D-printing cement
paste into specific shapes and patterns to improve the concreteâs response to earthquakes.
Theyâre calling these patterns âarchitecturesâ, and theyâre capable of carefully directing
pressure that could induce cracks.
So, even though damage does happen to the structure, the /overall/ damage is minimized.
Whatâs really cool, though, is that these architectures are inspired by nature
â specifically, by the shells of arthropods.
For example, the mantis shrimp has a giant claw to smash prey at a blinding speed.
To avoid having this claw develop one huge crack,
itâs structured in such a way that microcracks form in a specific helical pattern that distributes
the pressure over a larger area.
That makes the claw less brittle overall.
And now, those helical patterns are being used in construction.
Admittedly, this research is pretty new, so itâs going to take some time to figure out
exactly if and/or how it can be incorporated into future buildings.
But itâs pretty awesome that our solution to a natural disaster could come from nature
itself.
Now, vibrating barriers and nature-inspired materials are cool,
but they might seem pretty standard in the engineering world.
So if youâve been holding out for a really weird, wonderful exampleâŠ
we have one of those for you, too.
Iâm talking earthquake invisibility cloaks.
Here, you have a series of vplastic rings built into the foundation of your building
of choice.
Each ring has its own specific stiffness and elasticity to absorb a certain frequency of
wave.
When an earthquake hits, the rings deform and deflect some of the âquakeâs energy
along themselves,
moving that energy around the building so that the people inside never feel a thing.
Basically, the building becomes âinvisibleâ to earthquakes.
I mean, this isnât great news for the next building over if it doesnât have its own
protection,
but I guess this technology lives in a world where it does.
The more rings you have, the more frequencies you can cover.
And you donât necessarily need a hundred of them, either â
you just need enough to take care of the most abundant frequencies, and the ones the building
is most sensitive to.
Also, as a huge bonus, these rings donât have to be massive.
For a ten meter-wide building, each ring would only have to be about ten centimeters thick.
This technology started getting attention around two thousand nine, though, so there
are obviously a few things to work out before it starts popping up in the real world.
But like the other developments weâve talked about, it is really promising.
At the end of the day, the Earth isnât going to stop throwing earthquakes at us.
But these kinds of innovations mean that, maybe one day, we wonât have to worry too
much about the next big one.
Earthquakes arenât the only challenge engineers have to tackle, though.
Their work involves everything from traffic to suspension bridges â
and if you want to learn more about those fields, you can check out the Infrastructure
chapter in the Physics of the Everyday course from Brilliant.
It even has a whole section about skyscrapers.
One thing I learned was that many skyscrapers have a center of mass thatâs below the surface.
That helps stop them from falling over, and itâs cool to think about.
This course has plenty of other facts, diagrams, and interactive quizzes, too,
so whether you want to learn about skyscrapers or airplanes, thereâs probably something
there for you.
Also, if you download Brilliantâs iOS app, you can get their courses offline!
To learn more, you can head over to Brilliant.org/SciShow.
And if you want to get yourself an annual Premium subscription, the first 200 people
to sign up at that link will get 20% off!
[ outro ]
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