Collaborative Study of NUPEC Seismic Field Test Data for NPP Structures (NUREG/CR-6822, BNL-NUREG-71355-2003)

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Publication Information

Manuscript Completed: June 2003
Date Published: June 2003

Prepared by:
J. Xu, C. Costantino, C. Hofmayer
Energy Science and Technology Department
Brookhaven National Laboratory
Building 130
P.O. Box 5000
Upton, New York 11973-5000

Syed A. Ali, NRC Project Manager

Prepared for:
Division of Engineering Technology
Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Washington, DC 20555-0001

NRC Job Code W6081

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Abstract

The Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC) conducted a multi-year test program for the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) of Japan to investigate different aspects of the soil-structure interaction (SSI) effect. The program, consisting of both field and laboratory tests, was developed to address various SSI aspects, including the dynamic cross-interaction (DCI) effect on the seismic response of NPP structures built in close proximity to each other. The program also was performed to verify the adequacy of the available analytical tools for predicting the SSI effect. As part of collaborative efforts between the United States and Japan on seismic issues, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) participated in a program to apply the industry practice to predict the structural response to recorded earthquake events, including the DCI effect, and to interpret the observed data. The overall objectives of the U.S.-Japan collaboration on the DCI issue were, through the exchange of mutual knowledge and useful information on the DCI test data, to gain valuable insights into understanding the complex phenomena and dynamic response mechanism of DCI effects under earthquake ground motions. Another objective was to validate, confirm, and capture the limitations of analytical methods or computer codes, which may lead to improvements of the existing analysis methods, and remove unnecessary conservatism in seismic design. BNL has completed its study of the field test data as provided by NUPEC. This report summarizes the BNL study and the insights drawn from the comparisons of the BNL analysis results and the NUPEC field-recorded earthquake responses.