Elevated building foundation facts for kids

Bottom view of the Municipal Services Building sitting on abutments of its elevated building foundation, City of Glendale, CA

Elevated building foundation (EBF) is a kind of seismic base isolation technology which is made a major part of a building superstructure. It is made to protect the building's superstructure against damage from the shaking caused by an earthquake.

Seismically retrofitted Municipal Services Building in Glendale, CA

This goal can be met with the right building materials, size, and setup of EBF for the building site and local soil conditions.

As a result of multiple wave reflections and diffractions, as well as energy dissipation of the seismic waves as they move up through the EBF, any movement of seismic wave energy into the building superstructure will be decreased, which will lower seismic loads and improve seismic performance of the structure.

In other words, the building does not shake as much because it is sitting on the elevated building foundation, and will probably take less damage from the earthquake.

Images for kids

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  The base isolators under the Utah State Capitol building

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  Concurrent shake-table testing of two building models. The right one is equipped with a seismic base isolation

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  LA City Hall, the world's tallest building to be retrofitted with base isolation

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  Base isolation demonstration at The Field Museum in Chicago

See also

In Spanish: Aislamiento sísmico para niños