Seismic analysis and protection methods for rocking of rigid historical artefacts

Abstract

Many rigid historical artefacts, such as statues and vases, are freestanding and may rock during strong earthquakes. The first part of this thesis proposes novel analysis methods for modelling the rocking behaviour of these artefacts. The proposed analysis methods consider the compliance of the base of the artefact, experimental results are used to show these proposed analysis methods have relatively high accuracy, mainly because they can accurately predict when rocking will initiate. The proposed analysis methods could be used by heritage professionals to accurately assess the seismic risk to artefacts, helping the most appropriate seismic protection strategies to be selected. The Dynamic Cross-Interaction between multiple rocking objects is also investigated, experimental and numerical results are used to highlight general trends that can be exploited by heritage professionals to improve the seismic behaviour of multiple rocking artefacts which are located in close proximity.
The second part of this thesis uses experimental and numerical results to investigate two new methods for the seismic protection of rocking artefacts. The first seismic protection method uses Vibrating Barrier technology, which protects the artefact through the Structure Soil Structure Interaction that occurs when a Vibrating Barrier device is located close to the artefact and tuned appropriately. This thesis indicates this method is effective and could be a suitable solution for artefacts located externally on historic foundations on soft soil, such as many statues. The second seismic protection method involves locating a historic artefact on a sloped base, where the slope of the base is selected to optimise the artefact’s rocking behaviour. This thesis indicates this method is effective and could be suitable for artefacts located in closely confined museum spaces. These seismic protection methods therefore warrant future work to develop them into practical solutions for heritage professionals to protect rocking artefacts from strong earthquakes.

Date of Award	Aug 2026
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Brighton
Supervisor	Paul Harris (Supervisor) & Pierfrancesco Cacciola (Supervisor)