Beijing Key Lab of Earthquake Engineering and Structural Retrofit, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing, China
Email: 940615434@qq.com (L.Y.P.)
*Corresponding author
Manuscript received January 20, 2025; accepted March 7, 2025; published July 24, 2025.
Abstract—Current seismic design codes commonly adopt a unified displacement limit to control the sliding response of friction-based isolation structures. However, whether this limit remains adequate under various combinations of earthquake intensity, friction parameters, and site conditions has not been systematically evaluated. This study develops a nonlinear Single-Degree-Of-Freedom (SDOF) finite element model to investigate the influence of friction coefficient, seismic intensity, and site characteristics on the maximum sliding displacement of frictional isolation layers. Three representative site conditions and multiple seismic hazard levels are considered to conduct a series of parametric analyses. The simulated results are compared against the sliding displacement limits specified in current codes to assess their applicability under different parameter combinations. The results indicate that seismic intensity is the dominant factor controlling the magnitude of sliding displacement, while site period has a significant amplification effect, and the friction coefficient exerts a nonlinear regulatory influence on the response. Compared to the code limits, structural responses in hard soil conditions with high friction configurations remain well within allowable ranges, indicating the feasibility of unrestrained isolation design. In contrast, under soft soil, strong ground motions, and low friction coefficients, sliding displacements frequently exceed the prescribed limits, suggesting that appropriate displacement-restricting devices are required. The findings highlight the limitations of uniform displacement thresholds under complex conditions and provide preliminary insights for establishing a more refined, graded approach to displacement limit design.
Keywords—sliding friction isolation, maximum sliding displacement, friction coefficient, seismic intensity, site characteristic period
Cite: Xue Wang and Lingyun Peng, "Parametric Analysis of the Effects of Friction Coefficient and Site Characteristics on the Sliding Displacement of Sliding Friction Isolation Structures," International Journal of Engineering and Technology, vol. 17, no. 3, pp. 155-162, 2025.
Copyright © 2025 by the authors. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited (
CC BY 4.0).
