Damage scenarios for RC buildings during the 2012 Emilia (Italy) earthquake

The main features of the Reinforced Concrete (RC) building stock that was struck by the Emilia 2012 earthquake and damage observed after the event are analyzed. Building stock characteristics and historical seismic classification are employed for the definition of two benchmark structures, representative of the whole building stock. Seismic capacity of the two structures, at different damage states, is assessed through static push-over analyses, within the N2 spectral assessment framework. Infill panels׳ contribution in terms of strength and stiffness is explicitly taken into account in the analytical model. Damage States are defined according to a mechanical interpretation of EMS-98 scale. Fragility functions at each Damage State are obtained through the application of a Response Surface Method. Finally large-scale damage scenarios are obtained crossing the geo-referenced census data regarding the characteristics of the Emilia RC building stock and starting from the seismic input provided by the shake map of the event. The scenarios seem to be in reasonable agreement with the observed damage.