ABSTRACT
In recent years, most if not all landmark structures in seismic and even non-seismic areas are designed with seismic hazard mitigation in mind. The Louvre Abu Dhabi dome is a shade-giving structure above the museum’s main gallery and other buildings. The primary structure is a space frame dome, consisting of an upper and lower surface, both shaped as parts of a sphere. The entire roof is supported on just four bearings, situated on top of an equal number of reinforced concrete support towers which are arranged symmetrically around the dome’s perimeter. The bearings provide a base isolation system to the dome above. Under normal conditions, the bearings allow radial expansion and contraction. During a seismic event, the bearings allow the top of the support towers to move without imparting large forces to the dome’s primary steelwork. This case study illustrates the design fundamentals and technical description of the pendulum isolators (equipped with ETA-approved special sliding material), the testing protocols and results according to EN15129, and the project specifications.
