ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT: A method is presented for evaluating the economic efficiency of a semi-active magneto-rheological (MR) damper system for cable-stayed bridges under earthquake loadings. An optimal MR damper capacity maximizing the cost-effectiveness is estimated for various seismic characteristics of ground motion. The economic efficiency of MR damper system is addressed by introducing the life-cycle cost concept. To evaluate the expected damage cost, the probability of failure is estimated. The cost-effectiveness index is defined as the ratio of the sums of the expected damage costs and each device cost between a bridge structure with the MR damper system and a bridge structure with elastic bearings. In the evaluation of cost-effectiveness, the scale of damage cost is adopted as parametric variables. The results of the evaluation show that the MR damper system is highly cost-effective especially for the ground motion of moderate seismicity.
