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Applied Sciences
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Advances in Earthquake Engineering and Seismic Resilience
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Advances in Earthquake Engineering and Seismic Resilience

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Civil Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 May 2026 | Viewed by 3248

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Konstantinos A. Kapasakalis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Structural Analysis and Antiseismic Research, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Zografou Campus, GR-157 80 Athens, Greece
Interests: development of negative stiffness-based seismic base absorbers; development of stiff vertical vibration absorption configurations; optimal design of vibration control systems with multi-objective optimization algorithms; sensitivity analysis and robust optimization; investigation of soil–structure interaction and non-linear effects; analysis of onshore and offshore wind turbine towers with finite element models accounting fluid–structure interaction; experimental validation of negative stiffness-based base isolation systems

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Earthquake engineering and seismic resilience focus on enhancing the ability of buildings and infrastructure to withstand and recover from seismic events, ensuring their critical social and economic functions. Modern structures must be designed with high resilience to earthquakes, reflecting a city’s overall disaster preparedness. Pre-earthquake resilience assessments play a crucial role in emergency planning and retrofitting strategies, emphasizing the need for resilience beyond conventional design codes. Seismic resilience, the ability to absorb, adapt to, and recover from earthquake-induced damage without catastrophic failure, is essential in structural design, maintenance, and post-event recovery. While mitigating structural damage under seismic conditions remains a challenge, advancements in materials, engineering methodologies, performance-based design, and computational tools offer promising solutions.

This Special Issue highlights recent progress in earthquake engineering and seismic resilience. We invite contributions on innovative engineering techniques, performance-based seismic design, and advanced structural solutions for earthquake-resistant infrastructure. This collection aims to engage academics, engineers, and industry professionals in the fields of construction and disaster mitigation. We encourage submissions of original research, reviews, and case studies addressing seismic resilience in both new and existing structures.

Topics of interest include the following:

  • Advanced composite materials for retrofitting;
  • Seismic load analysis of construction materials;
  • Damage detection and condition assessment;
  • Damage limitation design and sustainability;
  • Innovative seismic-resilient structural design;
  • Systems for damage minimization and recovery post-earthquake;
  • Integrated seismic retrofitting and strengthening techniques;
  • Novel resilient structural systems;
  • Performance-based seismic design;
  • Seismic hazard and risk mitigation;
  • Multi-level seismic performance of critical infrastructure;
  • Seismic resilience assessment;
  • Seismic safety and retrofit of existing structures;
  • Seismic vulnerability assessment;
  • Structural health monitoring.
  • Innovative vibration control devices (e.g., tuned mass dampers, negative stiffness devices, inerters, KDampers)

Dr. Konstantinos A. Kapasakalis
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • seismic retrofitting
  • seismic-resilient design
  • performance-based design
  • risk mitigation
  • structural health monitoring
  • vibration control

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 1287 KB  
Article
Soil-Dependent Optimization of TMD- and Inerter-Based Devices for Seismic Retrofit of Multi-Story Structures
by Konstantinos Kapasakalis, Georgios Florakis, Maria Spanea and Evangelos Sapountzakis
Appl. Sci. 2026, 16(6), 2745; https://doi.org/10.3390/app16062745 - 13 Mar 2026
Viewed by 187
Abstract
Distributed passive vibration control systems (VCSs) offer an attractive solution for improving the seismic response of multi-story buildings, particularly in seismic retrofit applications and when soil–structure interaction (SSI) effects are explicitly considered. This study presents a soil-dependent optimization framework of distributed Tuned Mass [...] Read more.
Distributed passive vibration control systems (VCSs) offer an attractive solution for improving the seismic response of multi-story buildings, particularly in seismic retrofit applications and when soil–structure interaction (SSI) effects are explicitly considered. This study presents a soil-dependent optimization framework of distributed Tuned Mass Damper (TMD) and Tuned Mass Damper Inerter (TMDI) systems applied to a ten-story building. The proposed framework determines the optimal number, tuning, damping and spatial distribution of these VCS, including non-collocated inerter configurations for TMDI layouts, while also examining different auxiliary mass ratios. Soil–structure interaction effects are explicitly incorporated by considering four soil classes (A–D) in accordance with Eurocode 8, enabling a systematic evaluation of soil-dependent vibration control effectiveness. Structural performance is evaluated using normalized performance criteria associated with peak absolute floor displacements, floor accelerations and inter-story drifts. The results indicate that distributing control devices along the height of the structure enhances seismic mitigation for both TMD and TMDI configurations, with performance improvements becoming more pronounced as the number of devices increases. Moreover, TMDI systems consistently achieve superior response reduction compared to TMDs across all soil classes, highlighting their potential as a robust, efficient, and lightweight passive vibration control solution for seismic retrofit applications involving SSI effects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Earthquake Engineering and Seismic Resilience)
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19 pages, 4607 KB  
Article
Numerical Investigation of the Seismic Response of Historic Masonry Retaining Walls
by Mehdi Öztürk and Yasemin Beril Ay
Appl. Sci. 2026, 16(3), 1580; https://doi.org/10.3390/app16031580 - 4 Feb 2026
Viewed by 330
Abstract
Masonry retaining walls constitute an essential component of historic and urban infrastructure in seismic regions; however, their seismic performance remains insufficiently quantified due to material heterogeneity, limited tensile capacity, and complex soil–structure interaction. This study investigates the seismic response of historic stone masonry [...] Read more.
Masonry retaining walls constitute an essential component of historic and urban infrastructure in seismic regions; however, their seismic performance remains insufficiently quantified due to material heterogeneity, limited tensile capacity, and complex soil–structure interaction. This study investigates the seismic response of historic stone masonry retaining walls using a finite element-based anisotropic macro-modeling approach. The analysis focuses on the perimeter retaining walls of Emirgan Grove in Istanbul, which represent culturally significant heritage structures constructed from natural limestone and cement–lime mortar. Material properties were defined based on experimental test results and representative values reported in the literature, while composite anisotropic behavior was incorporated into the numerical models. Static loads, earth pressures, and seismic actions were applied in accordance with the Turkish Building Earthquake Code (TBEC-2018) using the equivalent static earthquake load method. Representative wall segments with heights of 2.5 m, 3.5 m, 4.0 m, and 6.30 m were analyzed. The numerical results show that maximum compressive stresses reached approximately 0.48 MPa, remaining well below the allowable limit of 4.50 MPa, while maximum tensile stresses of about 0.28 MPa did not exceed the allowable tensile limit of 1.00 MPa. In contrast, shear stresses locally reached approximately 0.25 MPa, exceeding the allowable shear limit of 0.10 MPa, particularly along the soil–wall interface in taller walls. Sliding stability was satisfied in all cases, whereas overturning and shear behavior governed seismic vulnerability. These findings confirm that wall height is the primary parameter controlling seismic response and demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed framework for preservation-oriented seismic safety assessment of historic masonry retaining walls. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Earthquake Engineering and Seismic Resilience)
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28 pages, 3326 KB  
Article
Non-Dimensional Parameters to Design Damper Systems in RC Existing Framed Buildings
by Eliana Parcesepe, Alessandra De Angelis and Maria Rosaria Pecce
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(20), 11029; https://doi.org/10.3390/app152011029 - 14 Oct 2025
Viewed by 661
Abstract
The use of dissipative bracing systems by hysteretic dampers represents one of the most efficient innovative techniques for the seismic retrofitting of existing structures, especially for reinforced concrete (RC) frame buildings. Many studies on design approaches and case studies have been developed in [...] Read more.
The use of dissipative bracing systems by hysteretic dampers represents one of the most efficient innovative techniques for the seismic retrofitting of existing structures, especially for reinforced concrete (RC) frame buildings. Many studies on design approaches and case studies have been developed in recent decades and are still in progress; however, the importance of the relation between the properties of the existing structure and of the damper system has not been analyzed, and the influence of the type of arrangement inside or outside the structure, has not been pointed out. In this paper, an innovative dimensionless approach is proposed to describe the dynamic structural properties of the retrofitted structure introducing ratios between the properties of the existing structure and damper system. Therefore, indications to optimize the design of the passive energy dissipation (PED) system can be clearly established for each case. Furthermore, a generalization of the design approach considering different solutions with internal and external bracings is proposed. The application of the dimensionless parameters to the design of a dissipation system for a single-bay three-story RC frame building and points out that damping can be reduced by two times if the capacity of the existing structure is used, further reducing the base shear transmitted to foundation. This result is also obtained by mounting the PED system on an external structure. The effect of infill walls on the stiffness of the existing structure requires an increment of the stiffness of the PED system with double the stiffness of the devices further than the buckling-restrained braces (BRBs). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Earthquake Engineering and Seismic Resilience)
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20 pages, 5840 KB  
Article
Impact of Near-Fault Seismic Inputs on Building Performance: A Case Study Informed by the 2023 Maras Earthquakes
by Mehdi Öztürk and Mehmet Ali Karan
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(18), 10142; https://doi.org/10.3390/app151810142 - 17 Sep 2025
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1094
Abstract
This study investigates the seismic performance of existing reinforced concrete (RC) buildings, focusing on the influence of near-fault ground motions caused by proximity to fault lines. Compared to ordinary or far-fault earthquakes, near-fault earthquakes may have diverse effects on the response of buildings [...] Read more.
This study investigates the seismic performance of existing reinforced concrete (RC) buildings, focusing on the influence of near-fault ground motions caused by proximity to fault lines. Compared to ordinary or far-fault earthquakes, near-fault earthquakes may have diverse effects on the response of buildings resulting from directivity and intense velocity pulses, which significantly amplify seismic demands. For this purpose, nonlinear time history analyses were carried out on a seven-story RC residential building that was subjected to near-fault effects and sustained heavy damage during the Kahramanmaraş earthquakes on 6 February 2023. The analyses used both near-fault and far-fault ground motion records, and four structural models were developed by gradually reducing the number of shear wall elements to assess the impact of diminishing lateral-load-resisting capacity. The results revealed that near-fault ground motions led to significant increases in base shear, inter-story drift ratios, and structural damage levels. Furthermore, a reduction in shear wall content resulted in a noticeable decline in seismic performance. These findings underscore the necessity of accounting for near-fault effects in seismic design and the critical role of lateral stiffness. The study emphasizes that considering near-fault characteristics is essential for ensuring the seismic resilience of RC buildings located in active seismic zones. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Earthquake Engineering and Seismic Resilience)
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