Full-scale uplift tests on the roof element of a low-rise building

摘要

The east coast of India is highly prone to cyclonic activities which cause extensive damages predominantly to the dwellings that are non-engineered or semi-engineered. Although it may be economically prohibitive to design these houses against cyclonic winds, it is felt that introducing simple construction practices can mitigate the damages. Based on a survey on dwellings taken up by SERC along the east coast line, a typical building configuration was chosen for full-scale tests. Tests were conducted on locally available construction materials. Conventionally built thatched roofs of gabled and hipped shapes, with and without incorporating cyclone resistant features recommended by SERC, and also roof with the asbestos sheets incorporating U-bolts were subjected to equivalent static wind loading. The details of the tests and results are presented and discussed in this paper.