Liquid Storage Tanks
Review of Code Provisions on Design Seismic Forces for Liquid Storage Tanks By Dr. O. R. Jaiswal, Dr. Durgesh C Rai, Dr. Sudhir K Jain
Abstract
It is well recognized that liquid storage tanks possess low ductility and energy absorbing capacity as compared to the conventional buildings. Accordingly, various design codes provide higher level of design seismic forces for tanks. In this article, provisions of IBC 2000, ACI, AWWA, API, Eurocode 8 and NZSEE guidelines are reviewed, to assess the severity of design seismic forces for tanks vis-à-vis those for buildings. It is seen that, depending on the type of tank, design seismic force for tanks can be 3 to 7 times higher than that for buildings. Based on the comparison of provisions in these documents, various similarities, discrepancies and limitations in their provisions are brought out. At the end a brief description of Indian code is given along with a few suggestions to remove the inadequacies in Indian code.