Seismosoft | Earthquake Engineering Solutions

i want to calculate the stiffness parameter for gap-hk link to get stiffness proportional damping for gap element between two adjacent buildings and according to seismostruct manual, the stiffness parameter is function with T.

the question is which T should be used in this case?? average T for the two buildings? or T for link (which hasn't T)

any one help me please

In the gap element the stiffness is either zero, when the two buildings are not in contact, or a very large value (theoritically infinite), when the two buildings are in contact. Why do you want to specify stiffness proportional damping specifically for the link element? Probably we are missing something, however it seems to us that it makes little sense to define stiffness proportional damping for a gap element.

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i want to represent the gap element by viscoelastic model which consist of spring and dumper, i use the gap-hk link do the function of spring and i want to take the effect of damping by define the stiffness proportional damping for the link instead of using dumper, also the stiffness of this link has a value when it reach specific displacement and the damping will occur in this case.

if there is no useful from the stiffness proportional damping for the link, so why seismostruct include this option?

The gap-hook curve is not a typical hysteteric curve. Stiffness proportional damping is useful in link elements with typical hysteretic curves.

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