Structural Analysis and Design of Al-Quds Open University – Salfit Branch for Gravity and Lateral Loads
A building is a structure that's composed mainly of slabs, beams, columns and footings. It's built to serve several needs of the society. Humanity has known different types of materials that are used in building structures, like: mud, concrete, steel, composite materials,…,etc. Tradition of Palestine assumes that the reinforced concrete is the most common building material.
This project presents the re-design of the structural design of Al-Quds Open University, which is located in the city of Salfit, Palestine. The structure is a 5-floor, z-shaped building with a total area of 4887.54m² and a total volume of 19715.54m³. It's made of reinforced concrete elements and it is bisected into three blocks by expansion joints. It's composed of classrooms, teachers' rooms, a library, computer labs, a cafeteria, a gym and other utilities.
The analysis and design of the project was divided into two stages. The first stage which was performed in the first semester of the year 2016/2017 and it covered the analysis and design of the structure for the gravity (static) loads only. The second stage was done in the second semester of the year 2016/2017, where the analysis and design of the structure was performed by adding dynamic loads to the existing ones.
In this semester, block (2) was analyzed and designed for both static and dynamic loads using international design specifications like ASCE-07, in addition to international design codes like: ACI-318-11 . The IBC code was also used for the dynamic loads. The design was achieved using two techniques: manual calculations and computer 3D program – ETABS. The expected loads on the structural elements, like axial, shear, moment and torsional loads were analyzed and calculated. After that, the dimensions and the required steel needed for the structural elements were determined so that a structure is safe, strong and serviceable for the purposes it's built for.