Academic Affiliate
A structural engineering researcher is being sought to support a project investigating the seismic
performance of low-damage structural systems. Despite progress made in the development of building
codes to protect lives, communities continue to face costly and sometimes lengthy recoveries following
major earthquakes. Interest in designing structures to achieve post-earthquake functionality has created
the opportunity for innovative approaches to be brought into the mainstream of building design.
Rocking structural systems are designed to allow all or a portion of the seismic force-resisting system to
uplift or rock, providing a form of “isolation” from the earthquake motion thus minimizing damage.
Over the past several decades, the feasibility of rocking systems has been demonstrated through peer-
reviewed research and implementation in buildings and bridges. Particularly, recently constructed
buildings have demonstrated that rocking systems can provide cost-effective solutions to help meet
recovery-based design objectives (e.g., functional recovery).
The successful candidate will conduct research evaluating the performance benefits of rocking structural
systems in comparison to conventional systems. This work is intended to help advance the
understanding of low damage rocking systems and provide new comprehensive guidelines for practicing
engineers. Additionally, the researcher will investigate the influence of ground motion selection and
scaling procedures and identify ground motion parameters that most affect rocking behavior. This work
will contribute to current NIST research projects and will be synergistic with ongoing NIST collaborations
with external researchers and practitioners.
Low-Damage Rocking Structures
- U.S. Citizenship is preferred
- A Ph.D. in Civil Engineering or Structural Engineering, with a focus on Earthquake Engineering
- Extensive experience in nonlinear modeling using OpenSees
- Expertise in programming in python, MATLAB, and tcl.
- Familiarity with performance-based seismic design
- Expertise in rocking structural systems and low-damage structural systems, including past
publications demonstrating modeling ability - Experience in large scale structural testing, component testing, and shake table testing.
- Strong oral and written communication skills.
Key responsibilities:
- Conduct parametric studies of rocking and conventional buildings to understand the most
influential ground motion characteristics on a variety of engineering demand parameters - Develop nonlinear structural models and conduct evaluations of conventional and low-damage
systems - Develop design guidelines for low-damage structural systems to promote wider use
- Develop and test new low-damage technologies that focus on implementation
- Develop a structural component database, utilizing past experimental testing expertise and
programming expertise. - Evaluate the cost-benefits of rocking systems over a range of seismic hazards and building types.