SEISMIC NUMERICAL MODELLING OF ELECTRICAL CABINETS

The seismic performance of non-structural elements, such as electrical cabinets, has been proven to be of crucial importance when assessing the global performance of modern code-compliant facilities. The seismic performance of several typologies of electrical cabinets was recently assessed in a shake table testing campaign conducted in the 6DLAB laboratory of the Eucentre Foundation, located in Pavia, Italy. Using the experimental data obtained from the testing campaign, numerical models were calibrated to reproduce the hysteretic response of the electrical cabinets. Three different criteria were considered for the calibration of the numerical models: i) absorbed energy time-history, ii) relative displacement time-history, and iii) force-relative displacement hysteretic response. The developed numerical models can approximate the seismic response of the electrical cabinets when subjected to the seismic testing protocols of increasing intensity used during the testing campaign. Furthermore, the developed numerical models are useful to generalize the experimental results obtained in the testing campaign and can be used to conduct additional numerical studies on the seismic performance of other configurations of electrical cabinet systems.