Seismic Response of Cylindrical Elevated Steel Water Tank

Elevated water tanks are most commonly used to store water and to supply at certain height for pressurizing the water distribution system. A major irregularity along the height of the structure is due to large water mass on the top and complex phenomenon of dynamic interface between the fluid and the walls of the tank with the horizontal acceleration causing the sloshing, which determines the need for specific conditions. These issues pose significant problems in terms of design and modeling of such structure, making it particularly inspiring from a structural analysis point of view. The seismic performances of these storage tanks are a matter of special importance extending beyond the economic value of the tanks. The seismic behavior of the elevated water tanks is different from that of a ground supported tank or underground water tank. Therefore, in the present paper, a seismic analysis using response spectrum method is carried out for steel elevated water tanks. The study is made on cylindrical elevated water tank with and without the bracing configurations (2-store, 3-story and 4-story) considering different earthquake zones (zone 2 to 5) and soil conditions.