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The definition of base is intentionally and have little to no impact on the level at ally be conservatively established as the
broad, as many factors affect its location. which horizontal seismic ground motions lowest elevation of the tops of elements
Some of the factors are: are imparted to a building. supporting the vertical elements of the
Location of the grade relative seismic-force-resisting system.
to floor levels; Buildings on Level Sites
Soil conditions adjacent to Buildings with Basements
the building; Buildings without Basements on Level Sites
Openings in basement walls; on Level Sites For a building with a basement located
Location and stiffness of vertical For typical buildings on level sites with on a level site, it is often appropriate to
elements of the seismic-force- competent soils, the base is generally locate the base at the floor closest to grade
resisting system; close to grade. For a building without (Figure 2). For the base to be near grade,
Location and extent of a basement, the base is generally estab- stiff soils are required over the depth of
seismic separations; lished near the ground-level slab elevation the basement because seismic forces will
Depth of basement; (Figure 1). Where the vertical elements of be transmitted to and from the building
Manner in which basement walls the seismic-force-resisting system are over the height of the basement walls.
are supported; supported on interior footings or pile For tall or heavy buildings or where soft
Proximity to adjacent buildings; and caps, the base is commonly established soils are present near the surface, the soils
Slope of grade. at the top of these elements or else at may compress too much laterally during
Note that piles are not included in this the top of the slab-on-grade. Where the an earthquake to transmit seismic forces
list. Horizontal ground motion is of pri- vertical elements of the seismic-force- near grade. The engineer of record is
mary importance for locating the base. resisting system are supported on top of responsible for making a determination
performance issues relative to extreme events
In general, horizontal ground motion is perimeter foundation walls, the base as to whether the soils are stiff enough to
transfer the seismic force at a level close
to grade. If the base is to be established at
the level located closest to grade, the pro-
file over the depth of the basement should
not include soils that are liquefiable, quick
or highly sensitive clays, or soils that are
weakly cemented that are susceptible to
failure or collapse in a maximum consid-
Base at ered earthquake. If these soils are present
Ground over the depth of the basement, the base
Floor should be established at the bottom of
the basement.
Occasionally, the base may be at the floor
level adjacent to, or as much as a few feet
Figure 2: Base at ground floor level. above, grade. For the base to be located at
Figure 2 Base at ground floor level
STRUCTURE magazine 8 December 2009
Base at level
closest to grade
Base below
grade
Figure 3: Base at level closest to grade elevation. Figure 4: Base below substantial openings in basement wall.
Figure 3 Base at level closest to grade elevation Figure 4 Base below substantial openings in basement
wall
a floor level above grade, stiff foundation walls condition where the basement walls may not Other Conditions Requiring the
on or near all sides of the building should be stiff relative to the structure above grade
extend to the underside of the elevated level is where the vertical elements of the seismic
Base to Be Below Grade
that is to be considered the base. The validity force-resisting system are long concrete shear Other conditions may also necessitate estab-
of having the base above grade is based on the walls extending over the full height and length lishing the base below grade for a building
same principles used to justify the two-stage of the building (Figure 5, page 10). For this with a basement that is located on a level site.
equivalent lateral force procedure permitted case, the appropriate location for the base is Such conditions include: where seismic sepa-
in Section 12.2.3.1 of ASCE/SEI 7-05. This likely at the foundation level of the basement rations extend through the floor structures
procedure allows one to apply the equivalent walls, unless the soils against the basement located close to and above grade; where the
lateral force procedure to a flexible upper walls are very stiff. floor diaphragms close to and below grade are
portion of a building as if it were founded at Where the base is established below grade, not tied to the foundation wall; where the floor
the ground level instead of on top of a lower the weight of the portion of the story that is diaphragms, including the diaphragm for the
portion of the building that is 10 times as partially above and below grade must be included floor close to grade, are flexible; and, where
stiff as the upper portion. For a floor level as part of the effective seismic weight. If the other buildings are located nearby. Knowledge
above grade to be considered the base, grade equivalent lateral force procedure is used, this of dynamic response of buildings and engi-
should generally not be lower than one-half can result in disproportionately high forces in neering judgment are often critical in defining
the height of the basement story below the upper levels due to a large mass at this lowest the base of these structures.
level considered base (Figure 3). The concept level above the base. The magnitude of these
of establishing the base at a level above grade forces can often be mitigated by using the Effect of Seismic Separations
is also applicable to small structures. Typical two-stage equivalent lateral force procedure For a building with seismic separations ex-
examples include light-framed structures that where allowed, or by using a dynamic analysis to tending through the height of the building
rest on a stiff basement or crawl space walls determine force distribution over the height including levels close to and below grade, the
of concrete or masonry. The two-stage analysis of the building. If a dynamic analysis is used, separate structures will not be supported by
procedure can be used to design the basement it may be necessary to include many modes the soil against a basement wall on all sides in
or crawl space walls with the weight of the first to capture the required mass participation unless all directions. If there is only one joint through
level included, but the design of the upper soil springs are incorporated into the model. the building, assigning the base to the level
stories would not be affected by the mass of Incorporation of soil springs into the model will close to grade may still be appropriate if the
the concrete or masonry walls or the level of also minimize seismic forces in the upper levels. soils over the depth of the basement walls are
frame supported on the top of these walls.
If the base is located at the level closest to
grade, the lateral stiffness of the basement
walls should be substantially greater than the
stiffness of the vertical elements of the seismic
force-resisting system. However, a condition
Figure 5: Base at foundation level where concrete shear walls extend over Figure 6: Building withFigure
tie-back or cantilevered
6 Building retaining
with tie-back wall that is separate
or cantilevered
Figureand
the full height 5 length
Base atoffoundation level where there is full
the building. from the building. retaining wall that is separate from the building
length exterior shear walls
stiff and the diaphragm is rigid. Stiff soils are a structure, the slabs may intentionally not be buildings with basements are located adjacent
required so that the seismic forces can be trans- tied to the wall to allow relative movement to one or more sides of a building, it may be
ferred between the soils and basement walls in between them. In other cases, a soft joint may appropriate to locate the base at the bottom of
both bearing and side friction. The structural be provided. If shear forces cannot be trans- the basement. The interaction of the structure,
engineer generally consults with a geotechnical ferred between the wall and a ground-level or the surrounding soils, and adjacent buildings,
engineer to determine if the soils are stiff basement floor, the location of the base will and analyses that account for such interaction,
enough. If the soils are not stiff, adequate side depend on whether forces can be transferred are complex. Well established rules of thumb
friction may not develop for movement in through bearing between the floor diaphragm about when to consider interaction of adjacent
the direction perpendicular to the joint and, and the basement wall, and between the structures through the soils are not available
consequently, the base should be located at the basement wall and the surrounding soils. Floor for commercial buildings. Although not well
level of the basement slab or foundations. diaphragms bearing against the basement established within commercial building design,
For large footprint buildings, seismic separation walls must resist the compressive stress from a rule of thumb for when interaction occurs is
joints may extend through the building in earthquake forces without buckling. If a seismic when the buildings are closer to one another
two directions and there may be multiple paral- or expansion joint is provided in one of these by an amount that is less than two times the
lel joints in a given direction. For individual buildings, the base will almost certainly need depth of the basements; however, this rule
structures within these buildings, substantial to be located at the foundation level or a level is not always applicable and other factors
differences in the location of the center of ri- below grade where the joint no longer exists. such as the mass and plan dimensions of
gidity for the levels below grade relative to levels the structures can be equally as important.
above grade can lead to torsional response. For Flexible Diaphragms near Grade In general, the closer buildings are to one
such buildings, the base should usually be at If the diaphragm at grade is flexible and does another, the more likely it is that the base
the foundation elements below the basement not have substantial compressive strength, the should be below grade.
or, in the case where the joints are not present base of the building may need to be located
in the lower basement levels, the base may be below grade. This condition is more com- Buildings on Sloping Sites
at a basement slab level where the separations mon with existing buildings. Newer buildings For buildings on sites with sloping grade,
are not provided. with flexible diaphragms should be designed many of the same considerations for a level
for compression within elements of the site are applicable. For example, on steeply
Floors Separated from Basement Walls diaphragm to avoid the damage that would sloped sites, the earth may be retained by a
Where basement floor levels are not tied to occur otherwise. tie-back wall so that the seismic-force-resisting
foundation walls, the base may need to be system of the building does not have to resist
located well below grade at the foundation Nearby Buildings the lateral soil pressures. For such a case, the
level. An example is a building with tie-back The proximity to other buildings can also building will be independent of the wall, so
walls and post-tensioned floor slabs. For such impact the location of the base. If other the base should be located at a level close
Shear Wall
Sloping grade Sloping grade