SIESMIC RETROFILLING OF EXISTING

STRUCTURES IN SHIMLA
ABSTRACT
Shimla Queen of Hill Stations is the capital of Himachal Pradesh established by British during
colonial period in first half of 19th century as their summer capital. The city possesses distinct British
heritage including institutional buildings, bungalows, churches, hotels, clubs, theatres, schools. Socialcultural spaces etc. Because of tourism administration and institutional activities, the Central Shimla has
got congested and crowded. People are expanding their building floors horizontally and vertically more
than the family requirement. Only 1.52 % of the city residential, commercial and institutional buildings
are safe to an earthquake. As Shimla is situated on the steep slope of 7 hills and fall in the seismic zone IV
there is a great possibility that if the city is hit by an earthquake of magnitude 8 or above the whole city
gets wiped out and can cause enormous destruction of life and property. Even a smaller magnitude of
earthquake can damage non engineering buildings to a very large extent. Thus seismic retrofitting is the
only option to save them from any earthquake hazard.
This paper studies the present condition of buildings in Shimla as per earthquake resistant design,
FRP seismic retrofit system based methods being evolved worldwide and in the end regarding the adoption
of selected methods in Shimla.
Key words: Earthquake, Retrofitting, Non-Engineered Buildings, Fiber Reinforced Polymer

INTRODUCTION
Earthquake mainly occurs through the sudden moment of earth crest. These sudden movements releases
strain energy in the tremendous amount in the form of seismic waves through the crest. These waves cause
the ground to vibrate and these vibrations are the principal concern of structural engineering. If a building is
not designed and constructed to absorb these ground movements or vibration the structure can collapse and
result great risk to human life. Shimla is the city of rich architectural and cultural heritage with a large
number of historical and heritage buildings established during colonial period of British in first half of 19th
century. If once they are lost a part of history is lost forever. More than 98% of the buildings are unsafe to an
earthquake so retrofitting becomes the last option for the existing structure t safeguard from an earthquake
as Shimla city falls in seismic zone IV
Japan has developed various advanced and efficient seismic retrofitting methods especially after Kobe
Earthquake (in 1995). These methods form the basis and many other countries have adopted these methods
and developed according to their own requirements. Out of various methods FRP (fiber reinforced polymer)

retrofit system based methods and Re Fo-Mo-Wall construction method are of greater interest. This research
paper focuses on the use of these seismic retrofitting methods in Shimla for non-engineering buildings as
application of these methods are simple and dont require much technical skill.

CURRENT SCENARIO OF BUILDINGS IN SHIMLA

Shimla is situated on a range of entirely mountainous middle Himalayan which forms the last traverse spur
of the central Himalayas south of river Satluj. Shimla lies at 30 6 North latitude and 77 11 East
longitudes, and its mean elevation is 2397.59m above msl. The existing resembles an irregular crescent with
an 9.2 km extension from one end to the other covering a total area of 19.55 sq. km. Shimla is located in
zone IV and V (about 99.62% area falls in zone IV and .38% falls in zone V) making the region liable to
experience a earthquake of intensity MSK VIII or more. According the report prepared by Himachal
Pradesh state disaster management authority seismically the state lies in the great alpine Himalayan seismic
belt running from alps mountain through Serbia Croatia turkey Iran Afghanistan Pakistan India Nepal
Bhutan and Burma

Fig1 SANJAULI, SHIMLA

A survey conducted by the United Nations development program revealed that most building in Shimla
constructed in recent years were structurally unsafe and posed a threat to local population. The biggest
threat is to some of the heritage buildings which if damaged cant be rebuilt or involve a high cost of
restoration.

The disaster management plan prepared by Shimla municipal corporation in collaboration with UNDP in
2013 bears the shocking truth : only 1.52% of city residential, commercial and institutional buildings have
been constructed to ride out an earthquake. More than 98% would suffer substantial structure damage or
simple collapse. Also 72% of the structures are not accessible by motor able roads making rescue operations
difficult. The death toll would mount exponentially as it would become impossible to reach victims. Only .41
% of the total area is for parks and open space leaving negligible escaping space from falling debris. The fire
service is 96% understaffed and there are only 3 fire stations. According to the report 78.64% of buildings
fall in category A, followed by 12.96% in category B, 6.88% in category C. The buildings categorized as A
are those made of mud, adobe and random stone. These are liable to suffer partial damage in wake of quakes
of magnitude 8. B category buildings are made of large blocks and poor quality of timber. These are liable to
develop deep cracks. C types are reinforced buildings that will develop only small cracks
Development plan of Shimla prepared by town and country planning department has identified geological
weak areas includes northern slopes of ridge extending up to grand hotel in the west covering Lakar Bazaar
including the central school extending to Aukland nursery school then down to Dhobighaat below Idgah
electric substation. Shimla was planned for a maximum population of 16000; the town now supports 236000
as per provisional census figures for 2011.

SEISMIC RETROFITTING USING FIBER REINFORCED POLYMERS (FRP)

COMPOSITES
Fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) is a composite material consisting of polymeric resin reinforced in high
strength fibers. The composite material is available in the form of sheets (or fabrics), preformed shapes and
bars. The FRP sheets are thin light and flexible enough to be inserted behind pipes, electrical and mechanical
ducts, thus facilitation installation.

Fig 2 Typical Lay-Up of FRP Composite

Properties of FRP
1. FRP sheets are light and flexible
2. The curing time is less.
3. The sheets have high strength t weight ratio.
4. Material is chemically inert and has resistance against corrosion,
Constituent materials
FRP consist of two components, polymeric resin and high strength non metallic fibers. The resin acts as a
matrix (the bulk component) and fiber as reinforcement.
Resins such as epoxy and polyesters have been used in different techniques of retrofit.
Table 1Typical values of properties of epoxy resin

Fibers can be of carbon, glass and aramid.

Fig 3 Unidirectional Cloth of Carbon, Glass and Aramid

Installation of FRP composites
1. The concrete or masonary surface to which the FRP laminates are to be applied should
be freshly exposed and loose unsound material have to be removed.
2. All dirt, dust, oil, curing compound, existing coating and any other matter that could
interfere with the
bond of FRP composites to substrates should be removed.
3. Concavity in the surface should be eliminated. A stretched FRP sheet will loose
contact with the surface around depression.

4. Sharp edges and corners should be avoided. The corner should be rounded to a
minimum radius of 25mm. The sheets are susceptible to tearing at these locations due
to stress concentration.
Installation of FRP sheets on concrete substrate

Fig 4 Installation of FRP Sheets on Concrete Substrate

CARBON FIBRE RETROFIT SYSTEM (CRS SYSTEM)
FOR COLUMN
CRS- CL method is a seismic retrofit technique for existing reinforced concrete columns and concreteencased steel composite columns using carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) sheet or strand. Shear
strength, lateral deformability and axial capacity of the column members can be improved by confining
with CFRP sheet or strand.
SPECIFICATIONS FOR MATERIALS
CRS-CL Method uses carbon fiber (CF) sheet or strand as the reinforcing material.
Table 2 Specifications of the Reinforcing Materials

TYPICAL CONSTRUCTION DETAILS

The construction process of CRS CL method is as follows: removal of existing, finishing, rounding of
corner, wrapping CF sheet or winding CF strands with simultaneous impregnation of epoxy resin and
finishing of retrofitted column.

Fig 4The typical construction details

Fig 5 Two methods for providing CFRP

FOR BEAMS
(a) carbon fiber sheet
Elastic
Fracture
Stress
weight
thickness
modulus
stress
for design
g/m2
mm
kN/mm2
N/mm2
N/mm2
200
0.111
230
3400
1750
300
0.167

(b) carbon fiber shrand

number of
Elastic
Fracure
Stress
area
filament

modulus
stress
for design
mm2
kN/mm2
N/mm2
N/mm2
12000
0.435
230
3400
1750
4. Typical construction details
The construction process of CRS-CL Method is as follows: removal of existing finishing, rounding
of corners, wrapping CF sheet or winding CF strand with simultaneous impregnation of epoxy resin, and
finishing of the retrofitted column.
Figure 1 shows cross sections according to the construction process. Figure 2 illustrates wrapping
CF sheet (Sheet Method) and winding CF strand (Strand Method).
exsiting
glinding
CFRP
finishing
finishing

existing
mortar
mortar

column
ReFo-Mo-Wall construction method, a seismic retrofitting method making use of existing
mortar external walls
This seismic retrofitting method turns existing mortar external walls into load-bearing walls, by (1)
attaching base sheets (nonwoven resin fabric) onto the side of external walls and held in place with washerattached nails to the foundation, posts, and beams; and (2) applying net sheets and polymer cement mortar
(to prevent mortar peeling) to the side to be reinforced, and finishing with paint. It can be used on
residential buildings two stories and lower, built using the wooden post-and-beam construction method
with mortar external walls.

As this construction method turns existing mortar external walls into load-bearing walls, seismic strength
can be improved just by working on the exterior of the building without having to dismantle the buildings
interior. Through this technique, seismic retrofitting can be carried out without having to involve the entire
building, reducing the burden on the customer by reducing cost and allowing the customer to continue
staying in the building. By developing this construction method, it is now possible to propose to customers
an option for seismic retrofitting which does not include having to dismantle interior areas.

Reinforcement process

Fig 3 Application of ReFo-Mo-Wall

1. Base sheets (nonwoven resin fabric) are attached from the side of the external walls, and held
in place to the foundation, posts and beams with washer-attached nails.
2. Net sheets and polymer cement mortar (to prevent mortar peeling) are applied to the side to

be reinforced, and finished with paint.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Recent studies on the Shimla city revealed that most of the buildings are unsafe to earthquake and poses a
threat to the local population. In recent years numbers of earthquakes have hit the HP and its neighboring
states that has led to the fear of bigger quakes hitting the state in future. Massive haphazard construction in
Shimla has made it prone to earthquake. Peak population density has reached to 2000 to 3000 per hectare.
Localities like Sanjauli, Jiunu colony, Chakkar, Kachi Ghati, Lower Bazaar and many other places are
susceptible to major mishap during earthquake where the chain effect of collapse of buildings may affect
many buildings on slopes down below. Strengthening of each building with seismic retrofitting method
survive better than those that have not been upgraded. It has also proved that well maintained buildings have
performed better than those in poor condition during and after an earthquake. Thus seismic retrofit is critical
component for the protection of existing buildings in Shimla.
FRP composites retrofit system based methods are widely used around the world. These composite materials
are available in the form of sheets (fabrics), pre-formed shapes and bars. FRP are relatively expensive as
compared to traditional strengthening material such as concrete, steel, labor, equipments and construction
cost. FRP is useful in areas with limited access, where traditional techniques such as concrete and steel
jacking would be impracticable. As we know Shimla has become very congested city where there is only .
41% of total area is for parks and open space, the FRP composite retrofit system based methods become very
important component for the seismic retrofitting of existing buildings in Shimla.
FRP retrofit methods which should be adopted in Shimla are

For columns: CRS-CL method, AF system method, SR-CF system method

For beams : CRS-BM method, AF system method, SR-CF system method
For walls : SR-CF system method and Re Fo-Mo wall construction method

REFERENCES
1. CLIMATE RESILIENCE STRATEGY SHIMLA by ICLET, ACCCRN and Shimla Municipal
Corporation.
2. Heritage of Shimla, TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING DEPARTMENT SHIMLA 171009 HP
3. DISTRICT DISATER MANAGEMENT PALN OF DISTRICT SHIMLA 2012 prepared by district
4.

disaster management authority Shimla.

shimlamc.gov.in

5. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/shimla/Himachal-Pradesh-prone-toearthquakes/articleshow/50684039.cms
6. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/High-intensity-quake-could-reduce-Shimla-to-rubbleNational-Disaster-Management-Authority-report/articleshow/21011726.cms
7. http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/himachal/shimla-falling-in-high-risk-seismic-zone/92081.html
8. http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/shimla-srinagar-congested-over-crowded-hpdisaster/1/393984.html
9. HANDBOOK IN SEISMIC RETROFIT OF BUILDINGS APRL 2007, CENTRAL PUBLIC
WORKS DEPARTMENT AND INDIAN BUILDING CONGRESS IN ASSOSCIATION WITH IIT
MADRAS.
10. JAPAN BUILDING DISASTER PREVENTION ASSOSCIATION (REPORT ON RECENT
DEVELOPMENT OF SEISMIC RETROFIT METHODS IN JAPAN)