Simplified Method for Ductility-Based Seismic Design of Railway Rectangular Hollow Pier

For reinforced piers, simplified method of ductility-based seismic design provided by Chinese "Code for Seismic Design of Railway Engineering" is presented in the paper. For eccentrically compressed member with rectangular section, simplified formula for calculating curvature ductility coefficient is deduced theoretically. Combined with formulas for calculating the equivalent length of plastic hinge in relevant codes by New Zealand, United States and China, the formula for displacement ductility coefficients is obtained. Illustrated by a case of the Xishansi Bridge in Dali-Ruili railway line, displacement ductility coefficients of rectangular hollow piers with different reinforcement ratio are calculated. The results calculated by the Chinese Code and theoretical formula suggested are basically identical. It is shown that the proposed formula is efficient, and helpful for similar pier design.