Seismic Isolation of Storage Tanks

There has been a significant amount of research activity over the past decade on the seismic design of storage tanks. The seismic design issues and limit states are quite complex due to the fluid-tank interaction. Seismic isolation, an innovative and relatively new technology in the building and bridge fields, provides the opportunity of significantly reducing the seismic forces to which a structure is subjected. This paper examines conceptual methods and design issues of installing seismic isolators beneath storage tanks. The performance of isolated tanks is then assessed with the use of two case studies.