Seismic Protection Of Bridges UsingViscous Dampers

The proposed paper deals with the seismic protection of bridges by means of passive energy dissipation viscous devices installed between the continuous beam deck and the supporting piers. An analytical approach is used to study the problem and a simple design procedure, using the frequency response analysis, is provided to determine the optimal value of the viscous damping parameter characterizing the dampers. Finally, the adequacy of the procedure is verified through time history analyses on an existing bridge.