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Soil–structure interaction (SSI), which characterizes the dynamic interaction between a structure and its surrounding soil, is of great significance to the seismic assessment of structures. Past research endeavors have undertaken analytical, numerical, and experimental studies to gain a thorough understanding of the influences of SSI on the seismic responses of a wide array of structures, including but not limited to nuclear power plants, frame structures, bridges, and spatial structures. Thereinto, large-span spatial structures generally have much more complex configurations, and the influences of SSI may be more pronounced. To this end, this paper aims to provide a state-of-the-art review of the SSI in the seismic assessment of large-span spatial structures. It begins with the modelling of soil medium, followed by the research progress of SSI in terms of numerical simulations and experiments. Subsequently, the focus shifts towards high-lighting advancements in understanding the seismic responses of large-span spatial structures considering SSI. Finally, some discussions are made on the unresolved problems and the possible topics for future studies.

Seismic performance is particularly important for life-line structures, especially for long-span transmission tower line system subjected to multi-component ground motions. However, the influence of multi-component seismic loads and the coupling effect between supporting towers and transmission lines are not taken into consideration in the current seismic design specifications. In this research, shake table tests are conducted to investigate the performance of long-span transmission tower-line system under multi-component seismic excitations. For reproducing the genuine structural responses, the reduced-scale experimental model of the prototype is designed and constructed based on the Buckingham's theorem. And three commonly used seismic records are selected as the input ground motions according to the site soil condition of supporting towers. In order to compare the experimental results, the dynamic responses of transmission tower-line system subjected to single-component and two-component ground motions are also studied using shake table tests. Furthermore, an empirical model is proposed to evaluate the acceleration and member stress responses of transmission tower-line system subjected to multi-component ground motions. The results demonstrate that the ground motions with multi-components can amplify the dynamic response of transmission tower-line system, and transmission lines have a significant influence on the structural response and should not be neglected in seismic analysis. The experimental results can provide a reference for the seismic design and analysis of long-span transmission tower-line system subjected to multi-component ground motions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The North China Plain (NCP) has become one of the most polluted regions in China, with the rapidly increasing economic growth in the past decades. High concentrations of ambient O3 and aerosol have been observed at urban as well as rural sites in the NCP. Most of the in situ observations of air pollutants have been conducted near the ground so that current knowledge about the vertical distributions of tropospheric O3 and aerosol over the NCP region is still limited. In this study, vertical profiles of O3 and size-resolved aerosol concentrations below 2.5 km were measured in summer 2014 over a rural site in the NCP, using an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) equipped with miniature analyzers. In addition, vertical profiles of aerosol scattering property in the lower troposphere and vertical profiles of O3 below 1 km were also observed at the site using a lidar and tethered balloon, respectively. The depths of the mixed layer and residual layer were determined according to the vertical gradients of lidar particle extinction and aerosol number concentration. Average O3 and size-resolved aerosol number concentration in both the mixed and residual layer were obtained from the data observed in seven UAV flights. The results show that during most of the flights the O3 levels above the top of mixed layer were higher than those below. Such a positive gradient in the vertical distribution of O3 makes the residual layer an important source of O3 in the mixed layer, particularly during the morning when the top of mixed layer is rapidly elevated. In contrast to O3, aerosol number concentration was normally higher in the mixed layer than in the residual layer, particularly in the early morning. Aerosol particles were overwhelmingly distributed in the size range<1 µm, showing slight differences between the mixed and residual layers. Our measurements confirm that the lower troposphere over the rural area of the NCP is largely impacted by anthropogenic pollutants locally emitted or transported from urban areas. Compared with the historic O3 vertical profiles over Beijing from the Measurement of Ozone and Water Vapor by Airbus In-Service Aircraft (MOZAIC), a strong increase in O3 can be found at all heights below 2.5 km in the decade from 2004 to 2014, with the largest enhancement of about 41.6 ppb. This indicates that the lower troposphere over the northern part of the NCP has experienced rapidly worsening photochemical pollution. This worsening trend in photochemical pollution deserves more attention in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The North China Plain (NCP) has become one of the most polluted regions in China, with the rapid increasing economic growth in the past decades. High concentrations of ambient O3 and aerosol have been observed at urban as well as rural sites in the NCP. Most of the in situ observations of air pollutants have been conducted near the ground so that current knowledge about the vertical distributions of tropospheric O3 and aerosol over the NCP region is still quite limited. In this study, vertical profiles of O3 and size-resolved aerosol concentrations below 2.5 km were measured in summer 2014 over a rural site in the NCP using an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) equipped with miniature analyzers. In addition, vertical profiles of aerosol scattering property in the lower troposphere and vertical profiles of O3 below 1 km were also observed at the site using a LIDAR and tethered balloon, respectively. The depths of the mixed layer and residual layer were determined using two methods. Average O3 and size-resolved aerosol number concentration in both the mixed and residual layer were obtained from the data observed in seven UAV flights. The results show that during most of the flights the O3 levels above the top of mixed layer were higher than those below. Such positive gradient in vertical distribution of O3 makes the residual layer an important source of O3 in the mixed layer, particularly during morning when the top of mixed layer is rapidly elevated. In contrast to O3, aerosol number concentration was normally higher in the mixed layer than in the residual layer, particularly in early morning. Aerosol particles were overwhelmingly distributed in the size range <1 μm, showing slight differences between the mixed and residual layers. Our measurements confirm that in the lower troposphere over the rural area of the NCP is largely impacted by anthropogenic pollutants locally emitted or transported from urban areas. Compared with the historic O3 profiles over Beijing from the Measurement of Ozone and Water Vapor by Airbus In-Serves Aircraft (MOZAIC), a strong increase in O3 can be found at all heights below 2.5 km in the decade from 2004 to 2014, with a largest enhancement of about 41.6 ppb. This indicates that the lower troposphere over the north part of the NCP has experienced rapid worsening photochemical pollution. This worsening trend in photochemical pollution deserves more attention in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Observations from past strong earthquakes revealed that near-fault ground motions could lead to the failure, or even collapse of electricity transmission towers which are vital components of an overhead electric power delivery system. For assessing the performance and robustness, a high-fidelity three-dimension finite element model of a long span transmission tower-line system is established with the consideration of geometric nonlinearity and material nonlinearity. In the numerical model, the Tian-Ma-Qu material model is utilized to capture the nonlinear behaviours of structural members, and the cumulative damage D is defined as an index to identify the failure of members. Consequently, incremental dynamic analyses (IDAs) are conducted to study the collapse fragility, damage positions, collapse margin ratio (CMR) and dynamic robustness of the transmission towers by using twenty near-fault ground motions selected from PEER. Based on the bending and shear deformation of structures, the collapse mechanism of electricity transmission towers subjected to Chi-Chi earthquake is investigated. This research can serve as a reference for the performance of large span transmission tower line system subjected to near-fault ground motions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A long-span transmission tower-line system is indispensable for long-distance electricity transmission across a large river or valley; hence, the failure of this system, especially the collapse of the supporting towers, has serious impacts on power grids. To ensure the safety and reliability of transmission systems, this study experimentally and numerically investigates the collapse failure of a 220 kV long-span transmission tower-line system subjected to severe earthquakes. A 1:20 scale model of a transmission tower-line system is constructed in this research, and shaking table tests are carried out. Furthermore, numerical studies are conducted in ABAQUS by using the Tian-Ma-Qu material model, the results of which are compared with the experimental findings. Good agreement is found between the experimental and numerical results, showing that the numerical simulation based on the Tian-Ma-Qu material model is able to predict the weak points and collapse process of the long-span transmission tower-line system. The failure of diagonal members at weak points constitutes the collapse-inducing factor, and the ultimate capacity and weakest segment vary with different seismic wave excitations. This research can further enrich the database for the seismic performance of long-span transmission tower-line systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]