Seismic vulnerability of major-hazard industrial plants and applicability of innovative seismic protection systems for its reduction

In this paper the main results obtained within different research projects, developed about the applicability of seismic passive control of major-hazard industrial installations are shown. The work concerns the main components of a refinery that have been classified and collected into a limited number of classes on the basis of the geometrical and mechanical characteristics. For each class, the main damages caused by past earthquakes have been described and the most vulnerable component have been identified. Finally, a synthesis of the effects of earthquakes on the different typology of process components has been carried out and the most suitable innovative seismic protection systems, in particular of passive type, have been recognized. Finally an example of using dissipative coupling between a distillation column and an adjacent service frame is illustrated