Preliminary study of the influence of different modelling choices and materials properties uncertainties on the seismic assessment of an existing RC school building

This paper studies the influence of some aleatory and epistemic uncertainties on the seismic behaviour of an existing RC school building through a codified sensitivity analysis that uses pushover analyses and a logic tree approach. The considered epistemic uncertainties, i.e. diaphragm stiffness and modelling of stairs, seem not influencing the final assessment in term of index of seismic risk. Vice versa, aleatory ones, i.e. concrete and steel mechanical properties, strongly affect the Index. For this reason, investigations and tests should focus on the study of the mechanical properties, and, in particular, on the study of columns’ concrete mechanical properties, which have the largest impact on the building seismic response.