SECTION BUILDING STRUCTURES & STRUCTURAL MECHANICS VOLUME: 20 | NUMBER: 1 | 2020 | JUNE
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INFLUENCE OF VIBRATIONAL IMPACTS ON THE BELL TOWERS
AND THE PROBLEM OF SAFETY
Elena SMIRNOVA1, Denis LARIN1
1Depa men o Technosphe ic Sa e y, Facul y o En i onmen al Enginee ing and Municipal Se ices, Sain Pe e sbu g
S a e Uni e si y o A chi ec u e and Ci il Enginee ing,
V o aja K asnoa mejskaja ul. 4, S . Pe e sbu g, 190005, Russia
[email p o ec ed], [email p o ec ed]
DOI: 10.35181/ ces-2020-0008
Abs ac . Due o econs uc ion and es o a ion o he o iginal
guise o he landma ked buildings he in es iga o s a e acing he
p oblems o assessing possible ad e se consequences o such
so s o wo k in he ecen yea s. The mos p oblema ic a e he
wo ks equi ing disman ling o he bea ing and encing
s uc u es buil in o o iginal scheme. This a icle gi es
conside a ion o he ways o sol ing a p oblem o ensu ing sa e y
o buildings and s uc u es in use p o ided hei ope a ing
condi ions ha e changed (e.g. he assessmen o possible
consequences o bells ins alla ion on he s eeples o S . Isaac's
Ca hed al is p esen ed). The measu emen s o ib a ions wi h
simul aneous assessmen o obus ness and bea ing capabili y o
he b ickwo k ha e shown ha he ib a ional impac o chimes
o hea y bells canno ad e sely a ec he bea ing s uc u es o
he bell owe s. Howe e , he e is always a isk o such ad e se
e ec on he s uc u e o he bell owe and s abili y o soils a i s
base. A dange eme ges no because o signi ican se lemen s,
bu a he due o i egula i y owing o inhomogenei y o soil. The
ob ained assessmen s o se lemen s show ha hey canno be
igno ed and i is easonable o pe o m an annual le eling check
o se lemen s o ounda ion o base o he bell owe I is o e ed,
he e o e, o ca y ou in es iga ion be o e he beginning o
econs uc ion using he s uc u e model, which makes i possible
o gi e conside a ion o he impac o «new» loads o exclude any
possible eme gency si ua ion a he objec s being econs uc ed.
Keywo ds
Bell owe , cyclic s ain-induced c eep, dynamic
moni o ing, sa e y o buildings and s uc u es,
ib a ions, ib a ional impac , ib odiagnos ics.
1. In oduc ion
The mos p oblema ic a e he wo ks equi ing disman ling
o he bea ing and encing s uc u es buil in o o iginal
scheme. K oons ad Na al Ca hed al, building o he
chu ch o T ans igu a ion o Jesus and o he signi ican
his o ical buildings ha e become he examples o such so
o objec s o Sain Pe e sbu g. The builde s and a chi ec s
ha e succeeded o success ully sol e hese complex
p oblems using he up- o-da e me hods o echnical
diagnos ics and calcula ion by means o h ee-dimensional
ini e-elemen models [1], [2].
Ano he ype o wo ks implies a e i al o ensembles
o bells on he s eeples [3], [4]. In o de o assess possible
ad e se consequences o hese ac ions, i is necessa y o
ake in o accoun no only he new load eme ging in he
s uc u es no being used o di ec pu pose o long, bu
he possible consequences o ib a ional impac on he
soils o bases o s uc u es. A g oup o esea che s
(including one o he au ho s o his a icle) unde he
leade ship o I.V. Si niko om he esea ch-and-
de elopmen cen e No.26 o he Minis y o De ense o
he Russian Fede a ion oge he wi h he specialis s o
Sain -Pe e sbu g Railway Enginee ing and T anspo a ion
Uni e si y ha e conduc ed measu emen s o ib a ions
caused by he chimes o he bell owe o S . Isaac's
Ca hed al (Sain Pe e sbu g) and analyzed he possible
consequences he eo wi hin a pe iod o 2013-2015.
The measu emen s o ib a ions wi h simul aneous
de e mina ion o he obus ness o b ickwo k o he
bea ing s uc u es o s eeples ha e been pe o med in wo
s ages: in No embe -Decembe 2015 in he cou se o
ins alla ion o a big en- on polylinea bell on he no h-
eas e n s eeple and in Decembe 2016 a e ins alla ion o
17- on bell on he no h-wes e n s eeple o S . Isaac's
Ca hed al (Fig. 1).
Fig. 1: P ocess o ins alla ion o 17- on bell.
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The bell weighing 17- ons has been cas a Anisimo
Vo onezh bell ound y acco ding o he in ac d awings o
1845. The au ho o he d awings is Augus e Rica d de
Mon e and, he a chi ec , he builde o S . Isaac's
Ca hed al. The bell has been deco a ed wi h i e
medallions wi h he bas- elie s o empe o s: Pe e he
G ea , Alexande I, Nikolai I, Pa el I and Ca he ine he
G ea .
2. Resul s
The acqui ed esul s ha e been analysed and compa ed
wi h he exis ing equi emen s o s anda ds wi h a iew o
exceedance o ac ual loads [5], [6], [7], [8].
In case o necessi y o assessing consequences o
ib a ional load impac on he bea ing s uc u es he
dynamic pa ame e s he eo ha e been de e mined in he
way o :
• ob aining pulsed implemen a ions o iden i ied
esonance peaks o e e y ee ib a ion mode by
means o in e se Fou ie ans o ma ion,
• iden i ica ion and g aphical ep esen a ion o
a ious wa e o ms.
The ib a ions ha e been eco ded «unde load» in he
p ocess o chiming.
The dynamic pa ame e s o he «beams-bea ing
s uc u es o bell owe » sys em ha e been de e mined by
analyzing he s uc u es esponse o he pulsed load. The
ob ained equencies and wa e o ms ha e been analyzed,
esponse spec a de e mined and alues o accele a ions
and eloci ies in he a ge ed ange o equencies (up o
50 Hz). The diag ams o measu emen s a he s uc u es o
he no h-wes e n bell owe , whe e he ib a ions ha e
been egis e ed and he b ickwo k p obed, a e shown in
Fig. 2 (no h-wes ).
Fig. 2: Diag am o ins alling senso s o measu ing ib a ions and
h ough p obing (а 1 and а 2 – accele ome e s, skw 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26,
27, 28 – places o b ickwo k p obing). Digi s 1 and 2 in igu e designa e
g ani e columns es o ed in he cou se o gene al epai o he ca hed al.
Resul s o equency esponse analysis o ib a ions in
Fig. 3 and 4.
Fig. 3: F agmen o eco ding esponse o chimes o 17- on bell.
Fig. 4: Spec a o esponse o chimes o 17- on bell (sho sec ion).
The measu emen senso s ha e been a anged on he
bea ing s uc u es. The numbe s o senso s a e shown
along he igh -hand e ical axis, and ime in milliseconds
is shown along ho izon al axis, m/s2 – along he le -hand
e ical axis.
The maximum egis e ed eloci y a senso s А 3 and
А 4 (me al s uc u es) amoun ed o 3 mm/s, and a senso s
А 1 and А 2 (a b ick pilla s) – 1.5 mm/s. In his case
displacemen s amoun ed o no mo e han 15 μm a he
me al ame and 2.1 μm – in he b ickwo k (Fig. 5).
Fig. 5: Reco ds o displacemen s du ing chimes o 17- on bell.
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The analysis o ampli ude o ib a ions and spec a o
oscilla ions o he sys em shows ha he maximum alues
o accele a ion and eloci y in he ange o equencies
posing a dange o he bea ing s uc u es (up o 50 Hz) do
no exceed he alues a he walls − up o 2.0 m/s2, a ha ,
he ib a ion eloci y o he b ick pilla s does no exceed
0.9 mm/s, while he displacemen is up o 2.5 μm.
The maximum egis e ed eloci y has amoun ed o
10 mm/s. In his case he displacemen s ha e no exceeded
15 μm a he me al ame and up o 1 μm – in he
b ickwo k.
The alues o accele a ions om ib a ions occu ing
du ing bell owe usage a e lowe han i is pe mi ed by
GOST sani a y s anda ds (2010) o o ice p emises o he
s eeple s uc u es [5].
Appa en ly, i is di icul o expec any conside able
ib a ions a he s uc u e base wi h he egis e ed alues
o ib a ions and displacemen s a he bell owe s uc u es
close o he a achmen poin s o suspensions.
The se lemen s o he buildings ounda ions in weak
soils each 2 mm/yea acco ding o da a o SN (1997) and
TSN (2004) [6], [7] unde wo king condi ions a he
ib a ion eloci ies abou 400 μm/s, while ligh damages
o old buildings, sepa a ion o limewash, chipping o small
pieces o plas e a e possible a he ib a ion le el o
1,200 μm/s.
The analysis o equi emen s o GOST (2007) [8] has
made i possible o se a h eshold alue o ib a ional
impac on he soil g ound by he eloci y o oscilla ions o
73 dB o 225 μm/s. In case his le el is exceeded i will be
necessa y o ca y ou special enginee ing measu es o
educe ib a ion nega i e consequences o main aining
he bea ing capabili ies o soils, eliable and ouble- ee
ope a ion o enginee ing s uc u es and p o ision o
people’s op imal i al ac i i ies. E en hough, no
egis a ions o soil oscilla ions a he base ha e been
ca ied ou while in es iga ing ib a ional oscilla ions o
he bell owe du ing chimes, i is appa en ha he ac ual
alues o eloci ies and displacemen s a e signi ican ly
below he h eshold alue o ib a ional impac , which can
ad e sely a ec he soil g ound [9], [10], [3].
The e ec o he bell owe esonance swinging is no
obse ed du ing mul iple chimes, since he equencies o
clappe s swinging and he na u al equency bending
oscilla ions o he bell owe di e signi ican ly.
The maximum oscilla ions in he cou se o egula
wo k o bells occu in he s eel ame s uc u es. Howe e ,
he pulse ansmi ed o he suspension beam and u he o
he bell owe is qui e insigni ican . The measu emen s o
ib a o y oscilla ions ha e shown ha he maximum
alues o eloci y and accele a ion in he ange o
equencies posing a dange o he bea ing s uc u es (up
o 50 Hz) do no exceed he alues a he walls − up o
2.0 m/s2, a ha , he ib a ion eloci y o he b ick pilla s
does no exceed 0.9 mm/s, while he displacemen s a e up
o 2.5 μm.
In ou case, when in es iga ing he no h-wes e n
s eeple o S . Isaac's Ca hed al, he maximum eloci ies o
oscilla ions, maximum displacemen s and he alues o
equency o spec al maximum o ho izon al oscilla ions
in he no h-wes e n di ec ion ob ained a di e en s eeple
le els when inging he bells ha e been measu ed. Using
expe imen al da a, i is also possible o build a dependence
o ampli ude o oscilla ions on ele a ion poin s. The
acqui ed ull-scale da a can be desc ibed as a pa abolic
dependence p o ing he bending cha ac e o oscilla ions
[11].
Ne e heless, in he cou se o bell swinging he
ib a ion le els a equencies no mally abou 2 Hz may
cause signi ican des uc ion [12]. One can say ha a
po en ial dange o ib a o y oscilla ions p o oked by he
chimes o hea y bells emains o he bea ing soil
capabili y. This ad e se impac se s in because o une en
se lemen , when he soil becomes subs an ially non-
uni o m by i s p ope ies.
I is also impo an o in ol e a heo y o cyclic s ain-
induced c eep o assessing and calcula ing soil
se lemen s. Acco ding o o mula:
S
α
= , (1)
whe e, S − se lemen s in mm, a − in ensi y o cyclic s ain-
induced c eep, − ime in minu es. I equals 10-2÷10-1
mm / .min o ma shy soils wi h soil-bea ing load o
abou 2 kg/cm2 (such soil-bea ing load is p oduced by he
weigh o he no h-wes e n s eeple, including he
ca hed al base used o suppo ing i ). This implies ha he
se lemen s can amoun o 0.5 ÷ 0.05 mm du ing hal an
hou o chimes. In case o epea ed impac s he se lemen s
will ge ecommenced and summa ized. A dange eme ges
no because o signi ican se lemen s, bu a he due o
i egula i y owing o inhomogenei y o soil [13], [14],
[15]. The ob ained assessmen s o se lemen s show ha
hey canno be igno ed and i is easonable o pe o m an
annual le eling check o se lemen s o ounda ion o base
o he bell owe .
3. Conclusion
The e ec o S . Isaac's Ca hed al bell owe esonance
swinging is no obse ed du ing mul iple chimes, since he
equencies o clappe s swinging and he na u al equency
bending oscilla ions o he bell owe di e signi ican ly.
I is impo an o ake in o conside a ion ha he p ocess o
ounda ion se lemen co esponds o qui e a du able
change, he e o e, i is necessa y o es ablish an
ins umen al moni o ing and ake he due enginee ing
decisions o soils s abiliza ion.
Re e ences
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oscilla ions o di e en wa eleng hs o e alua e he
dynamic pa ame e s o buildings and s uc u es and
SECTION BUILDING STRUCTURES & STRUCTURAL MECHANICS VOLUME: 20 | NUMBER: 1 | 2020 | JUNE
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assess he s eng h o ma e ials o he building
cons uc ion. In: COMPDYN 2015. P oceedings o
he 5 h In e na ional Con e ence on Compu a ional
Me hods in S uc u al Dynamics and Ea hquake
Enginee ing Me hods in S uc u al Dynamics and
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ISBN 978-960-99994-7-2.
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Abou Au ho s
Elena SMIRNOVA was bo n in Sain Pe e sbu g, Russia.
He ecei ed his M.Sc. om S . Pe e sbu g S a e Ins i u e
o Technology (Technical Uni e si y) in 1991. She held a
Ph.D. deg ee in chemical echnology o e ac o y non-
me allic and silica e ma e ials om S . Pe e sbu g S a e
Ins i u e o Technology (Technical Uni e si y), oo (1995).
Since 2010, she has been wo king a he Depa men o
Technosphe ic Sa e y (Sain Pe e sbu g S a e Uni e si y o
A chi ec u e and Ci il Enginee ing). His esea ch in e es s
include: echnology o ce amic, silica e and e ac o y
ma e ials, ecology and na u e managemen , en i onmen al
sa e y, en i onmen al enginee ing, sa e y o enginee ing
uni s o buildings and s uc u es, echnosphe ic sa e y,
nondes uc i e es ing.
Denis LARIN was bo n in in Sain Pe e sbu g, Russia. He
ecei ed his M.Sc. om Sain Pe e sbu g S a e Uni e si y
o A chi ec u e and Ci il Enginee ing in 2019. His
esea ch in e es s include: dynamic moni o ing o
enginee ing s uc u es, echnosphe ic sa e y, sa e y o
enginee ing uni s o buildings and s uc u es.