Comparison of DSHA-based response spectrum with design response spectrum of building code of Pakistan (BCP-SP-2007) for a site in Muzaffargarh area, Pakistan

The building code of any country is considered to be a basic technical guidance document for the seismic design of structures. However, building codes are typically developed for the whole country, without considering site specific models that incorporate detailed site-specific data. Therefore, the adequacy of the design spectrum for building codes may sometimes be questionable. To study the sufficiency of the building codes of Pakistan (BCP-SP-2007), a deterministic seismic hazard analysis (DSHA) based spectrum was developed for a site in the Muzaffargarh area, Pakistan, using an updated earthquake catalogue, seismic source model, and a next generation attenuation model (NGA-WEST-2). Further, an International Building Code (IBC-2000) spectrum was developed for the study area to compare the results. The DSHA-based response spectrum resulted in a peak ground acceleration (PGA) value of 0.21 g for the Chaudwan fault. The evaluation of BCP-SP-2007 and IBC-2000 spectra provided a critical assessment for analyzing the associated margins. A comparison with the DSHA-based response spectrum showed that the BCP-SP-2007 design spectrum mostly overlapped with the DSHA spectrum unlike IBC-2000. However, special attention is needed for designing buildings in the study area when considering earthquake periods longer than 1 s, and the BCP-SP-2007 spectrum can be enhanced when considering a period range of 0.12–0.64 s. Finally, BCP-SP-2007 is based on a probabilistic approach and its comparison with deterministic results showed the significance of both methods in terms of design.