Vulnerability assessment of earthen structures

Around 17 percent of the total World’s population leaves in earthen structures. These structures are often located in developing countries which are prone to the occurrence of strong seismic actions. Unfortunately, unreinforced earthen buildings are characterized by a poor structural performance during earthquakes, experiencing severe damage and also partial or complete collapse. Then, there is the necessity to understand and to evaluate the seismic vulnerability these structures to elaborate effective strategies for risk management and mitigation. In this chapter, some study cases associated with the seismic vulnerability assessment of adobe buildings using empirical, mechanical, and analytical methodologies are presented and discussed. A detailed application of the latter to adobe dwellings located in Cusco, Peru, employing displacement- and force-based approaches, is also reported for 1 and 2-story adobe dwellings.