Fragility functions constitute an emerging tool for the probabilistic seismic risk assessment of buildings, infrastructures and lifeline systems. The work presented in this book is a partial product of a European Union funded research project SYNER-G (FP7 Theme 6: Environment) where existing knowledge has been reviewed in order to extract the most appropriate fragility functions for the vulnerability analysis and loss estimation of the majority of structures and civil works exposed to earthquake hazard. Results of other relevant European projects and international initiatives are also incorporated in the book. In several cases new fragility and vulnerability functions have been developed in order to better represent the specific characteristics of European elements at risk. Several European and non-European institutes and Universities collaborated efficiently to capitalize upon existing knowledge. State-of-the-art methods are described, existing fragility curves are reviewed and, where necessary, new ones are proposed for buildings, lifelines, transportation infrastructures as well as for utilities and critical facilities. Taxonomy and typology definitions are synthesized and the treatment of related uncertainties is discussed.

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Audience

The book aims to be a standard reference on the fragility functions to be used for the seismic vulnerability and probabilistic risk assessment of the most important elements at risk. It is of particular interest to earthquake engineers, scientists and researchers working in the field of earthquake risk assessment, as well as the insurance industry, civil protection and emergency management agencies.

SYNER-G, a multidisciplinary effort funded by the European Union, allowed the development of an innovative methodological framework for the assessment of physical as well as socio-economic seismic vulnerability and risk at urban and regional level. The results of SYNER-G are presented in two books both published by Springer, the present and a second one, entitled SYNER-G: Typology Definition and Fragility Functions for Physical Elements at Seismic Risk: Buildings, Lifelines, Transportation Networks and Critical Facilities (*), which provides a comprehensive state-of-the-art of the fragility curves, an alternative way to express physical vulnerability of elements at risk.

In this second volume of SYNER-G, the focus has been on presenting a unified holistic methodology for assessing vulnerability at systems level considering interactions between elements at risk (physical and non-physical) and between different systems. The proposed methodology and tool encompasses in an integrated fashion all aspects in the chain, from hazard to the vulnerability assessment of components and systems and to the socio-economic impacts of an earthquake, accounting for most relevant uncertainties within an efficient quantitative simulation scheme. It systematically integrates the most advanced fragility functions to assess the vulnerability of physical assets for buildings, utility systems, transportation networks and complex infrastructures such as harbours and hospitals. The increasing impact due to interactionsbetween different components and systems is treated in a comprehensive way, providing specifications for each network and infrastructure. The proposed socio-economic model integrates social vulnerability into the physical systems modelling approaches providing to decision makers with a dynamic platform to capture post disaster emergency issues like shelter demand and health impact decisions.Application examples at city and regional scale have provided the necessary validation of the methodology and are also included in the book.

The present volume, with its companion volume on fragility functions, represent a significant step forward in the seismic vulnerability and risk assessment of complex interacting urban and regional systems and infrastructures. These volumes are not only of interest to scientists and engineers but also to the insurance industry, decision makers and practitioners in the sector of civil protection and seismic risk management.

(*) Pitilakis K, Crowley E, Kaynia A (eds) (2014) SYNER-G: Typology definition and fragility functions for physical elements at seismic risk, Series: Geotechnical, Geological and Earthquake Engineering 27, ISBN 978-94-007-7872-6, Springer Science+Business Media, Dordrecht.

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