CONSTRUCTION and ARCHITECTURE IN AZERBAIJAN

Summary

Ensuring structural integrity and preventing the escalation of local damage into progressive collapse is a strategic priority in modern multi-story and large-span building design. This article provides a comparative analysis of the methodological foundations of the new national design code of the Republic of Azerbaijan, AzDTN 2.1-2 “Protection of Buildings and Structures Against Progressive Collapse,” with international standards (Eurocode EN 1991-1-7 and US UFC 4-023-03). 

The research examines the fundamental differences between local collapse zones defined by the “Geometric Circle Method” (with diameters of 6 m, 10 m, and 11.5 m) specified in the national regulations and the “Single Column Removal” scenarios used in international standards. 

The article investigates the structural advantages and calculation accuracy arising from replacing the indirect approach, known in international practice as the “Tie Force Method,” with direct spatial analysis in national standard AzDTN 2.1-2. This article justifies the engineering and safety aspects of the requirement stipulated in AzDTN 2.1-2 for Direct Simulation instead of simplified analytical formulas for buildings with medium consequence classes accepted in international standards, accounting for non-linear material behavior and spatial structural action. 

Consequently, it is demonstrated that national codes establish more conservative and stringent safety criteria (e.g., calculating vertical ties for the full axial force), and the contribution of implementing AzDTN 2.1-2 to the design quality and structural safety within the local construction sector is evaluated.