Seismic Resilience Assessment and Improvement of a Containerized Edge Data Center: A Quantitative Framework

Abstract

A containerized edge data center (CEDC) is a critical node of the 5G telecommunication network. It is essential to maintain the functionality of CEDCs during and after earthquakes. A probabilistic seismic resilience assessment framework was developed to evaluate the postearthquake functionality and seismic resilience of a CEDC. Five subsystems ensure the CEDC’s functionality: the structural, power distribution, air conditioning, computing, and monitoring subsystems. The subsystems’ normal operation depends on several components. The functional relationships between the components of the five subsystems were analyzed. Fault tree models of the five subsystems were developed, and success path analysis was used to establish a state tree model of the CEDC. The seismic fragility and repair models of the CEDC’s fundamental components were obtained from numerical analysis and data from the literature. State tree analysis and Monte Carlo simulations were conducted to quantify the postearthquake residual functionality and generate seismic resilience curves for the CEDC. The effects of different resilience improvement strategies were evaluated and incorporated into the proposed framework. A CEDC case study was conducted to demonstrate the proposed framework’s feasibility.