Die Große Moschee von Algerien - ein Monument im Starkbebengebiet

The Great Mosque of Algeria - a monument in a strong-motion area

The world's third largest mosque, whose minaret will be the highest in the world, is currently under construction in Algiers. A new urban focus will be created by the complex. Due to the monumental importance of the building, the durability requirements were extremely high. As Algiers is located in a strong-motion earthquake area, the structural design of the buildings followed latest concept and construction methods. The prayer hall will be totally decoupled from the seismic ground by isolators and dampers. The minaret will be a high rise building with a composite structure of RC cores with integrated steel members that are coupled by steel bracings in the façade. Its design was made by means of special pushover-analyses. The construction started in 2012 and is scheduled to be finished in 2016. The paper presents the outstanding project and its main structural design aspects.