The accuracy of soil response estimates using soil-to-rock spectral ratios

1996 ◽  
Vol 86 (2) ◽  
pp. 519-523
Author(s):  
Igor A. Beresnev ◽  
Kuo-Liang Wen
Keyword(s):  
Site Response ◽  
Soft Soil ◽  
Strong Motion ◽  
Finite Depth ◽  
Spectral Ratios ◽  
Site Specific ◽  
Soil Response ◽  
Strong Motion Records ◽  
The Real ◽  
Specific Amplification

Abstract Spectral ratios between soft soil and reference rock sites are often used to predict the sedimentary site response to earthquakes. However, their relationship with the genuine site-specific amplification function is often unclear. We compare the soil-to-rock spectral ratios between the stations that are 3.3 km apart with the “genuine” response given by the ratios between the surface and 17 and 47 m downhole. Data from the SMART1 array in Taiwan are used. The “weak” and “strong” motion records are addressed separately to allow for nonlinear soil response. The soil-to-rock spectral ratios are nearly identical to the “true” amplification at the frequencies from 1 to 10 Hz, if the finite depth of the borehole is taken into account. They correctly capture the strong-motion deamplification effect. However, the soil-to-rock spectral ratios are roughly 1.4 times more uncertain than surface-to-47-m ratios. In summary, the soil-to-rock spectral ratios can be considered as the reliable estimates of the real site response.

Strong-Motion Records for Site-Specific Analysis

2003 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 557-578 ◽  
Author(s):  
Praveen K. Malhotra
Keyword(s):  
Ground Motion ◽  
Site Response ◽  
Response Spectrum ◽  
Strong Motion ◽  
Response Spectra ◽  
Seismic Events ◽  
Site Specific ◽  
Strong Motion Records ◽  
Specific Analysis ◽  
Selection Of

A procedure is presented to select and scale strong-motion records for site-specific analysis. The procedure matches records’ smooth response spectra with the site response spectrum by scaling of the acceleration histories. The parameters defining the smooth spectrum of various records are computed and tabulated to allow easy selection of records. Hazard de-aggregation is used to identify closer and distant seismic events, which are simulated by the scaled ground motion histories. The procedure can also be used to obtain ground motion pairs in orthogonal directions for multidimensional dynamic response analyses.

Topographical and geological amplifications determined from strong-motion and aftershock records of the 3 March 1985 Chile earthquake

1987 ◽  
Vol 77 (4) ◽  
pp. 1147-1167
Author(s):  
M. Çelebi
Keyword(s):  
Site Response ◽  
Strong Motion ◽  
Spectral Ratios ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Frequency Dependent ◽  
Central Chile ◽  
Strong Motion Records ◽  
Chile Earthquake ◽  
Populated Region ◽  
Geological Formations

Abstract Site-response experiments were performed 5 months after the MS = 7.8 central Chile earthquake of 3 March 1985 to identify amplification due to topography and geology. Topographical amplification at Canal Beagle, a subdivision of Viña del Mar, was hypothesized immediately after the main event, when extensive damage was observed on the ridges of Canal Beagle. Using frequency-dependent spectral ratios of aftershock data obtained from a temporarily established dense array, it is shown that there is substantial amplification of motions at the ridges of Canal Beagle. The data set constitutes the first such set depicting topographical amplification at a heavily populated region and correlates well with the damage distribution observed during the main event. Dense arrays established in Viña del Mar also yielded extensive data which are quantified to show that, in the range of frequencies of engineering interest, there was substantial amplification at different sites of different geological formations. To substantiate this, spectral ratios developed from the strong-motion records of the main event are used to show the extensive degree of amplification at an alluvial site as compared to a rock site. Similarly, spectral ratios developed from aftershocks recorded at comparable stations qualitatively confirm that the frequency ranges for which the amplification of motions occur are quite similar to those from strong-motion records. In case of weak motions, the denser arrays established temporarily as described herein can be used to identify the frequency ranges for which amplification occurs, to quantify the degree of frequency-dependent amplification and used in microzonation of closely spaced localities.

Seismic site response in the greater Vancouver, British Columbia, area: spectral ratios from moderate earthquakes

1999 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 195-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
John F Cassidy ◽  
Garry C Rogers
Keyword(s):  
Site Response ◽  
Strong Motion ◽  
River Delta ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Fraser River ◽  
Spectral Ratios ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Seismic Site Response ◽  
Fraser River Delta ◽  
S Period

Three-component, digital recordings of two recent moderate earthquakes provide valuable new insight into the response to seismic shaking in the greater Vancouver area, particularly on the Fraser River delta. The 1996 M = 5.1 Duvall, Washington, earthquake (180 km southeast of Vancouver) triggered strong-motion seismographs at seven sites and the 1997 M = 4.3 Georgia Strait earthquake (37 km west of Vancouver) triggered instruments at 13 sites in the greater Vancouver area. The latter data set is especially important because it contains the first three-component recordings made on bedrock in greater Vancouver. Both data sets represent weak ground motion, with peak horizontal accelerations of 0.5-1.5% gravity (g) for the Duvall earthquake, and 0.2-2.4% g for the Georgia Strait earthquake. Using the method of spectral ratios, we estimate the site response for each of the strong-motion instrument soil sites. On the Fraser River delta amplification is observed over a relatively narrow frequency range of 1.5-4 Hz (0.25-0.67 s period), with peak amplification of 4-10 (relative to competent bedrock) for the thick soil delta centre sites, and about 7-11 for the delta edge sites. Relative to firm soil, the peak amplification ranges from 2 to 5 for the thick soil delta centre sites, and 2 to 6 for the delta edge sites. At higher frequencies, little or no amplification, and in many cases slight attenuation, is observed.Key words: seismic site response, Fraser delta, earthquakes.

scholarly journals SITE RESPONSE AND SEISMIC WAVEFIELD IN TOLUCA CITY, MEXICO, FROM STRONG MOTION RECORDS

2006 ◽  
pp. 83
Author(s):  
Hugo Ferrer-Toledo ◽  
Martín Cárdenas-Soto ◽  
Francisco J. Chávez-García
Keyword(s):  
Site Response ◽  
Strong Motion ◽  
Strong Motion Records ◽  
Seismic Wavefield

Simulating strong motions of large earthquakes using recordings of small earthquakes: the Loma Prieta mainshock as a test case

1995 ◽  
Vol 85 (4) ◽  
pp. 1144-1160
Author(s):  
Arthur Frankel
Keyword(s):  
Stress Drop ◽  
Site Response ◽  
Strong Motion ◽  
Site Effect ◽  
Corner Frequency ◽  
Simple Method ◽  
Strong Motion Records ◽  
Loma Prieta Earthquake ◽  
Loma Prieta ◽  
Large Earthquakes

Abstract A simple method is developed for predicting ground motions for future large earthquakes for specific sites by summing and filtering recordings of adjacent small earthquakes. This method is tested by simulating strong-motion records for the Loma Prieta earthquake (M 7.0) using aftershocks (M 3.7 to 4.0) recorded at the same sites. I use an asperity rupture model where the rms stress drop averaged over the fault plane is constant with moment. The observed spectra indicate that stress drop remains constant from the M 3 aftershocks up to the M 7 mainshock, about six orders of magnitude in seismic moment. Each simulation sums the seismogram of one aftershock with time delays appropriate for propagating rupture and incorporates directivity and site response. The simulation scales the spectrum in accordance with a constant stress drop, ω−2 source model. In this procedure, the high-frequency energy of the aftershock sum above the corner frequency of the aftershock is not reduced when it is convolved with the mainshock slip velocity function, unlike most previous methods of summation. For most cases, the spectra (0.6 to 20 Hz), peak accelerations, and durations of the simulated mainshock records are in good agreement with the observed strong-motion records, even though only one aftershock waveform was used in each simulation. This agreement indicates that the response of these soil sites is essentially linear for accelerations up to about 0.3 g. The summed aftershock records display the same site-dependent values of fmax as the mainshock records, implying that fmax is a site effect rather than a property of the mainshock rupture process.

Nonlinear soil response in the vicinity of the Van Normal Complex following the 1994 Northridge, California, earthquake

1999 ◽  
Vol 89 (5) ◽  
pp. 1214-1231 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giovanna Cultrera ◽  
David M. Boore ◽  
William B. Joyner ◽  
Christopher M. Dietel
Keyword(s):  
Ground Motion ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Free Field ◽  
Strong Motion ◽  
High Amplitude ◽  
Amplitude Dependence ◽  
Spectral Ratios ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Soil Response ◽  
Equivalent Linear

Abstract Ground-motion recording obtaineds at the Van Norman Complex from the 1994 Northridge, California, mainshock and its aftershocks constitute an excellent data set for the analysis of soil response as a function of ground-motion amplitude. We searched for nonlinear response by comparing the Fourier spectral ratios of two pairs of sites for ground motions of different levels, using data from permanent strong-motion recorders and from specially deployed portable instruments. We also compared the amplitude dependence of the observed ratios with the amplitude dependence of the theoretical ratios obtained from 1-D linear and 1-D equivalent-linear transfer functions, using recently published borehole velocity profiles at the sites to provide the low-strain material properties. One pair of sites was at the Jensen Filtration Plant (JFP); the other pair was the Rinaldi Receiving Station (RIN) and the Los Angeles Dam (LAD). Most of the analysis was concentrated on the motions at the Jensen sites. Portable seismometers were installed at the JFP to see if the motions inside the structures housing the strong-motion recorders differed from nearby free-field motions. We recorded seven small earthquakes and found that the high-frequency, low-amplitude motions in the administration building were about 0.3 of those outside the building. This means that the lack of high frequencies on the strong-motion recordings in the administration building relative to the generator building is not due solely to nonlinear soil effects. After taking into account the effects of the buildings, however, analysis of the suite of strong- and weak-motion recordings indicates that nonlinearity occurred at the JFP. As predicted by equivalent-linear analysis, the largest events (the mainshock and the 20 March 1994 aftershock) show a significant deamplification of the high-frequency motion relative to the weak motions from aftershocks occurring many months after the mainshock. The weak-motion aftershocks recorded within 12 hours of the mainshock, however, show a relative deamplification similar to that in the mainshock. The soil behavior may be a consequence of a pore pressure buildup during large-amplitude motion that was not dissipated until sometime later. The motions at (RIN) and (LAD) are from free-field sites. The comparison among spectral ratios of the mainshock, weak-motion coda waves of the mainshock, and an aftershock within ten minutes of the mainshock indicate that some nonlinearity occurred, presumably at (RIN) because it is the softer site. The spectral ratio for the mainshock is between that calculated for pure linear response and that calculated from the equivalent-linear method, using commonly used modulus reduction and damping ratio curves. In contrast to the Jensen sites, the ratio of motions soon after the high-amplitude portion of the mainshock differs from the ratio of the mainshock motions, indicating the mechanical properties of the soil returned to the low-strain values as the high-amplitude motion ended. This may indicate a type of nonlinear soil response different from that affecting motion at the Jensen administration building.

Site Response Studies for Purpose of Revising NEHRP Seismic Provisions

1996 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 407-439 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. B. Crouse ◽  
J. W. McGuire
Keyword(s):  
Earthquake Engineering ◽  
Site Response ◽  
Soft Soil ◽  
Strong Motion ◽  
Earthquake Hazard ◽  
Ground Acceleration ◽  
Amplification Factors ◽  
Soil Class ◽  
Engineering Research ◽  
Stiff Soil

A strong motion database was compiled for California earthquakes of surfacewave magnitudes, Ms ≥ 6, occurring from 1933 through 1992. The database consisted of horizontal peak ground acceleration and 5 percent damped response spectra of accelerograms recorded on four different local geologies: rock (class A), soft rock or stiff soil (class B), medium stiff soil (class C), and soft soil (class D). The results of analyses of the database within each of these site classes were used to derive a set of site-dependent spectral amplification factors for oscillator periods between 0.1 and 4.0 sec and ground acceleration levels between 0.1 and 0.4 g. The amplification factors at 0.3 and 1.0 sec periods (designated as Fa and Fv, respectively) are generally within 20 percent of those recommended during the 1992 Site Response Workshop conducted by the National Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (NCEER). The Fa and Fv values recommended from our study and those from the NCEER workshop are intended for use by code committees making future revisions to the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program (NEHRP) seismic provisions and the Uniform Building Code.

Numerical evaluation of the effect of cross-coupling of different components of ground motion in site response analyses

1999 ◽  
Vol 89 (4) ◽  
pp. 877-887
Author(s):  
Roberto Paolucci
Keyword(s):  
Transfer Function ◽  
Ground Motion ◽  
Site Response ◽  
Strong Motion ◽  
Cross Coupling ◽  
Response Functions ◽  
Spectral Ratios ◽  
Acceleration Time Histories ◽  
Time Histories ◽  
Input Motion

Abstract The effect of cross-coupling between the three components of ground motion in the evaluation of site-response functions, such as standard spectral ratios (SSRs) and horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratios (HVSRs), is analyzed in this article. Numerical analyses of the seismic response of fully 3D geological structures, namely, a real topographic irregularity and an ideal stratigraphic inclusion, have been carried out to obtain a 3D transfer function in the form of a 3 × 3 matrix. Each element of this matrix contains the frequency response in the ith direction due to an input motion in the jth direction. A synthetic set of acceleration time histories at the surface of the geological irregularity has been created by convolution with the 3D transfer function, using as input motion different real multicomponent strong-motion accelerograms recorded at stiff-soil or rock sites. The SSRs and HVSRs are calculated and compared with the theoretical 3D transfer function in order to highlight the effect of cross-coupling terms. These are found to generate a rather large dispersion in the site-response functions, as well as response peaks that could be misleading in the interpretation of both numerical and observed spectral ratios.

Site-Response Characteristics Evaluated from Strong Motion Records of the 2003 Boumerdes, Algeria, Earthquake

2010 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 803-823 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdelghani Meslem ◽  
Fumio Yamazaki ◽  
Yoshihisa Maruyama ◽  
Djillali Benouar ◽  
Nasser Laouami ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transfer Functions ◽  
Site Response ◽  
Strong Motion ◽  
Spectral Ratios ◽  
Quaternary Deposits ◽  
Ground Acceleration ◽  
Predominant Period ◽  
Response Characteristics ◽  
Seismic Motion ◽  
Boumerdes Earthquake

Site response characteristics at seismic stations were investigated using horizontal-to-vertical (H/V) spectral ratios calculated from a seismic-motion dataset of the 2003 Boumerdes earthquake, and transfer functions were evaluated from soil profile data. Although high peak ground acceleration (PGA) values were recorded at some sites, the nonlinear effect at these stations was not clear. The H/V spectral ratios calculated from weak and strong motion events did not show a clear difference in the predominant period and amplitudes, and the shapes of the H/V ratios were flat for some stations. These observations are characteristic of the presence of firm to hard layers under the stations; however, one station was located on Quaternary deposits showed a remarkable amplification at the predominant period and a high PGA value.

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