Regional Arias Intensity Attenuation Relationship for Taiwan Considering VS30

Abstract

The Arias intensity is a measure of earthquake intensity arrived at through the integration of a square of the acceleration time history. It has been demonstrated to be an effective predictor of earthquake damage potential in relation to short-period structures, liquefaction, and seismic slope stability, and has begun to be considered as a ground-motion measure suitable for use in probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA), as well as earthquake loss estimation. A new empirical Arias intensity attenuation relationship for shallow crustal earthquakes is developed where both fault type and a continuous site variable VS30 are considered. The relationship is based on a large number of strong-motion records (6570) from a wide range of earth- quake magnitudes (3.9-7.6) from the Taiwan Strong Motion Instrument Program (TSMIP) network. Its functional form is modified from that of Travasarou et al. (2003), which is derived from a point-source model, and the coefficients are determined through nonlinear regression analyses using a mixed-effects model. The results show that the incorporation of VS30 can significantly reduce regression error. The Arias intensity value predicted in the present study is generally similar to that obtained by Travasarou et al. (2003), but is different in detail, being more suitable for usage in PSHA for a tectonically young orogenic belt like that in Taiwan or New Zealand.