Acceleration Response Spectra Research Articles

Dynamic Analysis of the Almagrera Tailings Dam with Dry Closure Condition

In light of growing concerns over sustainability, particularly in the wake of environmental disasters like the Aznalcollar dam break, the Spanish authorities have heightened their awareness of issues surrounding ore tailings management. The main aim of this paper is to study the dynamic behavior for the dry closure of the Almagrera dam under the action of an earthquake. This study was carried out with the Plaxis 2D v9.02 program, which uses the finite element (FE) method. The dynamic analysis of the dam was interpreted in terms of deformations, displacements and principal stresses. The construction of the Uniform Seismic Hazard Acceleration Response Spectrum (USHARS) and the selection of real accelerograms for the time-history dynamic calculations is a noted feature of this research. Numerical analyses show that the dam is safe enough because a failure surface has not been formed, although several plastic zones may appear in the dam. The FE study of deformations display that the tailings may attain large deformations, displacements and failure, although this does not jeopardize the safety of the dam where the displacements are smaller than 3 mm. Neither the tailings nor the dam are expected to suffer liquefaction. It was determined that the 0.09 g threshold value is not exceeded in the acceleration-time graphs on the old reservoir field surface, which is the most critical situation.

Estimation of structural dynamic response induced by individual sit-to-stand loading using acceleration response spectrum approach

Crowd sit-to-stand (STS) loading are always featured with pulse-like action, high crowd density and high synchronization rate among individuals, which may cause severe vibration comfort or even safety issues of supporting structures. However, related work in structural dynamics remains limited. As an early attempt, this study focuses on the individual STS loading and tries to develop an efficient tool to evaluate the potential dynamic response of the supporting structure when subjected to an individual STS action. Firstly, a comprehensive test campaign involving twenty participants was conducted by simultaneously footfall force measurement and 3D motion tracking of the human body. Secondly, the mathematical model of the individual STS loading was developed. Then a response spectrum framework that can give quick estimation of structural dynamic response induced by individual STS loading was proposed. The design response spectrum was formulated based on the measured force data. The effect of seat height, with or without armrests and the types of vibration assessment index on response spectrum was further discussed. The effectiveness of the method was finally verified on four full-scale structures having fundamental frequency from 2 Hz to 10 Hz subjected to individual STS actions.

Accessing Near-Field Strong Ground Motions Using a Multi-Scheme Method in the Kalawenguquan Fault, Xinjiang, China

The middle segment of the Kalawenguquan fault has been active since the Holocene, with a maximum credible earthquake magnitude of MS 7.5. We established two source models based on empirical relationships, as well as geological, geomorphological, and seismic characteristics. Taking into account the uncertainties of simulation parameters, we adopted the stochastic finite-fault method to calculate all combinations of a multi-scheme simulation. The effects of different source models, initial rupture points, and site locations on the prediction of ground motion parameters were analyzed. The results indicate that when a site is located on a smaller asperity and is a certain distance from the largest asperity, the simulation results are higher. For different sites, when the initial rupture point is located near the smaller rather than the larger asperity, the acceleration response spectra are higher. Our results show that the relationships between the initial rupture points, asperities, and sites have a significant impact on the simulation results. Therefore, our study highlights the relevance of determining the initial rupture point and source model to obtain a reasonable evaluation for near-field strong ground motion simulations at major infrastructures.

Response Characteristics of Irregular Continuous Rigid Frame Bridges with Long-Span and High-Rise Piers under Ground Motion Excitations with Different Fault Distances

An innovative seismic performance evaluation strategy for irregular rigid frame bridges with a long-span and high-rise piers under the action of ground motions with different fault distances is presented in this paper. A total of 129 mainshock records taken during the Wenchuan earthquake, from national seismic stations with different fault distances, were analyzed using statistical methods, to determine the attenuation characteristics of the intensity index of the Wenchuan earthquake records from the perspective of aseismic engineering, and the attenuation of the acceleration response spectrum is discussed. The Miaoziping Bridge on the Dujiangyan–Wenchuan Expressway, which was damaged in the Wenchuan earthquake, is taken as the analysis background; two sets of samples for long-span continuous rigid frame bridges with different pier heights are constructed, to discuss the seismic response characteristics of continuous long-span rigid frame bridges; and representative values for the natural periods of these two bridge structural groups are subsequently compared and analyzed. After the peak responses for various bridges with various pier heights are determined through a response spectrum analysis under the action of ground motions with different fault distances, and the surfaces for the obtained peak responses are fitted and the response characteristics for different fault distances are discussed. It is shown in the results that the seismic response characteristics of the continuous rigid frame bridges with long-span and high-rise piers were significantly different under the action of the ground motions with different fault distances, and the seismic responses of these two bridge groups were distinctly larger under the action of near-fault ground motions. Furthermore, based on the above research, suggestions for the pier arrangement and bridge site selection for continuous rigid frame bridges with long-span and high-rise piers are also discussed. The results of this paper also provide some theoretical guidance for the sustainable development of bridges with long-span and high-rise piers, from the perspective of bridge seismic response characteristics.

Dynamic soil-structure interaction analysis for base-isolated nuclear island building based on the method of external source wave motion

Soil-structure interaction (SSI) is crucial to the dynamic response of nuclear power plants (NPPs), and should be properly considered when analysing the seismic isolation performance of base-isolated NPPs. In this study, a three-dimensional numerical simulation program is developed for the time-domain dynamic analysis of base-isolated NPPs considering SSI effects. The seismic input is realised using the method of external source wave motion, and the nonlinear behavior of isolators is fully considered. Using this program, the SSI effects of the base-isolated nuclear island building under different sites are analysed and compared, including the acceleration, displacement, and floor response spectra. The numerical results show that the SSI effects change the spectral characteristics of the actual seismic input. When the shear wave velocity of the site is relatively large, the SSI effects can increase the dynamic response of base-isolated NPPs. Additionally, the isolation performance of the base-isolated NPPs is weakened when SSI effects are considered, and with a decrease in the shear wave velocity of the site, the isolation capacity is further reduced. The influence of the SSI effects should be fully considered in the base isolation design of NPPs.

Influence of near-fault velocity pulse on the seismic response of subway station structure

This research aims to explore the influence of near-fault velocity pulse on the seismic response of subway station under the condition of acceleration response spectra being consistent. Two suites of seismic motions are utilized, one suite is twelve as-recorded seismic motions with velocity pulses, and the other one suite is the corresponding artificial seismic motions synthesized with the response spectra of seismic motions in the first suite as target spectra. For each seismic motion with velocity pulse, the corresponding synthetic seismic motion without velocity pulse is generated by using the method of superimposing narrow-band time histories. Numerical model of soil-subway station interaction is developed by using the commercial software ABAQUS with a practical 3-span, 3-story subway station as the prototype. Numerical results indicate that with the engineering sites change from hard to soft and the burial depths change from shallow to deep, the adverse effect of velocity pulse is more significant, and the maximum inter-story drift ratio of subway station with a burial depth of 20 m embedded in site classes I, II and III has increased by 16.5%, 20.1% and 21.7%, respectively. However, the influence of velocity pulse on the concrete compression damage of subway station is not obvious.

Study on the dynamic characteristics of pile wharves subjected to underwater explosion

A test was conducted to investigate the dynamic response characteristics and damage modes of pile wharves subjected to underwater explosions. To simulate the explosion process, a fluid-solid coupling finite element model of the pile wharf was constructed. The structural damage process, response characteristics, and failure modes of the pile wharf were analyzed based on the experimental and numerical simulation results. The results showed that the main damaged components of the pile wharf were the piles, with damage modes of cracks, spalling, and brittle shear. The probability of moderate or more significant damage to the inclined piles was 25% higher than that of the vertical piles. The inclined piles with low deformation ability were more prone to local concrete brittle failure, significantly increasing the possibility of instability and failure of the pile wharf structure. The acceleration response spectrum indicated that although the structure of the pile wharf was severely damaged, the personnel on its surface slab still had a high probability of survival. The study indicates that replacing inclined piles with alternative optimized structures benefits the blast resistance of pile wharves.

Stochastic simulation of earthquake ground motions based on improved finite-fault model

In the seismic reliability analysis of engineering structures, it is often necessary to adopt stochastic ground motions as inputs. However, the current methods used to generate stochastic samples, such as the spectral representation method, the spectral transfer method, the dynamic source method, the physical source method, and the comprehensive method, etc., are not very convincing since they do not contain the complete information of seismic occurrence and propagation. In this study, an improved finite-fault model for stochastic simulation of ground motions is proposed. Compared to existing stochastic finite-fault model, the improved model considers the propagation law of phase spectrum, local site effect, and the impact of wave velocity on the arrival time of seismic waves. Besides, identification and statistics of model parameters are carried out based on ground motion records. Reasonable samples of stochastic ground motions are then obtained. In addition, parameter sensitivity analysis is conducted to determine critical random variables, which reduces the complexity of stochastic simulation. Simulation results are compared with recorded accelerograms from the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake. It is shown that the improved stochastic finite-fault model is reliable, and the acceleration response spectra of simulated samples are consistent with those of station records collected at various site classes and the design spectra.

Dynamic Response of Pile-Raft Systems with Various Forms of Connection under Cyclic Condition

This study aimed to examine the aseismic performance of the pile-raft systems with various connection forms. The related shaking table test and numerical simulation were performed for in-depth investigation. The acceleration response spectra on the top of the soil layer and raft were obtained and plotted for contrastive analysis based on the model test at a reduced scale of 1 : 30 and finite element numerical simulation. Accordingly, the working mechanisms of the pile-raft systems in conventional connections with the embedment of the compressible blocks and cushion layers under cyclic loading were explored. The results showed that the embedment of the cushion layer on the pile top could most significantly mobilize the potential of the foundation soil, effectively reduce the bending moment peak of the pile, and reduce the acceleration amplification effect on the top of the soil layer and raft. The embedment of the compressible block on the pile top most markedly reduced the bending moment peak of the pile and effectively mobilized the potential of the foundation soil, which was most favorable for lowering the amplification effect of acceleration on the top of the soil layer and raft.

An ameliorative duration of pulse-like ground motion records for nonlinear structural analysis

The near-field pulse-like ground motion contains obvious long-period and large pulse characteristic, which makes the nonlinear response of the structure exceed the general prediction of seismic response results. In order to reserve the obvious pulse component while selecting the strong ground motion duration part of the near-field pulse-like ground motion record without causing a large loss of spectral characteristics, the paper proposes an ameliorative truncated strong ground motion duration—useful duration. It is proposed based on the elastic acceleration response spectrum. Its principle is to make the acceleration response spectrum corresponding to useful duration and that corresponding to the original ground motion record as close and consistent as possible. The research results show that from the perspective of elastic response spectrum matching, the response spectrum matching error corresponding to useful duration is smaller than that of significant duration. In addition, the five types of periods corresponding to useful duration are closer to the period of original ground motion. Ulteriorly, from the displacement ratio spectrum of the elasto-plastic single-degree-of-freedom system, it is found that the average value of the elasto-plastic displacement ratio spectrum of useful duration and the original ground motion record is 0.98, which is very close to 1.00. It shows that the truncated ground motion can be used to replace the original ground motion to fully predict the nonlinear response of typical structures. Additionally, the effectiveness is further verified in the nonlinear response of three reinforced concrete frame structures, and the nonlinear response results of the structures are calculated using the time-history of useful duration, with less discreteness.

The prediction of seismic amplification effect in three-dimensional sedimentary basins and its application

Numerous studies have shown that the basin amplification effect is influenced by characteristic parameters such as basin geometry and media impedance contrast, but quantitative analysis of the effect for three-dimensional (3D) basins is still rare. In this paper, the basin amplification effect is quantified through an aggravation factor (AGF ), which is defined as the ratio between 3D and 1D acceleration response spectra along the basin surface. Considering the 3D geometry of the actual basin, we investigate the sensitivity of aggravation factors to inclination angles, shape ratios, and impedance contrasts by establishing 78 3D trapezoidal sedimentary basin models with different characteristic parameters. Furthermore, we perform a statistical analysis of the aggravation factors and propose their prediction formulas, which are applied to the Euroseistest basin and the Shidian basin. The above analysis reveals that: (1) The effects of inclination angle and shape ratio on the aggravation factor are concentrated in the edge part and central part of the basin, respectively, while the impedance contrast has less influence on the aggravation factor along the basin surface; (2) From the prediction results for the Euroseistest basin, the aggravation factor of the 3D model is higher than that of the 2D model with a maximum error of 22%, while the distribution pattern of the aggravation factor along the surface is similar; and (3) The predicted results for the Shidian basin show that the basin with a small inclination angle has a larger aggravation factor in the edge part and even exceeds the central part; for example, the highest aggravation factor is 2.155 in the edge part of the basin with an inclination angle of 6°.

Comparison of a tailings material and a natural sand in seismic site response analyses

This article investigates the seismic response of a tailings sand material in the context of site response analysis. The computed response is contrasted with that obtained for an equivalent deposit consisting of a well-characterised natural sand. Initially, the fundamental properties of both materials are used to interpret and compare their behaviour in the framework of Critical State Soil Mechanics (CSSM). Subsequently, both materials' monotonic and cyclic responses are calibrated for an advanced bounding surface plasticity model. Finally, the impact of different calibration approaches is examined through site response analyses under a strong motion. This process identifies fundamental differences between the two geo-materials, impacting the single elements simulations, especially the accuracy of undrained cyclic triaxial tests. The site response analyses examined herein show the impact of the calibrations adopted for both materials in terms of acceleration response spectra, displacements, and excess of pore water pressures (PWP). Although a relatively deep phreatic surface is adopted, the cyclic resistance and permeability of both materials plays a dominant role in the site response characteristics, controlling the excess PWP generation and hence the non-linear behaviour in the soil deposit. Finally, parametric studies are also conducted to explore the impact of permeability of the sands in the site response.

Vertical seismic ground shaking in the volcanic areas of Italy: prediction equations and PSHA examples

This work introduces a new Ground Motion Model (GMM) to predict the horizontal and vertical components of PGA, PGV and acceleration response spectra up to 5s for the volcanic events in Italy. The model updates the GMM for the horizontal components, recently developed by Lanzano & Luzi [1], and shows relevant amplitudes in near-source and a frequency content richer in intermediate-to-low frequencies. The comparison with an event not used for the calibration and belonging to another volcanic district in Italy is promising for the extension of the model to other areas. Finally, we present a case study of a site, in the proximity of Mount Etna in eastern Sicily region, which allows us to evaluate the impact of these models in the framework of a Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis (PSHA).

Variability of response spectra of single-path ground-motion record pairs

To improve the accuracy of seismic hazard analysis, understanding the uncertainty of the prediction of the ground-motion amplitude for a specific site owing to a specific source is important. In this study, the variability of the acceleration response spectra of single-path ground motion was evaluated using record pairs obtained from two earthquakes at the same site with the same magnitude, location, and focal mechanism, recorded by high-density strong-motion observation networks in Japan. The natural log standard deviations of the single-path ground motions varied with the period and were distributed in the range of approximately 0.3–0.5. Even if an empirical ground-motion prediction model that accurately models the characteristics of single-path ground motions could be developed, avoiding this variability in the prediction is difficult. The standard deviation of the within-event residuals was smaller at larger distances, and the period of the maximum standard deviation tended to increase as the earthquake magnitude increased. These features may be attributed to differences in the source characteristics of each earthquake. These findings will be useful for the development of advanced empirical ground-motion models and for improving the accuracy of seismic hazard analysis.

An adapted LSTM-DRRNet approach for predicting floor acceleration response spectrum

The floor response spectrum is an essential element in designing non-structural components (NSC) under earthquakes. However, most available approaches for floor response spectrum estimation involve complex modeling work, require intensive computational resources, and lack generalizability. To address these limitations, this paper proposes a novel deep-learning-based methodology to provide a generalized estimate of nonlinear floor response spectra, which is composed of a bidirectional convolutional long short-term memory network with an attention mechanism (ACN-BiLSTM) and a deep residual regression network (DRRNet). ACN-BiLSTM uses one-dimensional convolution to extract high-dimensional abstract features of ground motion spectrum in each period. The attention mechanism and multi-scale sliding time window are used to improve the network’s convergence speed and prediction accuracy. DRRNet uses deep one-dimensional convolution to build a residual shortcut connection, which delivers the proportional relationship between floor response spectrum at different heights. With the input of the ground motion acceleration spectrum and structural characteristics, the proposed method can estimate the nonlinear floor acceleration response spectrum on any floor of a building. To demonstrate its efficacy, the proposed approach is applied to a dataset that includes floor response spectra of 56 buildings subjected to 195 ground motions. The application results indicate that the proposed approach can effectively and reliably predict the nonlinear acceleration response spectrum with an accuracy of 97.29%. Such an efficient method is promising in advancing the seismic design of non-structural components.

Composite Source Model for Broadband Ground-Motion Simulations: 2021 Mw 7.4 Maduo, China, Earthquake Case Study

Abstract On 22 May 2021, at 2:40 a.m. (local time), an earthquake with a moment magnitude of 7.4 was reported to have occurred in Maduo County (34.59° N, 98.34° E), China. The focal depth was 17 km. After the earthquake, many scholars inverted the slip distribution of the Maduo earthquake based on ground-motion recordings, and the Global Positioning System and the Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar data. To verify the reliability of the fast estimation source model method adopted in this study, the hybrid slip model of the 2011 Mw 7.4 Maduo earthquake, in Qinghai Province, China, is synthetized based on the stochastic finite-fault model and the semiempirical relation between the earthquake magnitude (Mw) and source parameters. The truncated normal distribution and regional crustal structure are used to generate 30 sets of global source parameters, which describes that the deterministic characteristics of the source mainly include the size of the rupture fault, and the average slip, and the local source parameters. The local parameters include asperity and k2 model parameters. Finally, stochastic finite-fault modeling is adopted to synthetic the acceleration response spectra at four selected sites meeting different geological conditions and orientations, and the minimum residual principle is used to select the final slip model for the Maduo earthquake with the minimum residual of the average response spectra. The research results show that the width, maximum slip, and asperity body position of the source model estimated in this study are consistent with those of the inversion slip model, which verifies the reliability and applicability of this method. This work provides technical and theoretical support for rapid prediction of the source model of earthquakes with specific magnitudes.

Floor response spectra and seismic design method of electrical equipment installed on floor in indoor substation

Electrical equipment installed on floors is a typical type of nonstructural component in indoor substations, which could be subjected to earthquake loading during seismic events. To investigate the seismic design method of floor electrical equipment in indoor substations, simulation models of four whole-indoor substations comprising main control buildings and their floor electrical equipment were established. Seismic response spectrum analyses of main-attachment structures were performed with a high number of ground motions as inputs. Using mathematical statistics and data fitting methods, this research suggested the calculation formula of amplification factor of floor acceleration response spectrum. Specifically, when the periodic ratio of electrical equipment to main control building is in the range of 0.9–1.1, the system would produce a strong resonance-like effect with a peak spectral amplification factor. The floor response spectrum for seismic design was influenced by four factors: equipment importance category, floor position, damping ratio of electrical equipment, and torsion effect of main control building. Following that, a seismic design method especially applicable for electrical equipment installed on floor in indoor substation, which combines amplification factor and calculation method of seismic action indicated in the relevant specification, was presented. Lastly, a typical 220 kV whole-indoor substation was taken as an example to validate the accuracy of the design method highlighted in this article.

A Machine-Learning-Based Software for the Simulation of Regional Characteristic Ground Motion

Ground-motion simulations provide input time history data required for designing and assessing structures; however, the simulations conducted by the currently available tools only match the design spectrum without verifying if the statistical characteristics of the spectrum and duration are satisfied. A ground-motion simulation software was developed to resolve these issues. The developed software employs machine learning methods to match the amplitude, spectrum, and duration features of the target region. Principal component analysis is employed to extract features from the actual ground-motion database to detect characteristic ground motions and predict the target acceleration amplitude, response spectrum, and duration, based on the response spectrum and duration prediction equations. The results show that the simulated ground motion can match the amplitude, spectrum, and duration characteristics well. Therefore, the simulated ground motion can provide more reasonable input for the structure. Moreover, the developed software provides visualization functions that enable the user to determine the target area and obtain the amplitude field intuitively.

Pulse-like ground motion observed during the 6 February 2023 MW7.8 Pazarcık Earthquake (Kahramanmaraş, SE Türkiye)

In this study, we analyzed 100 three-component strong ground motion records observed within 200 km of the causative fault of the 6 February 2023 MW7.8 Pazarcık (Kahramanmaraş) Earthquake in SE Türkiye. The wavelet method was utilized to identify and analyze the characteristics of pulse-like ground motions in the near-fault region, while considering the uncertainty of the pulse orientation during the analysis. Our investigation focused on the effects of the focal mechanism and rupture process on the spatial distribution, pulse orientation, and maximum pulse direction of the observed pulse-like ground motion. We also analyzed the amplitude and period of the observed ground pulses and the effect of long-period amplification on the ground motion response spectra. Our results indicated the following: (1) A total of 21 typical ground velocity pulses were observed during this earthquake, exhibiting complex characteristics due to the influence of the strike-slip mechanism and rupture directivity. Most ground pulses (17 out of 21) were recorded within 20 km of the fault, in a wide range of orientations, including normal and parallel to the fault direction. The waveforms exhibited unidirectional features, indicating the effects of left-lateral fault slip. Distinct pulses observed more than 20 km from the fault were mainly oriented normal to the fault. The waveforms were bidirectional with double- or multi-round trips as a result of rupture directivity. (2) The amplitudes of the observed pulses ranged from 30.5 to 220.0 cm/s, with the largest peak velocity of 220.0 cm/s observed at Station 3138. The pulse periods ranged from 2.3 to 14.5 s, with the longest pulse period of 14.5 s observed at Station 3116. The amplitude and period of the pulses observed during this earthquake were comparable to those of similar-magnitude global earthquakes. The amplitude of the pulses decreased significantly with increasing fault distance, whereas the pulse period was not significantly affected by the fault distance. (3) Compared with non-pulse records, the velocity pulse records had a pronounced amplification effect on the acceleration response spectra near the pulse period, with factors ranging from 2.1 to 5.8. The larger velocity pulses also significantly amplified the velocity response spectra, particularly over the long periods. This significant amplification effect of the pulses on the response spectra leads to empirical models underestimating the long-period earthquake ground motion.

From ambient vibration data analysis to 1D ground-motion prediction of the Mj 5.9 and the Mj 6.5 Kumamoto earthquakes in the Kumamoto alluvial plain, Japan

We present horizontal ground motion predictions at a soft site in the Kumamoto alluvial plain for the Mj 5.9 and Mj 6.5 Kumamoto earthquakes of April 2016, in the framework of an international blind prediction exercise. Such predictions were obtained by leveraging all available information which included: (i) analysis of earthquake ground motions; (ii) processing of ambient vibration data (AMV); and (iii) 1D ground response analysis. Spectral analysis of earthquake ground-motion data were used to obtain empirical estimates of the prediction site amplification function, with evidence of an amplification peak at about 1.2 Hz. Horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio analysis of AMV confirmed this resonance frequency and pointed out also a low-frequency resonance around 0.3 Hz at the prediction site. AMV were then processed by cross-correlation, modified spatial autocorrelation and high-resolution beamforming methods to retrieve the 1D shear-wave velocity (Vs) structure at the prediction site by joint inversion of surface-wave dispersion and ellipticity curves. The use of low frequency dispersion curve and ellipticity data allowed to retrieve a reference Vs profile down to few thousand meters depth which was then used to perform 1D equivalent-linear simulations of the M 5.9 event, and both equivalent-linear and nonlinear simulations of the M 6.5 event at the target site. Adopting quantitative goodness-of-fit metrics based on time–frequency representation of the signals, we obtained fair-to-good agreement between 1D predictions and observations for the Mj 6.5 earthquake and a poor agreement for the Mj 5.9 earthquake. In terms of acceleration response spectra, while ground-motion overpredictions were obtained for the Mj 5.9 event, simulated ground motions for the Mj 6.5 earthquake severely underestimate the observations, especially those obtained by the nonlinear approach.Graphical