Pulses in ground motions identified through surface partial matching and their impact on seismic rocking consequence

In seismology and earthquake engineering,it is fundamental to identify and characterize the pulse-like features in pulse-type ground motions.To capture the pulses that dominate structural responses,this study establishes congruence and shift relationships between response spectrum surfaces.A similarity search between spectrum surfaces,supplemented with a similarity search in time series,has been applied to characterize the pulse-like features in pulse-type ground motions.The identified pulses are tested in predicting the rocking consequences of slender rectangular blocks under the original ground motions.Generally,the prediction is promising for the majority of the ground motions where the dominant pulse is correctly identified.

Seismic response and correlation analysis of a pile-supported wharf to near-fault pulse-like ground motions

Earthquake investigations have shown that near-fault pulse-like(NF-P)ground motions have unique characteristics compared to near-fault non-pulse-like(NF-NP)and far-field(FF)ground motions.It is necessary to study the seismic response of pile-supported wharf(PSW)structures under NF-P ground motions.In this study,a three-dimensional finite element numerical model is created to simulate a PSW.By imparting three types of ground motion,the engineering demand parameters(EDPs)of PSW under NF-P ground motions were analyzed and compared,in which EDPs are the maximum displacement and bending moment of the piles.Twenty intensity measures(IMs)were selected to characterize the properties of ground motions.The correlation between IMs and EDPs was explored.The results show that the piles present larger displacement and bending moment under NF-P ground motions compared to NF-NP and FF ground motions.None of the IMs have a high correlation with EDPs under NF-P ground motions,and these IMs are more applicable to FF ground motions.The correlation coefficients between EDPs and IMs under three types of ground motion were obtained,which will provide a valuable reference for the seismic design of PSWs.

Structural failure analysis with CMS-based ground motion selection using innovative cost function and weight factors

The selection and scaling of ground motion records is considered a primary and essential task in performing structural analysis and design.Conventional methods involve using ground motion models and a conditional spectrum to select ground motion records based on the target spectrum.This research demonstrates the influence of adopting different weighted factors for various period ranges during matching selected ground motions with the target hazard spectrum.The event data from the Next Generation Attenuation West 2(NGA-West 2)database is used as the basis for ground motion selection,and hazard de-aggregation is conducted to estimate the event parameters of interest,which are then used to construct the target intensity measure(IM).The target IMs are then used to select ground motion records with different weighted vector-valued objective functions.The weights are altered to account for the relative importance of IM in accordance with the structural analysis application of steel moment resisting frame(SMRF)buildings.Instead of an ordinary objective function for the matching spectrum,a novel model is introduced and compared with the conventional cost function.The results indicate that when applying the new cost function for ground motion selection,it places higher demands on structures compared to the conventional cost function.Moreover,submitting more weights to the first-mode period of structures increases engineering demand parameters.Findings demonstrate that weight factors allocated to different period ranges can successfully account for period elongation and higher mode effects.

Pulse-like ground motion observed during the 6 February 2023 M_(W)7.8 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 M_(W)7.8 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.

Seismic fragility analysis of clay-pile-pier systems considering the optimization of ground motion intensity measures

The performance of clay-pile-pier system under earthquake shaking was comprehensively examined via three-dimensional finite element analyses,in which the complex stress-strain relationships of a clay and piled pier system were depicted by a hyperbolic-hysteretic and an equivalent elastoplastic model,respectively.One hundred twenty ground motions with varying peak accelerations were considered,along with the variations in bridge superstructure mass and pile flexural rigidity.Comprehensive comparison studies suggested that peak pile-cap acceleration and peak pile-cap velocity are the optimal ground motion intensity measures for seismic responses of the pier and the pile,respectively.Furthermore,based on two optimal ground motion intensity measures and using curvature ductility to quantify different damage states,seismic fragility analyses were performed.The pier generally had no evident damage except when the bridge girder mass was equal to 960 t,which seemed to be comparatively insensitive to the varying pile flexural rigidity.In comparison,the pile was found to be more vulnerable to seismic damage and its failure probabilities tended to clearly reduce with the increment of pile flexural rigidity,while the influence of the bridge girder mass was relatively minor.

Selection and modification of ground motion records using Newmark-Hall spectrum as target spectrum for long-period structures

Input ground motions have significant impacts on the uncertainty of structural responses in time-history analysis.In this study,records were selected and scaled for the evaluation of mean structural responses according to the target spectrum.The Newmark-Hall spectrum is closely related to seismic response of short,medium and long-period structures,so it was taken as the target spectrum here.The nonlinear time-history analyses of 9-story and 20-story steel moment-resisting frame structures were carried out as examples.They represent medium and long-period buildings,respectively.Three target spectra with risk of 50%,10%and 2%probabilities for exceedance in 50 years were calculated by the average Newmark-Hall spectrum method for three ground motion sets developed in the SAC Steel Project.The predicted structural mean responses of these Newmark-Hall spectra were compared with those calculated by the average spectral acceleration method for the same record set.It is found that both methods have similar accuracy for estimating the structural mean response.However,the method proposed herein is more effective in reducing the variability of the structural responses.Also,the proposed method is more advantageous for the time-history analysis of long-period structures or structures with more severe nonlinear responses under strong seismic excitations.

Effects of the probability of pulse-like ground motions on landslide susceptibility assessment in near-fault areas

Earthquake-induced strong near-fault ground motion is typically accompanied by largevelocity pulse-like component,which causes serious damage to slopes and buildings.Although not all near-fault ground motions contain a pulse-like component,it is important to consider this factor in regional earthquake-induced landslide susceptibility assessment.In the present study,we considered the probability of the observed pulse-like ground motion at each site(PP)in the region of an earthquake as one of the conditioning factors for landslide susceptibility assessment.A subset of the area affected by the 1994Mw6.7 Northridge earthquake in California was examined.To explore and verify the effects of PP on landslide susceptibility assessment,seven models were established,consisting of six identical influencing factors(elevation,slope gradient,aspect,distance to drainage,distance to roads,and geology)and one or two factors characterizing the intensity of the earthquake(distance to fault,peak ground acceleration,peak ground velocity,and PP)in logistic regression analysis.The results showed that the model considering PP performed better in susceptibility assessment,with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve value of 0.956.Based on the results of relative importance analysis,the contribution of the PP value to earthquakeinduced landslide susceptibility was ranked fourth after the slope gradient,elevation,and lithology.The prediction performance of the model considering the pulse-like effect was better than that reported previously.A logistic regression model that considers the pulse-like effect can be applied in disaster prevention,mitigation,and construction planning in near-fault areas.

Evaluation of underground blast-induced ground motions through nearsurface low-velocity geological layers

Surface ground motion produced by underground blasts is significantly influenced by near-surface geological conditions.However,near-surface low-propagation velocity layers were always ignored in past analyses of ground motions due to their thin thickness.With the rising concern about surface ground motions produced by the ascendant scale and frequentness of underground excavation and mining,close attention is gradually paid to ground blast vibrations.Therefore,systemic experiments were conducted and took seven months in an underground mine to clarify the variation of motion from underground rock to surface ground.The attenuation of surface ground peak particle velocities(PPVs)is compared to that in underground rock,and horizontal amplitudes are compared to vertical amplitudes.Differences between bedrock and surface ground vibrations are analyzed to illustrate the site effect of near-surface lower-propagation velocity layers.One-dimensional site response analysis is employed to quantify the influence of different geological profiles on surface ground vibrations.The experimental data and site response analysis allowed the following conclusions:(1)geological site effects mainly produce decreasing dominant frequency(DF)of surface ground vibrations;(2)the site amplification effect of blast vibration needs to be characterized by peak particle displacement(PPD);(3)shear waves(S-waves)begin to dominate and surface Rayleigh waves(R-waves)develop as blast-induced ground vibrations travel upward through rock and lower-velocity layers to the surface.The comparison of response relative displacement to a critical value is best to assess the potential for cracking on surface structures.

Regional Finite-Fault Source Model for Development of Ground Motion Attenuation Relationship in Sichuan, China

The attenuation relationship of ground motion based on seismology has always been a front subject of engineering earthquake.Among them,the regional finite-fault source model is very important.In view of this point,the general characteristics of regional seism-tectonics,including the dip and depth of the fault plane,are emphasized.According to the statistics of regional seism-tectonics and focal mechanisms in Sichuan,China,and the sensitivity of estimated peak ground acceleration(PGA)attenuation is analyzed,and the dip angle is taken as an average of 70°.Based the statistics of the upper crustal structure and the focal depth of regional earthquakes,the bottom boundary of the sedimentary cover can be used as the upper limit for estimating the depth of upper-edge.The analysis shows that this value is sensitive to PGA.Based on the analysis of geometric relations,the corresponding calculation formula is used,and a set of concepts and steps for building the regional finite-fault source model is proposed.The estimation of source parameters takes into account the uncertainty,the geometric relationship among parameters and the total energy conservation.Meanwhile,a set of reasonable models is developed,which lay a foundation for the further study of regional ground motion attenuation based on seismology.

Spatial distribution of near-fault ground motion

Near-fault strong ground motion of strike-slip and dip-slip of vertical and inclined rectangular fault in half-space and layered half-space is analyzed by dislocation source model. The Fourier spectra ratio of ground motion is adopted to study the characteristics of near-fault ground motion. For both slip models, near-fault strong ground motion with high amplitude is located in a narrow belt area along the projection of the fault on the ground and mainly controlled by the sub-faults nearby. Directivity of strike-slip fault is more dominant in long period for components perpendicular to the fault, and more dominant in long period for components parallel to the fault for dip-slip fault. The deeper the location of the source is, the more slowly the amplitude of ground motion attenuates. There is obvious hanging wall effect in ground motion of inclined fault, and the spatial distribution of ground motion is asymmetric which coincides with observational data. Finally, a fitting function of spatial distribution for near-fault ground motion is proposed and compared with near source factors of the 1997 Uniform Building Code of USA.

Effect of seawater on incident plane P and SV waves at ocean bottom and engineering characteristics of offshore ground motion records off the coast of southern California, USA

The effect of seawater on vertical ground motions is studied via a theoretical method and then actual offshore ground motion records are analyzed using a statistical method. A theoretical analysis of the effect of seawater on incident plane P and SV waves at ocean bottom indicate that on one hand, the affected frequency range of vertical ground motions is prominent due to P wave resonance in the water layer if the impedance ratio between the seawater and the underlying medium is large, but it is greatly suppressed if the impedance ratio is small; on the other hand, for the ocean bottom interface model selected herein, vertical ground motions consisting of mostly P waves are more easily affected by seawater than those dominated by SV waves. The statistical analysis of engineering parameters of offshore ground motion records indicate that:(1) Under the infl uence of softer surface soil at the seafl oor, both horizontal and vertical spectral accelerations of offshore motions are exaggerated at long period components, which leads to the peak spectral values moving to a longer period.(2) The spectral ratios(V/H) of offshore ground motions are much smaller than onshore ground motions near the P wave resonant frequencies in the water layer; and as the period becomes larger, the effect of seawater becomes smaller, which leads to a similar V/H at intermediate periods(near 2 s). These results are consistent with the conclusions of Boore and Smith(1999), but the V/H of offshore motion may be smaller than the onshore ground motions at longer periods(more than 5 s).

Time-frequency response spectrum of rotational ground motion and its application

The rotational seismic motions are estimated from one station records of the 1999 Jiji （Chi-Chi）, Taiwan, earthquake based on the theory of elastic plane wave propagation. The time-frequency response spectrum （TFRS） of the rotational motions is calculated and its characteristics are analyzed, then the TFRS is applied to analyze the damage mechanism of one twelve-storey frame concrete structure. The results show that one of the ground motion components can not reflect the characteristics of the seismic motions completely; the characteristics of each component, especially rotational motions, need to be studied. The damage line of the structure and TFRS of ground motion are important for seismic design, only the TFRS of input seismic wave is suitable, the structure design is reliable.

Dominant pulse simulation of near fault ground motions

In this study, a new mathematical model is developed composed of two parts, including harmonic and polynomial expressions for simulating the dominant velocity pulse of near fault ground motions. Based on a proposed velocity function, the corresponding expressions for the ground acceleration and displacement time histories are also derived. The proposed model is then fitted using some selected pulse-like near fault ground motions in the Next Generation Attenuation （NGA） project library. The new model is not only simple in form but also simulates the long-period portion of actual velocity near fault records with a high level of precision. It is shown that the proposed model-based elastic response spectra are compatible with the near fault records in the neighborhood of the prevailing frequency of the pulse. The results indicate that the proposed model adequately simulates the components of the time histories. Finally, the energy of the proposed pulse was compared with the energy of the actual record to confirm the compatibility.

Traveling wave effect on the seismic response of a steel arch bridge subjected to near fault ground motions

In the 1990s, several major earthquakes occurred throughout the world, with a common observation that near fault ground motion （NFGM） characteristics had a distinct impact on causing damage to civil engineering structures that could not be predicted by using far field ground motions. Since then, seismic responses of structures under NFGMs have been extensively examined, with most of the studies focusing on structures with relatively short fundamental periods, where the traveling wave effect does not need to be considered. However, for long span bridges, especially arch bridges, the traveling wave （only time delay considered） effect may be very distinct and is therefore important. In this paper, the results from a case study on the seismic response of a steel arch bridge under selected NFGMs is presented by considering the traveling wave effect with variable apparent velocities. The effects of fling step and long period pulses of NFGMs on the seismic responses of the arch bridge are also discussed.

Influence of earthquake ground motion incoherency on multi-support structures

A linear response history analysis method is used to determine the influence of three factors:geometric incoherency,wave-passage,and local site characteristics on the response of lnulti-support structures subjected to differential ground motions.A one-span frame and a reduced model of a 24-span bridge,located in Las Vegas,Nevada are studied,in which the influence of each of the three factors and their combinations are analyzed.It is revealed that the incoherency of earthquake ground motion can have a dramatic influence on structural response by modifying the dynamics response to uniform excitation and inducing pseudo-static response,which does not exist in structures subjected to uniform excitation.The total response when all three sources of ground motion incoherency are included is generally larger than that of uniform excitation.

A note on near-field site amplification effects of ground motion from a radially inhomogeneous valley

To improve the understanding of the near-field soil and topographic amplification effects, an analytical solution by the authors for the scattering of plane SH waves by a radially inhomogeneous semi-cylindrical valley is extended to the case of a line source of cylindrical SH waves. Upon confirmation of its accuracy with past exact solutions for a homogeneous and an inhomogeneous semi-cylindrical valley under far-field plane SH waves, the extended solution is used to calculate the ground motion amplification factors for both the homogeneous and inhomogeneous valleys subjected to near-field waves. A comprehensive parametric study is conducted with respect to the location of the wave source, the dimensionless frequency of the incident waves, and the inhomogeneity degree of the covering soil layer. It is found that more amplifications and reductions of ground motions will occur within a certain range in and around the valley as the sources are located further. Consistent with the far-field case, it is confirmed that an increase of the degree of inhomogeneity of the covering soil layer generally amplifies the ground motions significantly.

Dynamic shear modulus of undisturbed soil under different consolidation ratios and its effects on surface ground motion

The dynamic shear modulus for three types of undisturbed soil under different consolidation ratios is presented by using the resonant column test method. Its effects on surface ground motion is illustrated by calculation. The test results indicate that the power function is a suitable form for describing the relationship between the ratio of the maximum dynamic shear modulus due to anisotropic and isotropic consolidations and the increment of the consolidation ratio. When compared to sand, the increment of the maximum dynamic shear modulus for undisturbed soil due to anisotropic consolidation is much larger. Using a one-dimensional equivalent linearization method, the earthquake influence factor and the characteristic period of the surface acceleration are calculated for two soil layers subjected to several typical earthquake waves. The calculated results show that the difference in nonlinear properties due to different consolidation ratios is generally not very notable, but the degree of its influence on the surface acceleration spectrum is remarkable for the occurrence of strong earthquakes. When compared to isotropic consolidation, the consideration of actual anisotropic consolidation causes the characteristic period to decrease and the earthquake influence factor to increase.

Simulation of spatially correlated earthquake ground motions for engineering purposes

A new model to simulate spatially correlated earthquake ground motions is developed. In the model, the main factors that characterize three distinct effects of spatial variability, namely, the incoherency effect, the wave-passage effect and the site-response effect, are taken into account, and corresponding terms/parameters are incorporated into the well known model of uniform ground motions. Some of these terms/parameters can be determined by the root operation, and others can be calculated directly. The proposed model is first verified theoretically, and examples of ground motion simulations are provided as a further illustration. It is proven that the ensemble expected value and the ensemble auto-/cross-spectral density functions of the simulated ground motions are identical to the target spectral density functions. The proposed model can also be used to simulate other correlated stochastic processes, such as wave and wind loads.

Representation of near-fault pulse-type ground motions

Near-fault ground motions with long-period pulses have been identified as critical in the design of structures. To aid in the representation of this special type of motion, eight simple pulses that characterize the effects of either the flingstep or forward-directivity are considered. Relationships between pulse amplitudes and velocity pulse period for different pulses are discussed. Representative ratios and peak acceleration amplification can exhibit distinctive features depending on variations in pulse duration, amplitude and the selected acceleration pulse shape. Additionally, response spectral characteristics for the equivalent pulses are identified and compared in terms of fixed PGA and PGV, respectively. Response spectra are strongly affected by the duration of pulses and the shape of the basic pulses. Finally, dynamic time history response features of a damped SDOF system subjected to pulse excitations are examined. These special aspects of pulse waveforms and their response spectra should be taken into account in the estimation of ground motions for a project site close to a fault.