Seismic Design Loads of Truss Arch Frames with Ceilings subjected to Vertical and Horizontal Earthquake Motions

Spatial structures such as a gymnasium and an exhibition hall often use ceilings because of enhancing sound effects and reducing heating bills. Although the ceiling members fell down on a large scale due to the seismic motion according to the past great earthquake disaster reports, structural engineers particularly do not carry out the seismic design. The study gives structural engineers the equivalent static loads for the design of the earthquake-proof design of the ceiling system. In particular, it is significant to investigate the dynamic behavior and the applied seismic loads for the complicated vibration of the long span arch building structures with RC columns.

Wenchuan Ms8.0 earthquake coseismic slip distribution inversion

By using GPS and gravity data before and after the Wenchuan Ms8.0 earthquake and combining data from geological surveys and geophysical inversion studies, an initial coseismic fault model is constructed. The dip angle changes of the fault slip distribution on the fault plane are inversed, and the inversion results show that the shape of the fault resembles a double-shovel. The Yingxiue Beichuan Fault is approximately 330 km long, the surface fault dip angle is 65.1, which gradually reduces with increasing depth to 0 at the detachment layer at a depth of 19.62 km. The Guanxiane Jiangyou Fault is approximately90 km long, and its dip angle at the surface is 55.3, which gradually reduces with increasing depth; the fault joins the Yingxiue Beichuan Fault at 13.75 km. Coseismic slip mainly occurs above a depth of 19 km. There are five concentrated rupture areas, Yingxiu,Wenchuan, Hanwang, Beichuan, and Pingwu, which are consistent with geological survey results and analyses of the aftershock distribution. The rupture mainly has a thrust component with a small dextral strikeeslip component. The maximum slip was more than10 m, which occurred near Beichuan and Hanwang. The seismic moment is 7.84 1020 Nm(Mw7.9), which is consistent with the seismological results.

Three-dimensional crustal deformation before and after the Wenchuan earthquake in Guanzhong and adjacent regions

The recent plethora of GPS observations compensates for the 20-year-old lack in vertical displacement data for the Guanzhong region. The 2001—2007 three-dimensional（3D） crustal deformation data suggest regional movement with a horizontal velocity of 3—7 mm/a,predominantly from SSE in the west to SE in the east, and vertical inherited movement with velocity of -7 mm/a to 4 mm/a. After the Wenchuan earthquake, the GPS data suggest that the effect of the earthquake on the regional deformation is greater in the west than the east.The horizontal displacement increased during 2007—2008; however, the reverse was observed in 2008—2009. The vertical displacement in the western part of the region increased in 2008 and has been gradually returning to normal since 2009; however, in the eastern part,the effect of the earthquake remains.

Tectonic Mechanism of the Suining(Ms5.0) Earthquake,Center of Sichuan Basin,China

On Jan.31 of 2010,the Suining earthquake occurred at Suining City whch is located the center of Sichuan Basin.It is unusual for the strong earthquake to occur at the center of Sichuan Basin with a stable geotectonic environment and a low-level historical seismicity.The macro-epicenter of the earthquake is located at Moxi town of Suining city,Sichuan province,China.The earthquake intensity of the epicenter area is degree VII,and the long axis of the isoseismal line trends in NE orientation.The Suining earthquake caused the collapse or destruction of 460 family houses.The earthquake focal mechanism solution and records of the near-field seismographic stations showed the earthquake occurred at the reverse fault at a depth 34 km.Based on the waveform and focal mechanism,we consider the Suning earthquake is triggered by the reverse fault and not by the gravitational collapse or man-made explosive sources.Basing on seismic refraction profile and borehole,we consider that the earthquake is triggered by the backthrust fault of Moxi anticline rooted in detachments at a depth 3-4 km.Furthermore,we infer that tectonic mechanism of the Suining(Ms5.0) Earthquake is driven by the horizontal crustal shortening and stress adjustment on a shallow detachment after the Wenchuan(Ms 8.0) earthquake.

Evidence of earthquakes triggered by the tidal force of the sun and the moon——On the temporal characteristics of the earthquakes in Xingtai,Hejian and Tangshan

Studies by many scientists show that Hebei, China is an area with strong correlation between the tidal force and the occurrences of major earthquakes, the Xingtai earthquake of 1966, the Hejian earthquake of 1967 and the Tangshan earthquake of 1976 were triggered by the tidal force, in this paper the study on the common characteristics of their occurrence times confirms these facts. The computed times of maximum horizontal of the semi diurnal solid tide tidal force show that the occurrence times of the above mentioned earthquakes were close to the times of maximum horizontal tidal force of the semi diurnal solid tide at new moon or full moon. The Longyao earthquake of M =6.8, the Ningjin earthquake of M =7.2 and the Hejian earthquake of M =6.3 occurred tens of minutes after the maximum horizontal tidal force of the semi diurnal solid tides, and the Tangshan earthquake of M =7.8 occurred 16 minutes before the maximum horizontal tidal force. The tidal forces were directed to the west. This is their temporal characteristic. It is generally accepted that the 1969 Bohai earthquake of M =7.4 and the 1975 Haicheng earthquake were not triggered by the tidal force. These events did not show such characteristics. The temporal characteristics of the earthquakes indicate that the occurrences of these events were not random, but were controlled by the tidal force from the sun and the moon, and triggered by the tidal force. These facts agree with the triggering mechanism of the tidal force, are evidences of earthquakes triggered by tidal force.