Development of a Seismometer-Type Absolute Displacement Sensor Aimed at Detecting Earthquake Waves with a Large Magnitude and Long Period

This paper proposes a novel seismometer-type absolute displacement sensor aimed at detecting earthquake waves with a large magnitude and long period. However, since the measuring range of the displacement sensor is higher than its natural frequency, it is difficult to detect low frequency vibrations below 1 Hz using a conventional a seismic-type displacement sensor. In order to provide an absolute displacement detection which is capable of lowering the natural frequency and enlarging the detectable amplitude without causing structural defects, the relative signals of displacement, velocity, and acceleration between a detected object and the auxiliary mass of the sensor are fed back into the sensor. In addition, phase lag compensation is inserted to adjust phase angles, which are of a frequency of 1 Hz. According to simulation results, a detection range from 0.1 Hz to 50 Hz is expected. It has been demonstrated that the developed sensor with a small size and light weight has a detection range of from 0.5 Hz to 50 Hz for absolute displacement and velocity. As an additional advantage, the measurement displacement amplitude has been expanded to about 20 dB. This sensor is available to use for the active control method. of flexible structures like high rise buildings using the LQ control

Shear wave splitting analysis of local earthquakes from dense arrays in Shimian,Sichuan

The Shimian area of Sichuan sits at the junction of the Bayan Har block.Sichuan-Yunnan rhombic block,and Yangtze block,where several faults intersect.This region features intense tectonic activity and frequent earthquakes.In this study,we used local seismic waveform data recorded using dense arrays deployed in the Shimian area to obtain the shear wave splitting parameters at 55 seismic stations and thereby determine the crustal anisotropic characteristics of the region.We then analyzed the crustal stress pattern and tectonic setting and explored their relationship in the study area.Although some stations returned a polarization direction of NNW-SSE.a dominant polarization direction of NW-SE was obtained for the fast shear wave at most seismic stations in the study area.The polarization directions of the fast shear wave were highly consistent throughout the study-area.This orientation was in accordance with the direction of the regional principal compressive stress and parallel to the trend of the Xianshuihe and Daliangshan faults.The distribution of crustal anisotropy in this area was affected by the regional tectonic stress field and the fault structures.The mean delay time between fast and slow shear waves was 3.83 ms/km.slightly greater than the values obtained in other regions of Sichuan.This indicates that the crustal media in our study area had a high anisotropic strength and also reveals the influence of tectonic complexity resulting from the intersection of multiple faults on the strength of seismic anisotropy.

Lithospheric structure and deformation in SE Tibet revealed by ambient noise and earthquake surface wave tomography: Recent advances and perspectives

High-resolution lithospheric structure is essential for understanding the tectonic evolution and deformation patterns of the southeastern Tibetan plateau. This is now possible due to recent advances in ambient noise and earthquake surface wave tomography, and great improvements in data coverage from dense portable array stations deployed in SE Tibet. In this review paper, I first give a brief overview of the tomographic methods from ambient noise and earthquake surface waves, and then summarize the major findings about the lithospheric structure and deformation in SE Tibet revealed by ambient noise and earthquake surface wave tomography as well as by other seismic and geophysical observations. These findings mainly include the 3-D distribution of mechanically weak zones in the mid-lower crust, lateral and vertical variations in radial and azimuthal anisotropy, possible interplay of some fault zones with crustal weak zones, and importance of strike-slip faulting on upper crustal deformation. These results suggest that integration of block extrusion in the more rigid upper-middle crust and channel flow in the more ductile mid-lower crust will be more compatible with the current geophysical observations. Finally I discuss some future perspective researches in SE Tibet, including array-based tomography, joint inversion using multiple seismic data, and integration of geodynamic modeling and seismic observations.

Dynamics of risers for earthquake resistant designs

It is well known that no criterion about seismic design for risers is available, and relevant research has not been reported. A comprehensive study of riser dynamics during earthquakes is performed in this paper. A dynamic model for seismic analysis of risers is developed in accordance with the working environment of the risers and the influence of inertia force of the pipelines. The dynamic equations for the developed model are derived and resolved on the basis of the energy theory of beams. Numerical simulation for an engineering project in the Bohai Oil Field, China shows that the fundamental frequency of the riser plays the major role in the seismic responses, and for platforms in shallow water in Bohai Bay, the risers demonstrate a much lower stress response due to prominent differences between the riser frequency and the earthquake wave frequency. The presented model and its corresponding method for seismic analysis are practical and important for riser design resistant to earthquake waves.

The characteristics of variation in inhomo geneity of temporalspatial distribution of short to imminent precursors before strong earthquakes

C_v is used in this paper to describe the variation in inhomogeneity of spatial and temporal distribution of precur sors. The inhomogeneous variation in the spatial and temporal distribution of the anomalies in water radon and electromagnetic waves before M_s≈6 earthquakes in northern North China is analyzed in detail. Results show that before a moderate to strong earthquake, the distribution of anomalies in water radon and electromagnetic waves changes inhomogeneously, i.e., C_v increases significantly. The inhomogeneity in spatial distribution of short-to- imminent precursors increases before a strong earthquake, which may relates to the enhancement of crustal strain field. The research will not only help us to know more about the process of seismogeny and to improve practical earthquake prediction, but also blaze a new way to do earthquake prediction with present precursor data.

Source rupture process of the 2015 Gorkha, Nepal Mw7.9 earthquake and its tectonic implications

On 25 April, 2015, an Mw7.9 earthquake occurred in Nepal, which caused great economic loss and casualties. However, almost no surface ruptures were observed. Therefore, in order to interpret the phenomenon, we study the rupture process of the earthquake to seek answers. Inversion of teleseismic body-wave data is applied to estimate the rupture process of the 2015 Nepal earthquake. To obtain stable solutions, smoothing and non-negative constraints are introduced. 48 teleseismic stations with good coverage are chosen. Finite fault model is established with length and width of 195 km and 150 km, and we set the initial seismic source parameters referring to CMT solutions. Inversion results indicate that the focal mechanism of this earthquake is a thrust fault type, and the strike, dip and rake angle are in accordance with CMT results. The seismic moment is 0.9195 ×10^（21）Nm（Mw7.9）, and source duration is about 70s. The rupture nucleated near the hypocenter and then propagated along the dip direction to the southeast, and the maximum slip amounts to 5.2 m. Uncertainties on the amount of slip retrieved by different inversion methods still exist, the overall characteristics are inconsistent. The lack of shallow slip during the 2015 Gorkha earthquake implies future seismic hazard and this region should be paid more attention to.

Coseismic displacement estimate of the 2013 M_S7.0 Lushan, China earthquake based on the simulation of near-fault displacement field

Usually, GPS observation provides direct evidence to estimate coseismic displacement. However, GPS stations are scattered, sparse and cannot provide a detailed distribution of coseismic displacement. Strong ground motion records share the same disadvantages as GPS in estimating coseismic displacement. Estimations from InSAR data can provide displacement distributions; however, the resolution of such methods is limited by the analysis techniques. The paper focuses on estimating the coseismic displacement of the Ms7.0 Lushan earthquake on April 20, 2013 using a simulation of the wave field based on the elastic wave equation instead of a quasi-static equation. First, the media and source models were con- structed by comparing the simulated velocity and the record velocity of the ground motion. Then simulated static displacements were compared with GPS records. Their agreement validates our results. Careful analysis of the distribution of simulated coseismic displacements near the fault reveals more details of the ground motion. For example, an uplift appears on the hanging wall of the fault, rotation is associated with the horizontal displacement, the fault strike and earthquake epicenter provide the main control on motion near the faults, and the motion on the hanging wall is stronger than that on the footwall. These results reveal additional characteristics of the ground motion of the Lushan earthquake.

Discussion on the Reproducibility of Precursor Waves in the Water Level Records of Jingle Well

Choosing the Jingle well in Shanxi as the research object, this paper discusses the reproducibility problem of well water level precursor waves. The results show that the start time and fluctuation cycle before similar earthquakes are highly reproducible,the ratio of which is up to 63. 1%. The fluctuation form and amplitude before some similar earthquakes are of certain similarity,but earthquakes with all precursor wave features being similar were not found in the research scope. The reason may be related to the origin and transmission route of the precursor wave as well as the properties of the seismic source area of similar earthquakes.

Monitoring Media Velocity Variations with Coda Wave Interferometry

Multiply scattered waves are sensitive to media changes owing to the effect of repeated sampling,superposition and amplification. Based on this characteristic,small-medium changes could be detected by using coda wave interferometry. In recent years,coda wave interferometry has been widely used in estimating velocity variation with high precision in areas such as seismology and non-destructive testing. This paper systematically presents the principle and research status of coda wave interferometry,and especial focus is placed on the research of media velocity variations by using repeating earthquakes,artificial sources,and ambient noise. Applications of coda wave interferometry can contribute to the more subtle understanding of dynamic evolution process in the medium.

Current Earthquake Early Warning Technology and Its Development in China

Earthquake Early Warning ( EEW) has come to attention,as earthquake prediction is still unreliable. The paper comprehensively illustrates the research status and important issues of EEW from the aspects of concept,composition and method. By analyzing the status of EEW in China,we find that the essential requirements have been met for building earthquake early warning systems in the country in terms of government and social needs, network construction and basic research. The technical difficulties and non-technical challenges in implementing EEW in China are evaluated, and some suggestions are proposed regarding the relevant legal measures,public education and protection against earthquake disasters. so as to bring into full play the role of the EEW system in earthquake disaster prevention and reduction.

Seismic Response Analysis of Long-Span Suspen-Dome under Multi-Support Excitations

A practical suspen-dome project, Changzhou Gym roof, is adopted as an example and its transient analysis based on the multi-support excitations of the earthquake wave is carried out. Compared with the single support excitation, the position and value of the maximum stress under multi-support excitations both change and the amount of elements with obvious changes is large and more than 70% of the total. Moreover, when other terms are not changed, this influence will decrease as the span decreases, but increa...

Equivalent Response Estimation of Structural Systems Subjected to Long-Period Ground Motion

Long-period ground motion has become an important consideration because of the increasing number of large and long-period structures.Therefore,a thorough investigation on the formation and characteristics of longperiod ground motion is desirable for engineering applications.In this work,an analytical study is performed to examine the effect of several parameters and the combining mode for equivalent harmonic components on the dynamic response of systems.The results of the work show that the harmonic components in equivalent ground motion are evidently influenced by the intensity rise time,duration,phase and combining mode.Moreover,the long-period ground motions are simplified and simulated by separate harmonic components through proper combination.The findings of the work are believed to be useful in the selection of input ground motion in structural seismic analysis.

Recent advances in imaging crustal fault zones: a review

Crustal faults usually have a fault core and surrounding regions of brittle damage, forming a low-velocity zone （LVZ） in the immediate vicinity of the main slip interface. The LVZ may amplify ground motion, influence rupture propagation, and hold important information of earthquake physics. A number of geophysical and geodetic methods have been developed to derive high-resolution structure of the LVZ. Here, I review a few recent approaches, including ambient noise cross-correlation on dense across-fault arrays and GPS recordings of fault-zone trapped waves. Despite the past efforts, many questions concerning the LVZ structure remain unclear, such as the depth extent of the LVZ. High-quality data from larger and denser arrays and new seismic imaging technique using larger portion of recorded waveforms, which are currently under active development, may be able to better resolve the LVZ structure. In addition, effects of the alongstrike segmentation and gradational velocity changes across the boundaries between the LVZ and the host rock on rupture propagation should be investigated by conducting comprehensive numerical experiments. Furthermore, high-quality active sources such as recently developed large-volume airgun arrays provide a powerful tool to continuously monitor temporal changes of fault-zone properties, and thus can advance our understanding of fault zone evolution.

A Discussion on Dynamic Characteristics of Undisturbed Loess by Dynamic Triaxial Test

Based on the dynamic triaxial test system and using the fitted wave of the Wenchuan earthquake and 1 Hz constant amplitude sinusoid,the paper compares the results of tests on undisturbed loess samples under different loads and vibration modes but under same saturated conditions.Results of the comparative experiment show:The stress-strain curves have a similar trend under random seismic loading and constant amplitude sinusoidal loading,but the random seismic loading is more sensitive to failure strength of the undisturbed loess samples under the same stress.

Study on generation mechanism of anomalous acoustic-gravity waves before the 2011 Beijing earthquake(M_L=3.0)

Observation results of abnormal acoustic-gravity waves before a Beijing earthquake （ML =3.0） are presented. During this period, abnormalities of earth surface tilt variations were also recorded. The cross-correlations between the both values are high, which reach maximal values of 0.5 in the area close to the epicenter. The correlations decrease with increasing distances from the epicenter. It was proposed that generation of the anomalous waves may be associated with the pressure and wind perturbations in the air flow caused by slowly shaking mountains during slow surface motion preceding the earthquake in Beijing. Based on the wind velocity data taken from a 350 m meteorological tower in Beijing, the propagation of ducted acoustic-gravity waves in a two-layer model of the atmosphere was numerically simulated. It is shown that characteristic periods, amplitudes and velocities of the simulated phases which were assumed from non-stationary air flow relative to mountains are approximate to the observed phases. A consistency between the simulated results and observation data indicates that a slow surface motion may be a possible source of the anomalous acoustic-gravity waves observed prior to the earthquake.

The electromagnetic wave experiment for CSES mission： Search coil magnetometer

The seismic activities on the Earth can produce a disturbance of the electromagnetic field and particles in the ionosphere. The search coil magnetometer(SCM) mounted on China Seismo-Electromagnetic satellite(CSES) is designed to measure the magnetic field fluctuation of low frequency electromagnetic waves in the frequency range of 10 Hz–20 k Hz. The SCM comprises a three-axis search coil sensor mounted on a 4.5 m boom and an electronic box inside satellite module. The sampling rate of the SCM is 51.2 k Hz and the time resolution of the power spectrum density(PSD) is 2 s. The frequency resolution is 12.5 Hz.There are three operation modes: survey, detailed survey and calibration. In the survey mode, the SCM can provide a PSD in the whole frequency range of 10 Hz–20 k Hz and wave forms in the low frequency range below 2 k Hz while in the detailed survey mode the SCM can provide both PSD and wave forms in the whole frequency range of 10 Hz–20 k Hz. The sensitivity of the SCM instrument is 5.0×10^(-4) n T Hz^(-1/2) at 10 Hz, 5.0×10^(–5) n T Hz^(-1/2) at 200 Hz, 3.4×10^(-5) n T Hz^(-1/2) at 2 k Hz and 1.1×10^(-4) n T Hz^(-1/2) at 20 k Hz. The telemetry rate is ~0.85 Mbps in the survey mode and ~3.0 Mbps in the detailed survey mode. The phase difference between three axes can be made generally with a precision of less than 1.0°. The dynamic range of the SCM instrument is over 100 d B. The orthogonality of three mechanical axes of search coil senor is better than 0.13°. The performance of SCM can satisfy the requirement of scientific objectives of CSES mission.