Behaviour of masonry structures during the Bhuj earthquake of january 2001

A variety of masonry structures suffered damage during the recent Bhuj earthquake. Some of the traditional masonry structures had no earthquake resistant features and suffered considerable damage. This paper attempts to evaluate the behaviour of masonry structures based on the type of masonry used in places like Bhuj, Anjar, Bhachau, Morbi, Samakhyali and several other places. Quite a few masonry buildings had used earthquake resistant features like lintel bands and corner reinforcements. The cracking and failure patterns of such buildings have also been examined. The paper concludes with a discussion on the relevance of the current codal provisions for earthquake resistance of masonry structures and the direction of further research in the area.     

Seismic risk assessment of buildings in urban areas: a case study for Denizli,Turkey

This study aims to carry out a seismic risk assessment for a typical mid-size city based on building inventory from a field study. Contributions were made to existing loss estimation methods for buildings. In particular, a procedure was introduced to estimate the seismic quality of buildings using a scoring scheme for the effective parameters in seismic behavior. Denizli, a typical mid-size city in Turkey, was used as a case study. The building inventory was conducted by trained observers in a selected region of Denizli that had the potential to be damaged from expected future earthquakes according to geological and geotechnical studies. Parameters that are known to have some effect on the seismic performance of the buildings during past earthquakes were collected during the inventory studies. The inventory includes data of about 3,466 buildings on 4,226 parcels. The evaluation of inventory data provided information about the distribution of building stock according to structural system, construction year, and vertical and plan irregularities. The inventory data and the proposed procedure were used to assess the building damage, and to determine casualty and shelter needs during the M6.3 and 7.0 scenario earthquakes, representing the most probable and maximum earthquakes in Denizli, respectively. The damage assessment and loss studies showed that significant casualties and economic losses can be expected in future earthquakes. Seismic risk assessment of reinforced concrete buildings also revealed the priorities among building groups. The vulnerability in decreasing order is: (1) buildings with 6 or more stories, (2) pre-1975 constructed buildings, and (3) buildings with 3–5 stories. The future studies for evaluating and reducing seismic risk for buildings should follow this priority order. All data of inventory, damage, and loss estimates were assembled in a Geographical Information System (GIS) database.     

A conception of casualty control based seismic design for buildings

Earthquake disaster is still the number one among all natural disasters, particularly, in terms of destructive power in causing deaths. Can earthquake engineers control seismic casualties through the seismic design of buildings? For this purpose, a conception of casualty control based seismic design is presented and a “two-step decision-making” method is proposed for determining the optimum seismic design intensity (or ground-motion) for controlling both seismic death and economic losses. The key problems in establishing the model are to determine the appropriate socially acceptable level of earthquake mortality and establish the corresponding objective function and /or constraint conditions in determining the optimum seismic design intensity. Ten different grades of socially acceptable mortality are suggested and the final socially acceptable mortality level was proposed for seismic design based on a questionnaire that was distributed nationwide in China. Finally, the method was applied to eight cities with different seismic hazard in China and the effects of various grades of acceptable earthquake mortality on seismic design intensity are analyzed.     

Safety evaluation of an ancient masonry seawall structure with modified DDA method

The ancient masonry seawall along China’s Qiantang River is an important structure for defending the prosperous estuarine area, including Hangzhou, Jiaxing, and part of Shanghai, against violent floods, tides and waves. Modified discontinuous deformation analysis (DDA) is used here to analyze the failure mechanisms and stability of the blocky seawall structure. The backfilling soil is properly integrated into the DDA model, by means of the proposed soil discretization approach, and with an accurate interface shear strength model that the authors presented. According to the simulation results by the modified DDA, the existing seawall is generally in good state. Nevertheless, routine inspection and early restoration are recommended to avoid progressive failures of the seawall.     

Integrated model for earthquake risk assessment using neural network and analytic hierarchy process:Aceh province,Indonesia

Catastrophic natural hazards,such as earthquake,pose serious threats to properties and human lives in urban areas.Therefore,earthquake risk assessment(ERA)is indispensable in disaster management.ERA is an integration of the extent of probability and vulnerability of assets.This study develops an integrated model by using the artificial neural network–analytic hierarchy process(ANN–AHP)model for constructing the ERA map.The aim of the study is to quantify urban population risk that may be caused by impending earthquakes.The model is applied to the city of Banda Aceh in Indonesia,a seismically active zone of Aceh province frequently affected by devastating earthquakes.ANN is used for probability mapping,whereas AHP is used to assess urban vulnerability after the hazard map is created with the aid of earthquake intensity variation thematic layering.The risk map is subsequently created by combining the probability,hazard,and vulnerability maps.Then,the risk levels of various zones are obtained.The validation process reveals that the proposed model can map the earthquake probability based on historical events with an accuracy of 84%.Furthermore,results show that the central and southeastern regions of the city have moderate to very high risk classifications,whereas the other parts of the city fall under low to very low earthquake risk classifications.The findings of this research are useful for government agencies and decision makers,particularly in estimating risk dimensions in urban areas and for the future studies to project the preparedness strategies for Banda Aceh.     

Observations of the performance of buildings during the 1985 Mexico earthquake,and structural design implications

Summary The high amplification of the 1985 Mexico City earthquake is explained by the large number of strong and nearly continuous cycles of 2 s period motion lasting for more than 30 s. The type of damage caused by the earthquake—particularly to engineered multi-storey buildings of high flexibility is described, and methods of adding damping and stiffness elements to reduce and resist earthquake demand forces are discussed.     

福建省地震安全性评价与抗震设防要求信息系统设计

本文采用ASP技术设计地震安全性评价与抗震设防要求信息系统,并介绍了系统结构和部分功能模块。     

Landslides triggered by the 1949 Khait earthquake, Tajikistan, and associated loss of life

Earthquake-triggered landslides are a major geological hazard in Central Asia. In July 1949, the M7.4 Khait earthquake triggered many hundreds of landslides in a mountainous region near the southern limit of the Tien Shan Mountains, central Tajikistan. These landslides involved widespread rock-slope failure as well as large numbers of flowslides in loess that mantles the steep slopes of the region. In the Yasman valley hundreds of loess landslides coalesced to form a massive loess flow (est. vol. 245 Mm³) that travelled up to 20 km on a slope of only 2°. In an adjacent valley, the Khait landslide involved transformation of an earthquake-triggered rockslide into a very rapid flow by the entrainment of saturated loess into its movement. It travelled 7.41 km over a vertical distance of 1421 m with an estimated average velocity of ~30 m/s. We estimate its volume as 75 Mm³, an order of magnitude less that previously published estimates. The Khait landslide was simulated using DAN. The number of casualties due to earthquake-triggered landslides in the epicentral region was considerable. Approximately 4000 people were killed in the Yasman valley loess flow as 20 villages (kishlaks) were overwhelmed. In the Khait landslide alone we estimate ca. 800 people lost their lives when the villages of Khait and Khisorak were overrun by rapidly moving debris. Our data indicates that a total of approximately 7200 people were killed by earthquake-triggered landslides in the epicentral region of the Khait earthquake and that, in terms of loss of life, the 1949 Yasman valley loess flow was one of the most destructive landslides in recent history.     

山岭隧道塌方风险模糊层次分析

对隧道施工塌方采用模糊层次综合评判法进行风险评估,通过收集和整理隧道塌方的资料,总结影响隧道塌方的因素,再遴选出主要的因素作为模糊层次评估方法的影响因子,然后统计分析得到各个因子与塌方发生概率、塌方量之间的隶属函数,并采用综合赋权法确定评价指标的权重,从而建立塌方风险模糊层次评估模型。该模型在青山岗隧道得到了验证,其分析结果可信。     

2008年云南盈江地震震害特点及抗震防灾启示

2008年云南省盈江县发生了多次中强地震,其中较严重的地震事件有3月21日在南部发生的5.0级地震和8月21日在北部发生的5.9级地震。通过实地考察并结合有关文献,对地震震害特点作了分析,从中得出了农村抗震救灾的启示。几次地震震中均位于岩浆岩区,未见地震断层。地震造成了大量民房破坏,其中3月21日地震对铜壁关乡有轻微的破坏,5.9级地震破坏最严重的是勐弄乡部分村庄,微观震中所在的苏典乡房屋有较轻程度的破坏,油松岭乡江心坡村位于冲积平原,是烈度异常区。有2种原因致使盈江地震震害严重,一是地基地质结构差和力学强度低,如滑坡堆积层地基和易液化沙土地基;二是建筑物的抗震性能差,主要是建筑结构松散和建筑材料质量低劣。盈江地震灾害告诉我们,在农村加强地基勘查和地基处理的极端重要性,同时要加强房屋的抗震设防,加强对地震的应急能力建设,提倡地震保险。     

Dynamic process analysis for the initiation and movement of the Donghekou landslide-debris flow triggered by the Wenchuan earthquake

The Donghekou landslide-debris flow was a remarkable geological disaster triggered by the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008. The dynamic process of a rapid landslide-debris flow is very complicated and can be divided into two aspects: the slope dynamic response of the earthquake and the mass movement and accumulation process. A numerical method combined with a finite difference method (FDM) and discrete element method (DEM) for simulation of landslide-debris flow under seismic loading is presented. The FDM and DEM are coupled through the critical sliding surface, initiation time and velocity. The dynamic response of the slope is simulated by the finite difference method, and critical sliding surface is determined using the earthquake response spectrum method. The landslide initiation time and the velocity are determined by time–history analysis. The mass movement and accumulation process is simulated using the discrete element method. Simulation results demonstrate that the maximum amplification coefficient of dynamic acceleration for the Donghekou slope is approximately 3.909, the initiation time of landslide is approximately 6.0 s, and the average initial velocity of the sliding mass is approximately 0.85 m/s. The failure of the slope is the result of elevation-orientated amplification effect and the sliding mass triggered with a small initial velocity. The numerical simulated result of the maximum sliding velocity is approximately 66.35 m/s, and the mass is disintegrated rapidly because of collision and free fall. The landslide velocity decreases when the flowing mass reaches a lower slope angle and gradually comes to a stop, and the total travel distance is approximately 2400 m.     

季节性冻融过程黄土斜坡失稳机制及稳定性趋势

季节性冻融型滑坡是黄土地质灾害的主要类型之一。季节性冻融过程中地下水响应极其敏感, 地下水分布和变化对黄土斜坡体内岩土体的应力状态、力学性状及斜坡稳定性均有较大的影响, 冻结期滞水与融解期疏水引发的斜坡范围内地下水位变化是黄土斜坡稳定性变化及失稳破坏的主要诱发因素之一。在季节性冻融过程斜坡地下水变化全过程分析基础上, 采用基于极限平衡理论的条分法和基于弹塑性理论的有限元数值法, 对黄土斜坡稳定性与斜坡应力应变场的响应进行分析计算, 探讨季节性冻融条件下黄土斜失稳破坏机制及稳定性变化趋势, 认为黄土斜坡在冻融过程中的稳定性状态与冻结融解日期呈现明显滞后效应, 其失稳状态将持续至融解中期, 为季节性冻融型滑坡预警防治提供科学依据。     

Numerical simulation of crack formation process in clays during drying and wetting

Clays generally crack upon drying and the cracks gradually close up because of expansion of the clays induced by rainfall infiltration. Based on the concept of air drainage ratio, we introduce an improved simplified consolidation theory for unsaturated soils and apply it to solve the crack formation problem. We present initial conditions, special consideration, and finite-element (FEM) formulations for simulation of cracks under axisymmetric conditions. Similar to finding solutions for sand-well consolidation problems, a prism of clays surrounded by polygonal distributed cracks is simplified as a cylinder. Numerical simulations using the FEM formulations are performed on the processes of crack occurrence, propagation, and closure during drying and wetting. To investigate the influence of air drainage ratio distribution, three different schemes are adopted for computation. It is found that the behaviour of cracks in clays during drying and wetting can be well represented using the approach proposed in the paper. The simplified consolidation theory used in the paper for unsaturated soils is more suitable for crack analysis than the general consolidation theory currently applied.     

The rupture process during the 1999 Düzce, Turkey, earthquake from joint inversion of teleseismic and strong-motion data

Teleseismic and strong-motion data are inverted to determine the rupture process during the November 1999 Düzce earthquake in NW Turkey. The fault geometry, rise time and rupture velocity are determined from the aftershock distribution and preliminary inversions of the teleseismic data. Joint inversion of the teleseismic and strong-motion data is then carried out for the slip distribution. We obtain the strike 264°, dip 64°, rake −172°, seismic moment 5.0×10¹⁹ N m (M_w 7.1), and average stress drop 7 MPa. This earthquake was characterized by bilateral fault rupture and asymmetric slip distribution. Two asperities (areas of large slip) are identified, the eastern one being 1.5 times larger than the western one. The derived slip distribution is consistent with the aftershock distribution, surface rupture and damage. The point of rupture initiation in this Düzce earthquake coincided with the eastern tip of the aftershock distribution of the August 1999 Izmit earthquake.     

碾压混凝土重力坝全程综合仿真分析与安全评估

运用有限元方法对光照碾压混凝土重力坝进行施工期温度、渗流、应力应变的综合仿真分析,得出了温度场、渗流场及应力场的分布规律,在此基础上评价整个坝体与坝基系统稳定性的安全度,为坝体与坝基系统的温控、渗控和安全性评价提供参考依据。同时对光照碾压混凝土重力坝进行了不考虑温度、徐变、浇筑过程和蓄水过程的应力-应变和安全度计算,并对两种计算的结果进行了比较,结果表明：对碾压混凝土重力坝而言两者的位移相差最大,达70 mm;应力差别其次,达1.5 MPa;而整体稳定超载安全系数则没有本质区别。由于变形、应力和稳定安全系数在碾压混凝土重力坝设计中都是重要指标,所以综合仿真分析具有意义。     

Experimental and numerical study of the damage process in RC beam-column sub-assemblages during a progressive collapse scenario

In the present paper, the collapse resistance of reinforced concrete (RC) beam-column sub-assemblages subjected to a middle column removal scenario is investigated on the basis of experimental tests and numerical calculations. For the experimental programme, three one-third scale substructures are designed with two types of longitudinal steel rebar to observe the influence of rebar detailing on the global structural behaviour. The structure under consideration is composed of a two-bay beam, and a middle column lies on two sliding-pin connections to prevent a catenary action mechanism. A digital image correlation (DIC) technique was employed with the experiments to observe the growth of cracks. In addition, numerical simulations using the finite element method (FEM) were also done. The Denoual-Forquin-Hild (DFH) anisotropic damage model is used to simulate the behaviour of the concrete, whereas a plasticity model is used for the steel rebars. The numerical simulations are compared with experimental data in terms of structural yield strength, change in stiffness and crack propagation, and better agreement is observed when a weakening of the concrete due to beam stirrups is taken into account.     

某砂岩顺层挖方高边坡治理工程施工期变形特征与工程效果评价

为了研究砂岩顺层挖方高边坡支护工程施工期间及施工后的边坡变形规律和治理工程效果,文章依托北京某边坡支护项目,对边坡在施工过程中的锚索轴力及边坡位移进行监测分析,结果表明：锚索轴力变化主要分为加速损失阶段、波动阶段以及持续稳定趋变阶段;锚索轴力变化可以很好地反映坡体内力的变化情况;坡顶水平位移和竖向沉降的变化,可以反映边坡深层位移的变化规律和边坡的稳定性;框架预应力锚索抗滑桩组合支护体系应用于砂岩顺层挖方高边坡的支护时,具有较好的支护效果。采用有限元分析软件,模拟该砂岩顺层挖方高边坡的开挖支护过程发现：随着边坡的开挖,坡体位移沿着软弱滑动面向坡角发展,边坡稳定性降低。将监测结果与模拟结果对比分析,发现二者的变化趋势基本一致,证明了该边坡的支护体系能有效地控制边坡的变形。研究成果能为以后类似边坡的设计施工提供参考。