Sensitivity of seismic structural response to interpretation of soils data

This paper investigates the sensitivity of the predicted seismic response of buildings in a PWR nuclear power station to the potential changes in the techniques and methods of interpreting soil data that have occurred over the last decade. The investigation is based on the soil-structure interaction (SSI) response of a typical PWR reactor building on a soft site during a seismic event. The current techniques and methods of interpretation of soils data tend to lead to a stiffer site with lower soil material damping than the earlier techniques. This leads to an increase in the SSI natural frequencies of typical buildings and an increase in its seismic response. This increase in the seismic response could put into question any seismic design based on seismic loads derived using the previously accepted generic soil data. The paper concludes with a recommendation for further consideration of the proposed departure from the previously accepted soil data.     

Improved structural interpretation of legacy 3D seismic data from Karee platinum mine (South Africa) through the application of novel seismic attributes

Seismic detection of faults, dykes, potholes and iron-rich ultramafic pegmatitic bodies is of great importance to the platinum mining industry, as these structures affect safety and efficiency. The application of conventional seismic attributes (such as instantaneous amplitude, phase and frequency) in the hard-rock environment is more challenging than in soft-rock settings because the geology is often complex, reflections disrupted and the seismic energy strongly scattered. We have developed new seismic attributes that sharpen seismic reflections, enabling additional structural information to be extracted from hard-rock seismic data. The symmetry attribute is based on the invariance of an object with respect to transformations such as rotation and reflection; it is independent of the trace reflection amplitude, and hence a better indicator of the lateral continuity of thin and weak reflections. The reflection-continuity detector attribute is based on the Hilbert transform; it enhances the visibility of the peaks and troughs of the seismic traces, and hence the continuity of weak reflections. We demonstrate the effectiveness of these new seismic attributes by applying them to a legacy 3D seismic data set from the Bushveld Complex in South Africa. These seismic attributes show good detection of deep-seated thin (∼1.5 m thick) platinum ore bodies and their associated complex geological structures (faults, dykes, potholes and iron-rich ultramafic pegmatites). They provide a fast, cost-effective and efficient interpretation tool that, when coupled with horizon-based seismic attributes, can reveal structures not seen in conventional interpretations.     

Application of wavelet transform in structural health monitoring

Earthquake Engineering and Engineering Vibration - Structural health monitoring (SHM) is a process of implementing a damage detection strategy in existing structures to evaluate their condition to...     

Monitoring of structural systems by using frequency data

The present work evaluates the possibility of using dynamic data to assess structural integrity. It addresses the problem of understanding when it is sufficient to measure and use only natural frequencies, thus avoiding the need to measure modal shapes. The classic problem of detecting damage in beams, or beam assemblies, due to concentrated cracks, or damage spread over a structural member is dealt with. Damage is represented as a decrease in stiffness and linear behaviour before and after the event assumed to have caused damage is considered. Damage is restricted to a few unknown sections or elements, so that only the modification of few parameters of the system need to be determined. This study thus rejects assumptions unrelated to the physical aspects of the problem, in contrast to many papers on the subject. The amount of data to locate and quantify damage correctly is discussed; general considerations lead to the conclusion that a unique and reliable estimate of the damage can be obtained using only few additional frequency data with respect to the number of damaged zones. Continuous and discrete (finite element) models are examined. Finally the paper considers the applications to both analytical and experimental data of the procedure developed, which takes account of the peculiar characteristics of damage detection problem. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Statistical analysis of trend monitoring data of heavy metals in flounder (Platichthys flesus)

Six years trend monitoring data of mercury, cadmium, copper, lead, and zinc in flounder from the Sound and the Great Belt (Danish coastal waters) are statistically assessed using a series of multilinear, regressive models in terms of the measurements of metal levels and various biological parameters (e.g. length) for individual fish. With the exception of zinc in females from the Great Belt, each element exhibited no significant differences in relation to biological parameters from year to year at the two areas. Linearly increasing trends in the concentrations were found for cadmium without sex dependance from the two areas and for zinc and copper in females from the Sound and zinc in males from the Great Belt. Zinc is, in both areas, significantly correlated with the sex as is copper in the flounder from the Sound. The statistical models used have been found very useful and easy to interpret.     

结构健康监测系统设计标准化评述与展望

阐述了结构健康监测的概念和内涵。详细介绍了结构健康监测系统的功能、组成和应用现状。结构健康监测系统设计标准化能够促进健康监测的应用和发展,具有重要的工程意义。对世界范围内相关研究进展进行了综述和评价。强调在我国建立监测系统设计标准的重要性,并提出了相应的说明和建议。设计标准可以分为总则、外观检查与无损检测、传感器的选择与布置、信息采集与处理系统、通信与传输系统、损伤识别和评估系统、应用实例等7部分。结构健康监测系统设计标准的实现将有力地推动健康监测的研究。     

Recent activity of Nisyros volcano (Greece) inferred from structural, geochemical and seismological data

This study summarizes the results of structural, geochemical and seismological surveys carried out at Nisyros volcano (Aegean Sea, Greece) during 1999–2001. Field mapping and mesostructural measurements at the summit caldera (Lakki plain) indicate that faults follow two main strikes: NE-SW and N-S. The N-S striking fault depicts extensional features accommodating the left-lateral component of motion of the NE-SW- striking main faults. The NE-SW preferred strike of the Lakki faults and of the mineral-filled veins as well as the distribution and NE-SW elongation of the hydrothermal craters indicate that tectonics plays a major role in controlling the fluid pathway in the Nisyros caldera. The same NE-SW trend is depicted by CO₂ anomalies revealed through detailed soil CO₂ flux surveys, thus indicating a structural control on the pattern of the hydrothermal degassing. Degassing processes account for a thermal energy release of about 43 MW, most of which occurs at Lofos dome, an area that was affected by hydrothermal eruptions in historical times. The seismic study was conducted in June 2001, using a deployment specifically aimed at detecting signals of magmatic-hydrothermal origin. Our instruments recorded local and regional earthquakes, a few local long-period events (LP), and bursts of monochromatic tremor. Local earthquake activity is concentrated beneath the caldera, at depths generally shallower than 6 km. Plane-wave decomposition of tremor signal indicates a shallow (<200 m) source located in the eastern part of the caldera. Conversely, LP events depict a source located beneath the central part of the caldera, in the area of Lofos dome, at depths in the 1–2-km range. In agreement with geochemical and structural measurements, these data suggest that both the deeper and shallower part of the hydrothermal system are subjected to instability in the fluid flow regimes, probably consequent to transient pressurization of the reservoir. These instabilities may be related to input of hot fluids from the deeper magmatic system, as suggested by the variations in geochemical parameters observed after the 1997–1999 unrest episode. The significance of seismological and geochemical indicators as precursors of hydrothermal explosive activity at Nisyros is discussed.Editorial responsibility: H. Shinohara     

Opening geometry of the Kurile Basin (Okhotsk Sea) as inferred from structural data

Abstract   The Kurile Basin in the Okhotsk Sea, northwestern Pacific, is a back-arc basin located behind the Kurile Island Arc. It is underlain by oceanic crust and its origin has been attributed to back-arc spreading. Two models for the opening of the Kurile Basin exist, for which the spreading axis is oriented northeast–southwest and northwest–southeast, respectively. New data are presented here on the morphostructure of the slope of the northern Kurile Basin and of the central Kurile Basin which support a strike of the spreading axis in the latter direction. Bathymetric as well as single-channel and multichannel seismic reflection data demonstrate the existence of dominant northwest-striking normal faults on the northern slope of the Kurile Basin. In the central Kurile Basin a basement rise striking north-northwest–south-southeast (here named the Sakura Rise) was mapped. The rise morphology has the distinct imprint of a rift structure with symmetrical volcanic edifices on the rise axis and faulted blocks that tilt in opposite directions on the flanks. These data suggest that the Kurile Basin opened in a northeast–southwest direction. In the generally accepted plate tectonic reconstructions, northwest–southeast spreading associated with dextral strike–slip along the north–south-striking shear zone of Sakhalin and Hokkaido islands has been assumed. In the present model, spreading in the Kurile Basin was presumably connected with dextral displacement along a northeast-striking shear zone on the southern segment of the Okhotsk Sea.     

Real-time Seismic Amplitude Measurement (RSAM): a volcano monitoring and prediction tool

Seismicity is one of the most commonly monitored phenomena used to determine the state of a volcano and for the prediction of volcanic eruptions. Although several real-time earthquake-detection and data acquisition systems exist, few continuously measure seismic amplitude in circumstances where individual events are difficult to recognize or where volcanic tremor is prevalent. Analog seismic records provide a quick visual overview of activity; however, continuous rapid quantitative analysis to define the intensity of seismic activity for the purpose of predicing volcanic eruptions is not always possible because of clipping that results from the limited dynamic range of analog recorders. At the Cascades Volcano Observatory, an inexpensive 8-bit analog-to-digital system controlled by a laptop computer is used to provide 1-min average-amplitude information from eight telemetered seismic stations. The absolute voltage level for each station is digitized, averaged, and appended in near real-time to a data file on a multiuser computer system. Raw realtime seismic amplitude measurement (RSAM) data or transformed RSAM data are then plotted on a common time base with other available volcano-monitoring information such as tilt. Changes in earthquake activity associated with dome-building episodes, weather, and instrumental difficulties are recognized as distinct patterns in the RSAM data set. RSAM data for domebuilding episodes gradually develop into exponential increases that terminate just before the time of magma extrusion. Mount St. Helens crater earthquakes show up as isolated spikes on amplitude plots for crater seismic stations but seldom for more distant stations. Weather-related noise shows up as low-level, long-term disturbances on all seismic stations, regardless of distance from the volcano. Implemented in mid-1985, the RSAM system has proved valuable in providing up-to-date information on seismic activity for three Mount St. Helens eruptive episodes from 1985 to 1986 (May 1985, May 1986, and October 1986). Tiltmeter data, the only other telemetered geophysical information that was available for the three dome-building episodes, is compared to RSAM data to show that the increase in RSAM data was related to the transport of magma to the surface. Thus, if tiltmeter data is not available, RSAM data can be used to predict future magmatic eruptions at Mount St. Helens. We also recognize the limitations of RSAm data. Two examples of RSAM data associated with phreatic or shallow phreatomagmatic explosions were not preceded by the same increases in RSAM data or changes in tilt associated with the three dome-building eruptions.     

Development of new sensor systems for continuous bedload monitoring using a submerged load‐cell system (SLS)

It is important to evaluate bedload discharge and temporal changes of the bed surface, and bed deformation can be estimated during floods if the bedload discharge is properly evaluated in an arbitrary cross‐section. With the exception of grain size and its distribution within the bedload, bedload discharge has been measured using both direct and indirect methods. Bedload slot is a direct method but cannot be used to measure bedload during a flood because of volume limitations. Indirect methods require correlation between the signals and sediment volume measured using another method. In the present study, a small, automatically recording bedload sensor with an iron plate and a pair of load cells is developed in order to evaluate not only large particles but also sand particles as bedload. Bedload mass is calculated by integrating with respect to both the velocity of sediment particles and the averaged particle weight as measured by a pair of load cells, and, as an example, the velocity is estimated by the cross‐correlation function of weights measured by load cells. The applicability of the proposed sensor is discussed based on the results of flume tests in the laboratory (2014) and the observation flume of the Hodaka Sedimentation Observatory of Kyoto University in Japan (2015). The system was installed in the observation flume in November of 2012, and flume data were obtained using natural sediment particles. In particular, it was difficult to estimate the velocity of averaged bedload particles, and it was better to apply a cross‐correlation function in the laboratory tests. However, it appears that the previous estimation can estimate these velocities in the observation flume using a connecting tube and submerged load‐cell systems. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Identification of linear structural systems using earthquake-induced vibration data

This paper addresses the issue of system identification for linear structural systems using earthquake induced time histories of the structural response. The proposed methodology is based on the Eigensystem Realization Algorithm (ERA) and on the Observer/Kalman filter IDentification (OKID) approach to perform identification of structural systems using general input–output data via Markov parameters. The efficiency of the proposed technique is shown by numerical examples for the case of eight-storey building finite element models subjected to earthquake excitation and by the analysis of the data from the dynamic response of the Vincent-Thomas cable suspension bridge (Long Beach, CA) recorded during the Whittier and the Northridge earthquakes. The effects of noise in the measurements and of inadequate instrumentation are investigated. It is shown that the identified models show excellent agreement with the real systems in predicting the structural response time histories when subjected to earthquake-induced ground motion. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Design and application of structural health monitoring system in long-span cable-membrane structure

Cable-membrane structures have small rigidity and are highly sensitive to wind. Structural health monitoring is necessary to ensure the serviceability and safety of the structure. In this research, the design method of a structural health monitoring system is using the characteristics of a cable-membrane structure. Taking the Yueyang Sanhe Airport Terminal as an example, a finite element model is established to determine the critical structural components. Next, the engineering requirements and the framework of the monitoring system are studied based on the results of numerical analysis. The specific implementation of the structural health monitoring is then carried out, which includes sensor selection, installation and wiring. The proposed framework is successfully applied to the monitoring system for the Yueyang Airport terminal building, and the synchronous acquisition of fiber Bragg grating and acceleration sensor signals is implemented in an innovative way. The successful implementation and operation of structural health monitoring will help to guarantee the safety of the cablemembrane structure during its service life.     

奇异性分析方法在地震资料解释及反演研究中的应用

本文引入启动函数拓展传统的地层转换模型,在该模型中利用奇异性信息量化地层速度的突变特征,并基于传统的褶积模型研究奇异性信息在波阻抗到合成地震记录之间的传递性.研究结果表明,地震记录中较好地保留了地层介质的奇异性特征,因而从地震记录中提取的奇异性信息除了可以帮助进行地震解释外,还可以作为介质波阻抗反演的有力的支持工具.     

Direct analytic signal (DAS) method in the interpretation of magnetic data

We presented a new method for interpreting 2D magnetic data, called direct analytic signal (DAS) method, which directly used the analytic signal of magnetic anomaly to compute the depth and the structural index of the source. The DAS method needs only the computation of the first order derivatives of magnetic anomaly, so that the inversion results are more stable than the results obtained by the other existing analytic signal methods. The DAS method is tested on synthetic magnetic data with and without noise, and the DAS method can successfully obtain the depth and the structural index of the source. We also applied the DAS method to interpret a real magnetic data over a shallow geological source whose source parameters are known from closely drilling information, and the inversion results are in accord with the true values.     

Wavelet analysis and interpretation of gravity data in Sichuan-Yunnan region, China

Introduction Sichuan-Yunnan region, located in the east margin of Qinghai-Xizang (Tibetean) Plateau, is a transitional zone between the rapidly upheaving Tibetean Plateau and relatively steady Yangtze Platform. Under the pressure exerted by the northward movement of Indian Plate, Sichuan-Yunnan region has been undergone strong deformation and regmagenesis, becoming one of the regions with the most intensive seismicity in the world. The research on the tectonics and seismicity there is alw…     

Analysis and interpretation of VHF-radar data

Doppler measurements have been carried out during a variety of observational campaigns using the stationary and the mobile SOUSY-VHF-Radars. The general data reduction procedure is presented in some detail. Particular emphasis is placed upon possible problems arising from contaminated data and solutions are proposed. Some results from measurements at tropospheric and mesospheric heights are presented.     

Bayesian model selection for ARX models and its application to structural health monitoring

A Bayesian framework for model order selection of auto‐regressive exogenous (ARX) models is developed and applied to actual earthquake response data obtained by the structural health monitoring system of a high‐rise building. The model orders of ARX models are selected appropriately by the Bayesian framework, and differ significantly from the optimal order estimated by AIC; in fact, in many cases AIC does not even give an optimal order. A method is also proposed for consistently selecting the same ‘genuine’ modes of interest from the whole set of modes corresponding to each of the identified models from a sequence of earthquake records. In the identification analysis based on building response records from 43 earthquakes over 9 years, the modal parameters of the first four modes in each horizontal direction are estimated appropriately in all cases, showing that the developed methods are effective and robust. As the estimates of natural frequency depend significantly on the response amplitude, they are compensated by an empirical correction so that the influence of the response amplitude is removed. The compensated natural frequencies are much more stable over the nine‐year period studied, indicating that the building had no significant change in its global dynamic characteristics during this period. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Maximum entropy spectral analysis of volcanic tremor using data from Etna (Sicily) and Merapi (central Java)

The maximum entropy spectral analysis (MESA) method is applied to synthetic and observed tremor time series using autoregressive processes and recordings from the volcanoes Etna (Sicily) and Merapi (central Java). The MESA analysis can be used to estimate power spectra with sharp peaks from short data records. If the tremor source process can be modelled by an autoregressive process, the MESA method is well-suited for determining the coefficients of the underlying difference equations. As in the standard periodogram method of power spectrum estimation, a mesagram estimate using record segmentation and MESA spectrum averaging reduces the variance of the spectral estimator. In combination with periodogram estimates, mesagram estimates confirm that the tremor source may be modelled as an ensemble of randomly excited resonators. Used together, these estimates provide a valuable method for short-term monitoring of volcanic activity. In addition, they can be applied to the determination of new source parameters such as resonator frequencies, damping coefficients, excitation probabilities, correlation of exciting forces, and resonator coupling and in the pattern recognition of source types.