Evolution of seismic hazard maps in Turkey

A review on the historical evolution of seismic hazard maps in Turkey is followed by summarizing the important aspects of the updated national probabilistic seismic hazard maps. Comparisons with the predecessor probabilistic seismic hazard maps as well as the implications on the national design codes conclude the paper.     

Geochemical correlations between effusive and explosive silicic volcanics in the Saraykent region (Yozgat), central Anatolia,Turkey

Two main volcanic events are distinguished between Saraykent and Akçakışla in the Yozgat province of central Anatolia: (1) early Late Cretaceous–Palaeocene effusive activity, that produced a sequence of intermediate to felsic ‘basal lavas’; and (2) marginally later Palaeocene explosive activity that formed a series of covering ignimbrite flows. Due to their close temporal and spatial relation, geochemical comparisons were made between the silicic members of the lavas and ignimbrites, to identify chemical groups and their relative petrogenesis. The basal lavas range from calc‐alkaline basaltic andesites to dominant rhyolites. Based on trace element correlations three main geochemical groups were identified: the Akçakışla rhyolites (present as domes); Akçakışla rhyodacites‐dacites (lava flows); and Ozan‐Saraykent rhyolites (lava flows). Large‐ion lithophile elements have been mobile in all the groups, but mainly in the Akçakışla rhyolites. Rare earth element (REE) patterns show marked similarity between the Ozan and Saraykent basal lavas. The Akçakışla dome rhyolites are more fractionated with lower La_N/Yb_N ratios (c.10), whereas the Akçakışla basal lavas have much higher La_N/Yb_N ratios (c.30). The chemical coherence and petrographic similarities between the Saraykent and Ozan lavas suggest a single suite related via fractionation. Three geochemical groups were also established for the ignimbrites: Saraykent ignimbrite; Bağlıca ignimbrite‐Toklu‐Kızıldağ crystal tuffs; and Keklikpınar ignimbrite. The ignimbrites, like the basal lavas, display a pronounced depletion in Ba on ORG‐normalized plots. Relative to the basal lavas, chondrite‐normalized patterns for the ignimbrites are different in displaying negative Eu anomalies that indicate feldspar fractionation. The lack of geochemical overlap or coherence between any of the lava and ignimbrite groups suggests that they represent distinct eruptive events and are not related in any simple volcanic development and cogenetic sense. Two geochemical features are common to all the volcanic rock groups: (1) the presence of a Nb‐Ta anomaly, which is generally accepted as a crustal signature; and (2) the relatively low Y abundances which appear characteristic for the region as a whole. These fundamental features of the local silicic volcanism largely reflect source composition and effects. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical analysis of reinforced soil walls with granular and cohesive backfills under cyclic loads

Novel approaches to the dynamic analysis of the reinforced soil walls have been reported in the literature. Use of marginal soils reduces the cost of geosynthetic reinforced soil walls if proper drainage measures are taken. Therefore the affect of using cohesive marginal soils as backfill in geosynthetic reinforced retaining structures were investigated in this research. The dynamic response of reinforced soil walls was investigated in a similar focus, using finite element analysis. The results obtained from walls with cohesive backfill were compared to the results obtained from walls with granular backfill. The height of the wall was chosen as 6 m in the two-dimensional plane strain finite element model and the base acceleration was chosen to be a harmonic motion. The effects of various parameters like the backfill type, facing type, reinforcement stiffness, and peak ground acceleration on the cyclic response of reinforced soil retaining walls were investigated. After analyzing the wall response for end of construction and dynamic excitation phases, it was determined that the deformations and reinforcement tensile loads increased during the cyclic load application and that the amount of additional deformation that occurred during cyclic load application was strongly related to backfill soil type, facing type, reinforcement type and peak ground acceleration. It was determined that a cohesive backfill and geotextile reinforcement was a good combination to reduce the deformations of geosynthetic reinforced walls during cyclic loading for medium height walls.     

Landslide susceptibility mapping of the Sera River Basin using logistic regression model

Of the natural hazards in Turkey, landslides are the second most devastating in terms of socio-economic losses, with the majority of landslides occurring in the Eastern Black Sea Region. The aim of this study is to use a statistical approach to carry out a landslide susceptibility assessment in one area at great risk from landslides: the Sera River Basin located in the Eastern Black Sea Region. This paper applies a multivariate statistical approach in the form of a logistics regression model to explore the probability distribution of future landslides in the region. The model attempts to find the best fitting function to describe the relationship between the dependent variable, here the presence or absence of landslides in a region and a set of independent parameters contributing to the occurrence of landslides. The dependent variable (0 for the absence of landslides and 1 for the presence of landslides) was generated using landslide data retrieved from an existing database and expert opinion. The database has information on a few landslides in the region, but is not extensive or complete, and thus unlike those normally used for research. Slope, angle, relief, the natural drainage network (including distance to rivers and the watershed index) and lithology were used as independent parameters in this study. The effect of each parameter was assessed using the corresponding coefficient in the logistic regression function. The results showed that the natural drainage network plays a significant role in determining landslide occurrence and distribution. Landslide susceptibility was evaluated using a predicted map of probability. Zones with high and medium susceptibility to landslides make up 38.8 % of the study area and are located mostly south of the Sera River Basin and along streams.     

Petrogenesis of extension-related alkaline volcanism in Karaburhan (Sivrihisar–Eskisehir), NW Anatolia, Turkey

Alkaline lavas were erupted as phonolites and trachytes around Karaburhan (Sivrihisar–Eskisehir, NW Anatolia) within the Izmir–Ankara–Erzincan suture zone. These volcanic rocks were emplaced as domes, close and parallel to the ophiolite thrust line. According to ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar geochronological analyses of sanidine crystals from the phonolites, the age of the alkaline volcanics is 25 Ma (Late Oligocene–Early Miocene).The flow-textured phonolites are porphyritic and consist mainly of sanidine, clinopyroxene, and feldspathoid crystals. The clinopyroxenes show compositional zoning, with aegirine (Na_0.82–0.96Fe⁺³_0.68–0.83) rims and aegirine–augite cores (containing calcium, magnesium, and Fe⁺²). Some aegirine–augites are replaced with sodium-, calcium-, and magnesium-rich amphibole (hastingsite). Feldspathoid (hauyne) crystals enriched with elemental Na and Ca have been almost completely altered to zeolite and carbonate minerals. The fine-grained trachytes with a trachytic texture consist of feldspar (oligoclase and sanidine) phenocrystals and clinopyroxene microphenocrystals within a groundmass made up largely of alkali feldspar microlites.Although there are some differences in their element patterns, the phonolites and trachytes exhibit enrichment in LILEs (Sr, K, Rb, Ba, Th) and LREEs (La, Ce, Pr, Nd) and negative anomalies in Nb and Ta. These geochemical characteristics indicate a lithospheric mantle enriched by fluids extracted from the subduction component. In addition, the high ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr (0.706358–0.708052) and low ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd (0.512546–0.512646) isotope concentrations of the alkaline lavas reflect a mantle source that has undergone metasomatism by subduction-derived fluids. Petrogenetic modeling indicates that the alkaline lavas generated from the subduction-modified lithospheric mantle have undergone assimilation, fractional crystallization, and crustal contamination, acquiring high Pb, Ba, Rb, and Sr contents and Pb isotopic compositions during their ascent through the thickened crust in an extensional setting.     

Middle Pleistocene bivalves of the İznik lake basin (Eastern Marmara, NW Turkey) and a new paleobiogeographical approach

?znik Lake is a tectonically originated basin mainly controlled by the E–W trending middle strand of the North Anatolian Fault (NAF) system. Pleistocene sediments occurring in front of the faults are well exposed both in the northern and in the southern shorelines of the basin. In this study, two endemic brackish water bivalve species, Didacna subpyramidata Pravoslavkev 1939 and Didacna nov. sp. were found in the oldest terrace of the northern Pleistocene sequence. Having characterized morphology, these species serve as stratigraphic indicators in the regional Pleistocene stratigraphy of the Ponto-Caspian region, and thus are well correlated to the assemblages of the early Khazarian subhorizon (Middle Pleistocene). Hence, these data demonstrate that the early Khazarian brackish water sea covered the study area. Additionally, a model for the formation of the basin is proposed: the ?znik lake basin was a gulf of the former Marmara Sea in the early Khazarian, connecting the Marmara to the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. The subsequent regional prograding uplifts, main dextral strike-slip fault and many normal faults of the NAF Zone cut off the marine connections to the basin, leading to its present location and topographic level.     

The effect of seasonally frozen soil on stochastic response of elevated water tank under random excitation

Significant seismic events have occurred around the world during winter months in regions where cold temperatures cause ground freezing. Current seismic design practice does not address the effects of cold temperatures in the seasonally frozen areas. Since many elevated water tank structures in cold regions are located in seismic active zones, determining the effect of seasonally frozen soil on the stochastic response of elevated water tank structures subjected to random seismic excitation is an important structural consideration. A three dimensional finite element model, which considers viscous boundaries, was built up to obtain the stochastic seismic behavior of an elevated water tank–fluid–soil interaction system for frozen soil condition. For this model, the power spectral density function represents random ground motion applied to each support point of the three dimensional finite element model of the elevated water tank–fluid–soil interaction system. Numerical results show that the soil temperature affects the seismic response of the elevated water tank; whereas the variation in the thickness of the frozen soil causes insignificant changes on the response. In addition, the effect of the variation in water tank’s fullness on the stochastic response of the coupled system is investigated in the study. As a result, the seasonal frost changes the foundation soil stiffness and may impact seismic behavior of the water tank.