Dissecting large earthquakes in Japan: Role of arc magma and fluids

We synthesized information from recent high-resolution tomographic studies of large crustal earthquakes which occurred in the Japanese Islands during 1995–2008. Prominent anomalies of low-velocity and high Poisson's ratio are revealed in the crust and uppermost mantle beneath the mainshock hypocenters, which may reflect arc magma and fluids that are produced by a combination of subducting slab dehydration and corner flow in the mantle wedge. Distribution of 164 crustal earthquakes ( M 5.7–8.0) that occurred in Japan during 1885–2008 also shows a correlation with the distribution of low-velocity zones in the crust and uppermost mantle. A qualitative model is proposed to explain the geophysical observations recorded so far in Japan. We consider that the nucleation of a large earthquake is not entirely a mechanical process, but is closely related to the subduction dynamics and physical and chemical properties of materials in the crust and upper mantle; in particular, the arc magma and fluids.     

圆柱形支撑大跨度建筑结构强震冲击分析模型仿真

圆柱形支撑大跨度建筑稳定性较差,不能在强震冲击下保持稳定的结构状态。为解决此问题,设计圆柱形支撑大跨度建筑结构强震下冲击分析仿真模型,通过圆柱分析法则的确定、有限元支撑模拟分析与监测、圆柱形支撑体系承载能力分析以完成模型的仿真分析与监测。基于此对大跨度建筑结构强震冲击进行静力分析,调整强震冲击下模型的结构,完成模型的搭建。模拟强震冲击环境,设计对比实验结果表明,应用圆柱形支撑大跨度建筑结构强震下冲击分析仿真模型,可明确圆柱形支撑大跨度建筑薄弱点,发现稳定性较差建筑结构单元,达到提升圆柱形支撑大跨度建筑在强震冲击下稳定性的目的。     

马尼拉地震带海啸对广东沿海影响的数值研究——潮汐与海啸的非线性作用的影响

基于COMCOT数值模型,建立了天文潮与海啸耦合数学模型,对日本"311"海啸进行了模拟验证。针对马尼拉地震带海啸,通过设计海啸震源的计算,分析广东省沿海海啸风险,从数值上得出了海啸引发的最大增水值以及海啸到达广东省沿岸的时间。     

海南琼海加积井水位对远大震的同震响应特征研究

In this study,we analyze the co-seismic response of water levels in the Jiaji well to strong earthquakes(MS≥7.8) from 2001 to 2010 at an epicentral distance less than 8000km.We investigated the co-seismic variation form of water levels,and analyzed the relationship between the amplitude of water level variation and the magnitude and the epicentral distance.We then checked the seismic wave phases when the changes of water level occurred.It was shown that:(1) the water level’s co-seismic response is mainly characterized by escalation with no oscillation;(2) the amplitude of water level change has a certain connection with epicentral distance and magnitude;(3) co-seismic response of water levels in the Jiaji well shows a certain directivity;(4) most of the co-seismic responses were caused by surface waves,and some by long-period S waves.     

CIC-200型离子色谱仪常见故障解析

结合夏县中心地震台CIC-200型离子色谱仪实际观测,从仪器输液系统、分离系统、基线、管路等方面详细阐述色谱仪常见故障,逐一分析原因,并给出相应故障排除方法,为同类仪器维护提供参考,并为获得准确观测数据,延长仪器使用寿命,提出日常维护方法及建议。     

Seismic electric signals in seismic prone areas

The Varotsos-Alexopoulos-Nomicos(VAN) method of short-term earthquake prediction was introduced in the 1980s. The VAN method enables estimation of the epicenter, magnitude and occurrence time of an impending earthquake by observing transient changes of the electric field of the Earth termed seismic electric signals(SES). Here, we present a few examples of SES observed in various earthquake prone areas worldwide.     

Permanent earthquake‐induced actions in buried pipelines: Numerical modeling and experimental verification

Buried pipelines are often constructed in seismic and other geohazard areas, where severe ground deformations may induce severe strains in the pipeline. Calculation of those strains is essential for assessing pipeline integrity, and therefore, the development of efficient models accounting for soil‐pipe interaction is required. The present paper is aiming at developing efficient tools for calculating ground‐induced deformation on buried pipelines, often triggered by earthquake action, in the form of fault rupture, liquefaction‐induced lateral spreading, soil subsidence, or landslide. Soil‐pipe interaction is investigated by using advanced numerical tools, which employ solid elements for the soil, shell elements for the pipe, and account for soil‐pipe interaction, supported by large‐scale experiments. Soil‐pipe interaction in axial and transverse directions is evaluated first, using results from special‐purpose experiments and finite element simulations. The comparison between experimental and numerical results offers valuable information on key material parameters, necessary for accurate simulation of soil‐pipe interaction. Furthermore, reference is made to relevant provisions of design recommendations. Using the finite element models, calibrated from these experiments, pipeline performance at seismic‐fault crossings is analyzed, emphasizing on soil‐pipe interaction effects in the axial direction. The second part refers to full‐scale experiments, performed on a unique testing device. These experiments are modeled with the finite element tools to verify their efficiency in simulating soil‐pipe response under landslide or strike‐slip fault movement. The large‐scale experimental results compare very well with the numerical predictions, verifying the capability of the finite element models for accurate prediction of pipeline response under permanent earthquake‐induced ground deformations.     

Seismic performance of buildings retrofitted with nonlinear viscous dampers and adjacent reaction towers

An effective strategy of seismic retrofitting consists of installing nonlinear viscous dampers between the existing building, with insufficient lateral resistance, and some auxiliary towers, specially designed and erected as reaction structures. This allows improving the seismic performance of the existing building without any major alteration to its structural and nonstructural elements, which makes this approach particularly appealing for buildings with heritage value. In this paper, the nonlinear governing equations of the coupled lateral‐torsional seismic motion are derived from first principles for the general case of a multistory building connected at various locations in plan and in elevation to an arbitrary number of multistory towers. This formulation is then used to assess the performance of the proposed retrofitting strategy for a real case study, namely, a 5‐story student hall of residence in the city of Messina, Italy. The results of extensive time‐history analyses highlight the key design considerations associated with the stiffness of the reaction towers and the mechanical parameters of the nonlinear viscous dampers, confirming the validity of this approach.     

SIMULATION STUDY OF ROAD-CUT EFFECTS ON SLOPE STABILITY

Landslides and rock falls along the highway are common geological hazards in Southwest China. As an influencing factor on potential landslides behavior, roads or distance to roads have been successfully used in landslide susceptibility assessments in mountainous area. However, the relationship between the road-cut and the slope stability is not clear. Therefore, we performed two-dimensional slope stability calculation using the general limit equilibrium (GLE)method incorporated in the software SLOPE/W of GeoStudio for stability analysis of slopes. Our studies show that the man-made roads influence on the slope stability mainly exists in two ways:One is to create a new steep slope, which will result in rock falls and shallow landslides along the roads; the other is to influence the stability of the original slope, which will result in comparatively huge landslides. For the latter, our simulation study reveals that the road location, namely at which part of a natural slope to construct a road is important for the slope stability. For a natural slope with a potential slip surface, if a road is constructed at or near the slope toe where the potential slip surface surpasses, it will greatly degrade the slope's factor of safety (Fs) and make the slope unstable; however, if a rode-cut is near the top of the slope, it will increase the slope's Fs and make the slope more stable. The safety location is different for different slope angle, steeper slope needs a higher location for a safety road-cut in comparison with gentle slopes. Moreover, the slope stability decreases when loading a seismic force and it varies with the slope angle. Firstly, the Fs decreases when the slope angle increasing, and when the slope angle reaches 45°, the Fs then becomes greater with the slope angle increasing.     

A generalized conditional intensity measure approach and holistic ground‐motion selection

A generalized conditional intensity measure (GCIM) approach is proposed for use in the holistic selection of ground motions for any form of seismic response analysis. The essence of the method is the construction of the multivariate distribution of any set of ground‐motion intensity measures conditioned on the occurrence of a specific ground‐motion intensity measure (commonly obtained from probabilistic seismic hazard analysis). The approach therefore allows any number of ground‐motion intensity measures identified as important in a particular seismic response problem to be considered. A holistic method of ground‐motion selection is also proposed based on the statistical comparison, for each intensity measure, of the empirical distribution of the ground‐motion suite with the ‘target’ GCIM distribution. A simple procedure to estimate the magnitude of potential bias in the results of seismic response analyses when the ground‐motion suite does not conform to the GCIM distribution is also demonstrated. The combination of these three features of the approach make it entirely holistic in that: any level of complexity in ground‐motion selection for any seismic response analysis can be exercised; users explicitly understand the simplifications made in the selected suite of ground motions; and an approximate estimate of any bias associated with such simplifications is obtained. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.