Influence of soft clays on the response spectra for structures in eastern Canada

The 1990 edition of the National Building Code of Canada (Associate Committee of the National Building Code, National Research Council, Ottawa, 1990) makes a clear distinction between eastern and western Canada in terms of seismic acceleration and velocity zones. While it is well established that ground motions can be amplified significantly through loose clay deposits, no results are available that take into consideration the typical high frequency content of ground motions in eastern Canada. This paper develops ground amplification curves for clays having depths between 10 and 70 m excited by typical eastern Canadian ground motions scaled to two different values of peak horizontal accelerations. Simplified free-field spectral design curves, which could be used by structural designers, are proposed. The curves show that maximum spectral accelerations occur for structural periods between 0.2 and 0.5 s. In addition, soil depth does not appear to be an important parameter controlling the response of typical clay deposits in eastern Canada.     

Time domain modelling of the transient asymmetric flooding of Ro-Ro ships

This work aims at contributing to improve knowledge on transient asymmetric flooding through theoretical and experimental research. First, a time domain theoretical model of ship motions and flooding is described. Results from experimental work are presented evidencing that transient asymmetric flooding may cause the capsizing of a Ro-Ro shaped barge. The theoretical model is used to predict the capsize of the Ro-Ro shaped barge. Reasonable agreement between experimental and theoretical results was found. Finally, a review of the European Gateway accident is given and the theoretical model is applied to the study of this type of accident. The conclusion is that this theoretical model, together with an accurate modelling of the flooding of machinery compartments, reproduces successfully the capsizing of the European Gateway due to transient asymmetric flooding. Therefore, the internal arrangement of Ro-Ro ships should be carefully studied at the design stage in order to avoid this phenomenon.     

Development of site-specific design ground motions in Western and Eastern North America

This paper presents results recently obtained for generating site-specific ground motions needed for design of critical facilities. The general approach followed in developing these ground motions using either deterministic or probabilistic criteria is specification of motions for rock outcrop or very firm soil conditions followed by adjustments for site-specific conditions. Central issues in this process include development of appropriate attenuation relations and their uncertainties, differences in expected motions between Western and Eastern North America, and incorporation of site-specific adjustments that maintain the same hazard level as the control motions, while incorporating uncertainties in local dynamic material properties. For tectonically active regions, such as the Western United States (WUS), sufficient strong motion data exist to constrain empirical attenuation relations for M up to about 7 and for distances greater than about 10–15 km. Motions for larger magnitudes and closer distances are largely driven by extrapolations of empirical relations and uncertainties need to be substantially increased for these cases.

For the Eastern United States (CEUS), due to the paucity of strong motion data for cratonic regions worldwide, estimation of strong ground motions for engineering design is based entirely on calibrated models. The models are usually calibrated and validated in the WUS where sufficient strong motion data are available and then recalibrated for applications to the CEUS. Recalibration generally entails revising parameters based on available CEUS ground motion data as well as indirect inferences through intensity observations. Known differences in model parameters such as crustal structure between WUS and CEUS are generally accommodated as well. These procedures are examined and discussed.     

Active faulting at the Eurasian, North American and Pacific plates junction

The active faults known and inferred in the area where the major Pacific, North American and Eurasian plates come together group into two belts. One of them comprises the faults striking roughly parallel to the Pacific ocean margin. The extreme members of the belt are the longitudinal faults of islands arcs, in its oceanic flank, and the faults along the continental margins of marginal seas, in its continental flank. The available data show that all these faults move with some strike-slip component, which is always right-lateral. We suggest that characteristic right-lateral, either partially or dominantly, kinematics of the fault movements has its source in oblique convergence of the Pacific plate with continental Eurasian and North American plates. The second belt of active faults transverses the extreme northeast Asia as a continental extension of the active mid-Arctic spreading ridge. The two active fault belts do not cross but come close to each other at the northern margin of the Sea of Okhotsk marking thus the point where the Pacific, North American and Eurasian plates meet.     

The effective number of cycles of earthquake ground motion

The seismic response of any system that accumulates damage under cyclic loading is dependent not only on the maximum amplitude of the motion but also its duration. This is explicitly recognized in methods for estimating the liquefaction potential of soil deposits. Many researchers have proposed that the effective number of cycles of the ground motion is a more robust indicator of the destructive capacity of the shaking than the duration. However, as is the case with strong‐motion duration, there is no universally accepted approach to determining the effective number of cycles of motion, and the different methods that have been proposed can give widely varying results for a particular accelerogram. Definitions of the effective number of cycles of motion are reviewed, classified and compared. Measurements are found to differ particularly for accelerograms with broad‐banded frequency content, which contain a significant number of non‐zero crossing peaks. The key seismological parameters influencing the number of cycles of motion and associated equations for predicting this quantity for future earthquakes are identified. Correlations between cycle counts and different duration measures are explored and found to be rather poor in the absence of additional parameters. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Dynamical features of near-inertial motions in global ocean based on the GDP dataset from 2000 to 2019

Based on the latest oceanic surface drifter dataset from the global drifter program during 2000–2019, this study investigated the global variation of relative frequency shift(RFS), near-inertial energy(NIE) and inverse excess bandwidth(IEB) of near-inertial motions, and analyzed their relations with oceanic mesoscale dynamics, relative vorticity and strain. Compared with previous works, we have some new findings in this study:(1) the RFS was high with negative values in some regions in which we found a significant blue shift of the RFS in the equatorward of 30°N(S) and from 50°N to 60°N in the Pacific, and a red shift in the western boundary currents and their extension regions, the North Atlantic and the Antarctic Circumpolar Current regions;(2) more peak values of the NIE were found in global regions like the South Indian Ocean, the Luzon Strait and some areas of the South Ocean;(3) the global distribution of the IEB were characterized by clear zonal bands and affected by vorticity and wind field;(4)the RFS was elevated as the absolute value of the gradient of vorticity increased, the IEB did not depend on the gradient of vorticity, and the eddy kinetic energy(EKE) weakened with the decrease of the absolute value of RFS;(5) the NIE decreased with increasing absolute value of the relative vorticity and the gradient of vorticity, but it increased with increasing strain and EKE when EKE was larger than 0.003 2 m~2/s~2.     

华北板块南缘中段中上三叠统软沉积变形构造的发现及其地质意义

豫西地区中上三叠统主要出露在济源、义马、伊川和南召一带。印支期秦岭造山运动控制和影响着邻区中上三叠统盆地属性和沉积地层展布。通过观察研究区野外露头剖面,发现中上三叠统发育一系列典型的软沉积变形构造,包括液化底辟、枕状构造、液化柱、液化卷曲变形、负载、球-枕、火焰状构造、液化角砾岩。这些软沉积变形在垂向上表现出明显的复现性,在侧向上表现为沿地层连续展布,表明该时期研究区内地层受到频繁强烈的地震影响。通过对这些软沉积现象的识别和形成机制解释,判定其触发因素为秦岭造山过程中伴生的地震。区内地层中震积岩的存在即是对秦岭造山过程中构造活动的响应。     

内蒙古乌拉特中旗北七哥陶辉长岩SHRIMP锆石 U-Pb年龄、地球化学特征及其地质意义

内蒙古乌拉特中旗温更地区北七哥陶辉长岩岩体由橄榄辉长岩和角闪辉长岩组成,主要造岩矿物为橄榄石、辉石、斜长石及角闪石等.锆石SHRIMP U-Pb同位素定年结果表明,橄榄辉长岩形成于269±8Ma,为晚古生代华北板块北缘岩浆活动的产物.橄榄辉长岩和角闪辉长岩具有相似的稀土元素、微量元素以及同位素特征,即:轻稀土元素( LREE)富集的右倾平滑配分模式;大离子亲石元素(LILE)K、Sr、Ba明显富集,高场强元素(HFSE) Nb、Ta、U、Th相对亏损,但Zr-Hf不亏损;87Sr/86Sr(t)平均值分别为0.706776和0.706960,εNd(t)平均值分别为-8.8和-8.9,206pb/204Pb、207pb/204Pb、208Pb/204Pb比值的平均值分别为17.2019和17.2277、15.4252和15.4524、37.3082和37.4724,在s7 Sr/86Sr(t)-143Nd/144 Nd (t)图解上,北七哥陶辉长岩都落在了EMI型富集地幔附近.根据以上事实,结合区域资料表明,橄榄辉长岩和角闪辉长岩产于后碰撞的构造环境,并且来自相同的岩浆源区,主要继承了华北陆块内部EMI型富集地幔,可能受到了古亚洲洋俯冲消减过程中再循环下地壳组分对岩石圈地幔的改造.     

塔里木盆地西南缘的岩石组合及其构造演化

塔里木盆地西南缘可划分为喀喇昆仑、西昆仑、塔里木等三个地层区和康西瓦、库地等两个缝合带。自震旦纪以来,该区经历了震旦纪—泥盆纪和石炭纪—第四纪两大构造旋回。对应每一旋回,喀喇昆仑地层区和塔里木地层区发育有被动大陆边缘盆地和碰撞造山两种类型的岩石组合。西昆仑地层区发育了被动大陆边缘盆地、俯冲消减带和碰撞造山等三种类型的岩石组合。康西瓦缝合带是康西瓦洋经历了震旦纪—中泥盆世和早石炭世—晚侏罗世两次开合后的遗迹,它既是喀喇昆仑和西昆仑两个地层区的分界线,又是羌塘和塔里木两个板块的分界线;库地缝合带则是库地洋经历早石炭世—早二叠世一次开合的遗迹,分割了西昆仑和塔里木这两个地层区。     

秦岭祁连山昆仑山构造发展史与南北中国板块的拼合

按秦岭祁连山昆仑山发展演化，中国大陆的形成可总结为3阶段板块拼贴“焊合”模型即：中元古代至新元古代早期，原始秦昆洋俯冲—消减，塔里木—华北古陆（北中国板块）与华南洋域新生陆壳（南中国板块）拼贴增生，形成原始中国古陆；震旦纪至志留纪，原始中国古陆裂解，秦祁海洋扩张—俯冲—消减，阿拉善—华北板块（北中国板块）与塔里木、柴达木、华南组成的联合板块（南中国板块）缝合统一，形成古中国板块，泥盆纪至三叠纪早期，古特提斯洋俯冲—消减，藏滇板块（基梅里大陆一部分）与古中国板块碰撞拼贴，滨邻古特提斯洋的中国大陆西南缘（秦祁昆地区）全面皱起，造就中国大陆轮廓；中生代以来，板内超长期继承性汇聚和滨西太平洋边缘构造带、新特提斯—喜马拉雅构造叠加、改造，造就现令中国大陆构造、地势。