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Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure

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A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Civil Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2020) | Viewed by 26705

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Camillo Nuti

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Department of Architecture, Università degli Studi Roma Tre, 00153 Rome, Italy
Interests: seismic design of structures; assessment and retrofitting of existing bridges and structures; soil structure interaction
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Bruno Briseghella

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College of Civil Engineering, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350108, China
Interests: optimal design of structures; rehabilitation exisiting strctures and infrastructures; durability; steel-concrete composite structures
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Prof. Dr. Davide Lavorato

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Department of Architecture, University of Roma Tre, 00153 Rome, Italy
Interests: seismic design of structures; assessment and retrofitting of existing bridges and structures; soil–structure interaction

Prof. Dr. Ertugrul Taciroglu

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Civil & Environmental Engineering Department, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
Interests: earthquake engineering; soil-structure interaction; structural health monitoring; regional natural hazard risk assessment

Dr. Alessandro Vittorio Bergami

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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Near-fault earthquakes (NFEs) have various peculiar effects on seismic response structures and, at the present time, risks from such earthquakes are neither well understood nor characterized. Usually, the input motions from NFEs are represented by a few sinusoidal large waves in addition to significant vertical components. These features reduce the efficacy of conventional mitigation methods and the existing variety of seismic design provisions produce different optimal solutions in the dimensioning of structures. The level of uncertainty is especially high for seismically isolated structures—e.g., friction pendulum solutions.

Usually, the prominent features of NFEs are not explicitly considered in the seismic input definition for design. This lack of attention can be ascribed—at least partially—to the relative scarcity of NFE records, which inherently bear higher epistemic uncertainties. Conversely, while designing a structure against NFEs, one should still typically account for distant probable earthquakes, and the appropriate characterization and consideration of such inevitably combined risks must be carefully made, representing an important research topic.

Soil-structure interaction (SSI) effects are also typically prominent on structures subject to NFEs, especially given the heightened vertical seismic actions under NFEs.

In conclusion, this Special Issue aims to present a collection of papers covering:

definition of near-fault seismic input;
definition of nonsynchronous near field seismic input;
methods of analysis of seismic responses under NFEs with special emphasis on pushover applications including incremental modal pushover analyses (IMPA) of conventional as well as isolated structures (buildings and bridges);
structural responses to NFEs and comparisons among different design solutions;
optimum seismic design under NFEs;
SSI effects under NFEs;
case studies of responses to NFEs through both parametric studies and analysis of recorded data from instrumented structures.

Prof. Camillo Nuti
Prof. Dr. Bruno Briseghella
Prof. Dr. Davide Lavorato
Prof. Dr. Ertugrul Taciroglu
Dr. Alessandro Vittorio Bergami, PhD
Guest Editors

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Keywords

near-fault earthquakes
seismic input
vertical seismic component
isolated buildings
isolated bridges
integral bridges
pushover vs. nonlinear dynamic analyses
IMPA (incremental modal pushover) vs. IDA (incremental dynamic analysis)
epistemic uncertainties
soil–structure interaction
instrumented structures

Published Papers (11 papers)

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Editorial

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3 pages, 181 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure

by Camillo Nuti, Bruno Briseghella, Davide Lavorato, Ertugrul Taciroglu and Alessandro Vittorio Bergami

Appl. Sci. 2023, 13(10), 5929; https://doi.org/10.3390/app13105929 - 11 May 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 687

Abstract

Near-fault earthquakes (NFEs), characterized by high peak ground velocity (PGV) and long period pulses, show different properties from far-field ones [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure)

Research

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24 pages, 13856 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Seismic Response of Skewed Integral Abutment Bridges under Near-Fault Ground Motions, Including Soil–Structure Interaction

by Qiuhong Zhao, Shuo Dong and Qingwei Wang

Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(7), 3217; https://doi.org/10.3390/app11073217 - 03 Apr 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2724

Abstract

Studies on the seismic response of skewed integral abutment bridges have mainly focused on response under far-field non-pulse-type ground motions, yet the large amplitude and long-period velocity pulses in near-fault ground motions might have significant impacts on bridge seismic response. In this study, the nonlinear dynamic response of an skewed integral abutment bridge (SIAB) under near-fault pulse and far-fault non-pulse type ground motions are analyzed considering the soil–structure interaction, along with parametric studies on bridge skew angle and compactness of abutment backfill. For the analyses, three sets of near-fault pulse ground motion records are selected based on the bridge site conditions, and three corresponding far-field non-pulse artificial records are fitted by their acceleration response spectra. The results show that the near-fault pulse type ground motions are generally more destructive than the non-pulse motions on the nonlinear dynamic response of SIABs, but the presence of abutment backfill will mitigate the pulse effects to some extent. Coupling of the longitudinal and transverse displacements as well as rotation of the bridge deck would increase with the skew angle, and so do the internal forces of steel H piles. The influence of the skew angle would be most obvious when the abutment backfill is densely compacted. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure)

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16 pages, 17937 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Quantification of Energy-Related Parameters for Near-Fault Pulse-Like Seismic Ground Motions

by Omar AlShawa, Giulia Angelucci, Fabrizio Mollaioli and Giuseppe Quaranta

Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(21), 7578; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10217578 - 27 Oct 2020

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1845

Abstract

An energy-based approach facilitates the explicit consideration of the damage associated with both maximum displacements and cumulative plastic deformations under earthquakes. For structural systems that can undergo pulse-like seismic ground motions close to causative faults, an energy-based approach is deemed especially appropriate with respect to well-established force- or displacement-based strategies. In such a case, in fact, most of the damage is attributable to the dominant pulse-like component, which usually occurs into the velocity time history of the seismic ground motion, thus implying high energy levels imparted to a structural system. In order to enable the implementation of an energy-based approach in the analysis and design of structures under near-fault pulse-like seismic ground motions, this study presents a comprehensive numerical investigation about the influence of seismological parameters and hysteretic behavior on the spectra of the following energy-related parameters: inelastic absolute and relative input energy; input energy reduction factor; hysteretic energy dissipation demand; hysteretic energy reduction factor; dimensionless cumulative plastic deformation ratio. Closed-form approximations are proposed for these spectra, and the numerical values of the corresponding parameters have been also calibrated (with reference to both mean and standard deviation values) as functions of earthquake magnitude, type of hysteretic behavior (i.e., non-degrading or degrading) and ductility level. The outcomes of this study are meant to support the derivation of design spectra for the energy-based seismic design of structures under near-fault pulse-like seismic ground motions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure)

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17 pages, 3460 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Seismic Behavior of a Bridge with New Composite Tall Piers under Near-Fault Ground Motion Conditions

by Zhehan Cai, Zhijian Wang, Kaiqi Lin, Ying Sun and Weidong Zhuo

Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(20), 7377; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10207377 - 21 Oct 2020

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2572

Abstract

Currently, the seismic designs of reinforced concrete (RC) bridges with tall piers are often accomplished following the ductility-based seismic design method. Though the collapses of the RC bridges with tall piers can be avoided, they are likely to experience major damage and loss of functionality when subjected to strong near-fault ground motions. The objectives of this study are to put forward an innovative design concept of a tall-pier system and its application in tall-pier bridges. The concept of the innovative tall-pier system is derived from the principle of earthquake-resilient structures, and is to improve the seismic performances of the tall-pier bridges under strong near-fault ground motions. The proposed tall-pier system has a box section and is composed of four concrete-filled steel tubular (CFST) columns and energy dissipating mild steel plates (EDMSPs). Trial design of a bridge with the new composite tall-pier system is performed based on a typical continuous rigid frame highway bridge with conventional RC box section tall piers. Both static analysis and nonlinear time history analysis of both the bridges with the new composite tall piers and conventional RC tall piers under the near-fault velocity pulse-type ground motions were conducted in Midas Civil2019 and ABAQUS. The results show that: under the design-based earthquake (DBE), the CFST columns and connecting steel beams remain elastic in the bridge with the new composite tall piers, while the damage is found in the replaceable EDMSPs which help dissipate the seismic input energy. The displacement responses of the new bridge are significantly smaller than those of the conventional bridge under DBE. It is concluded that the bridge with the new composite tall piers is seismic resilient under near-fault ground motions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure)

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20 pages, 6591 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Shake Table Test of Long Span Cable-Stayed Bridge Subjected to Near-Fault Ground Motions Considering Velocity Pulse Effect and Non-Uniform Excitation

by Chao Zhang, Guanghui Fu, Zhichao Lai, Xiuli Du, Piguang Wang, Huihui Dong and Hongyu Jia

Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(19), 6969; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10196969 - 05 Oct 2020

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2190

Abstract

This paper presents the results of shake table tests of a scaled long span cable-stayed bridge (CSB). The design principles of the scaled CSB are first introduced. The first six in-plane modes are then identified by the stochastic subspace identification (SSI) method. Furthermore, shake table tests of the CSB subjected to the non-pulse near-field (NNF) and velocity-pulse near-fault (PNF) ground motions are carried out. The tests indicated that: (1) the responses under longitudinal uniform excitation are mainly contributed by antisymmetric modes; (2) the maximum displacement of the tower occurs on the tower top node, the maximum acceleration response of the tower occurs on the middle cross beam, and the maximum bending moment of the tower occurs on the bottom section; (3) the deformation of the tower and girder subjected to uniform excitation is not always larger than that subjected to non-uniform excitation, and therefore the non-uniform case should be considered in the seismic design of CSBs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure)

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19 pages, 6826 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Application of the Incremental Modal Pushover Analysis to Bridges Subjected to Near-Fault Ground Motions

by Alessandro Vittorio Bergami, Gabriele Fiorentino, Davide Lavorato, Bruno Briseghella and Camillo Nuti

Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(19), 6738; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10196738 - 26 Sep 2020

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2367

Abstract

Near-fault events can cause severe damage to civil structures, including bridges. Many studies have demonstrated that the seismic assessment is not straightforward. Usually, dealing with near-fault ground motion, the structural analysis is performed using Nonlinear Response-History Analysis (NRHA) but in the last years, many authors have tested existing pushover-based procedures originally developed and validated using far-field events. Between those procedures, the Incremental Modal Pushover Analysis (IMPAβ) is a pushover-based procedure specifically developed for bridges that, in this work, was applied to a case study considering near-fault pulse-like ground motion records. The records were analyzed and selected from the European Strong Motion Database. In the paper the results obtained with IMPAβ together with other standard pushover procedures, are compared with NRHA and incremental dynamic analyses; the vertical component of the motion has been also considered. Results obtained with the bridge case study demonstrate that the vertical seismic action has a minor influence on the structural response and that IMPAβ is confirmed as a very effective pushover-based method that can be applied also for near-fault events. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure)

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17 pages, 6603 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Dynamic Response Evaluation of Bridges Considering Aspect Ratio of Pier in Near-Fault and Far-Fault Ground Motions

by Hyojoon An, Jong-Han Lee and Soobong Shin

Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(17), 6098; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10176098 - 02 Sep 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2261

Abstract

The recent increase in earthquake activities has highlighted the importance of predicting the seismic response of structures. Damage to civil infrastructure, particularly bridges, can cause considerable human and property losses. The seismic performance of a structure should be evaluated based on the characteristics of structures and earthquakes. For this, this study defined the two main factors of ground motion and structural system that affect the seismic response of a structure. Ground motions, which are mainly dependent on the distance from the epicenter, were defined as near-fault and far-fault ground motions. Near-fault ground motion includes the characteristics of forward directivity and fling step. In addition to ground motion, the aspect ratio of the pier, as a representative factor of a structural system, influences the seismic behavior of bridges. Thus, this study assessed the seismic response of bridges with various aspect ratios under the near-fault and far-fault ground motion conditions. Nonlinear static analysis was first performed to evaluate the seismic capacity of the pier. Then modal and dynamic analyses were carried out to examine the effects of the aspect ratio and ground motion on the displacement and force response and the change in the natural frequency of the bridge. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure)

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22 pages, 15472 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Rocking Blocks Stability under Critical Pulses from Near-Fault Earthquakes Using a Novel Energy Based Approach

by Gebran Karam and Mazen Tabbara

Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(17), 5924; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10175924 - 27 Aug 2020

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2200

Abstract

Following the seminal work of Housner, a novel energy based critical pulse theoretical model is derived to assess the seismic stability of rocking rigid blocks under single pulses from near-fault earthquakes. It is shown that overturning is conditional on the availability of sufficient kinetic energy in the exciting pulse and on the inception of rocking. The theoretical model is shown to be in good agreement with discrete element method numerical simulations for similar blocks of sizes 0.5, 1, and 20 m. Similitude rules are established to scale between block sizes and pulse types and tested successfully. The results agree with available experimental data. The proposed stability chart approach provides a practical and simple alternative to the presentation and study of the stability and overturning of blocks published by others in the frequency spectrum domain. For any given rigid block or inverted pendulum structure the model or normalized stability charts provide a method to determine the characteristic period and peak acceleration required for overturning and by extension to identify the critical content of the dominant pulse of a given earthquake signal. Alternatively, the approach could be used in archaeoseismology to identify the characteristics of the dominant pulse content of past earthquakes based on their impacts on various historical and heritage structures. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure)

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17 pages, 5105 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Seismic Analysis of a Curved Bridge Considering Soil-Structure Interactions Based on a Separated Foundation Model

by Lixin Zhang and Yin Gu

Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(12), 4260; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10124260 - 21 Jun 2020

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2863

Abstract

A separated foundation model was proposed in order to reduce the calculation scale of the numerical model for analyzing soil-bridge structure dynamics. The essence of the wave input analysis model considering soil-structure interaction was analyzed. Based on the large mass method, a one-dimensional time-domain algorithm of the free field was derived. This algorithm could simulate the specified ground motion input well. The displacement expansion solution of the free wave field was solved based on the propagation law of waves in a medium. By separating the soil foundations around the pile foundations of the bridge, the ground motion was transformed into an equivalent load applied on an artificial boundary. The separated foundation model could consider the incoherence effect and soil-structure interaction simultaneously; the number of model elements were reduced, and the computational efficiency was improved. In order to investigate the seismic response of a curved bridge considering soil-structure interaction under spatially varied earthquakes, a curved bridge with small radius was adopted in practical engineering. Spatially correlated multi-point ground motion time histories were generated, and the nonuniform ground motion field was simulated based on the wave input method on an artificial viscoelastic boundary. The effects of different apparent wave velocities, coherence values, and site conditions on the seismic response of the bridge were analyzed. The results showed that the spatial variation of seismic ground motion had a considerable effect on the bending moment and the torsion of the girder. The site effect had great influence on the bending moment of the pier bottom. When considering soil-structure interaction, the spatial variation of ground motion should be fully considered to avoid underestimating the structural response. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure)

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16 pages, 1189 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Safety of Nuclear Power Plants with Respect to the Fault Displacement Hazard

by Tamás János Katona

Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(10), 3624; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10103624 - 23 May 2020

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2919

Abstract

The hazard of permanent ground displacements/deformations can challenge the safety of the nuclear power plants. Increasing knowledge of the hazard and development of methods for structure–fault–displacement interaction motivates the designing of nuclear power plants for permanent ground displacement instead of abandoning the sites that could be affected by this kind of hazard. For the design basis, permanent ground displacement should be defined at the hazard level that complies with the probabilistic criteria for accounting for the natural hazards in the design that also ensure compliance with probabilistic safety criteria. In this paper, a procedure is proposed for the definition of the design basis permanent ground displacement that is based on the deaggregation of seismic design basis hazard. The definition of the displacement for the margin evaluation is also proposed. The feasibility of safe design is also demonstrated for the proposed definition of design basis hazard via qualitative judgement on the sensitivity of the structures, systems and components ensuring the fundamental safety functions with respect to the permanent ground displacement that is supported by existing case studies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure)

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18 pages, 17684 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Nonlinear Dynamic Response of a CC-RCC Combined Dam Structure under Oblique Incidence of Near-Fault Ground Motions

by Jiawen Zhang, Mengxi Zhang, Mingchao Li, Qiaoling Min, Bowen Shi and Lingguang Song

Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(3), 885; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10030885 - 29 Jan 2020

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2549

Abstract

The velocity pulse contained in near-fault ground motions have a tremendous impact on dam safety. Previous studies have mainly focused on the response of dams under near-fault seismic records without considering the obliquely incident seismic waves. In this study, the structure–soil interaction (SSI) is taken into consideration, and the nonlinear behavior of a conventional concrete roller-compacted concrete (CC-RCC) gravity dam under near-fault pulse records and non-pulse records is investigated with consideration of the obliquely incident P waves. On the basis of the dam site conditions, three groups of near-fault pulse records are chosen, and three corresponding non-pulse records are fitted by their acceleration response spectra. Combining with the viscous-spring artificial boundary, the wave input method is proposed to transform the near-fault seismic records into the equivalent nodal forces at the boundary of the foundation. The concrete damaged plasticity model is used for the nonlinear analysis. The results show that the pulse ground motions are more destructive than the non-pulse motions. The nonlinear behavior of the dam varies with the incidence angle of P waves and generally reaches a maximum at 60° and 75°, the worst damage occurs at the interface between different materials of the dam, and the spatial variation of its damage is very obvious under near-fault seismic records with various incidence angles. Therefore, the effect of the angle of obliquely incident seismic waves and near-fault pulse effect should be considered comprehensively in the seismic analysis of dams. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Near-Fault Ground Motions on Civil Infrastructure)

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