Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 59 views

    Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering: Dr. Deepankar Choudhury

    Uploaded by

    mansoor_yakhchalian2
    This document discusses geotechnical earthquake engineering and engineering seismology. It explains that earthquakes are caused by the sudden release of energy at plate boundaries and faults in the earth's crust. Different types of seismic waves are generated and can be measured using modern seismographs to determine the location, magnitude, and intensity of earthquakes. The most commonly used scales are the Richter magnitude scale and Modified Mercalli intensity scale. Earthquakes typically occur at depths shallower than 700km, with 90% occurring at less than 100km depth. Predicting earthquakes remains challenging but some indicators include animal behavior changes, increases in small foreshocks, and changes in groundwater levels or porosity.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering: Dr. Deepankar Choudhury

    Uploaded by

    mansoor_yakhchalian2
    59 views23 pages
    This document discusses geotechnical earthquake engineering and engineering seismology. It explains that earthquakes are caused by the sudden release of energy at plate boundaries and faults in the earth's crust. Different types of seismic waves are generated and can be measured using modern seismographs to determine the location, magnitude, and intensity of earthquakes. The most commonly used scales are the Richter magnitude scale and Modified Mercalli intensity scale. Earthquakes typically occur at depths shallower than 700km, with 90% occurring at less than 100km depth. Predicting earthquakes remains challenging but some indicators include animal behavior changes, increases in small foreshocks, and changes in groundwater levels or porosity.

    Original Description:

    Lec-05

    Original Title

    Lec-05

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    This document discusses geotechnical earthquake engineering and engineering seismology. It explains that earthquakes are caused by the sudden release of energy at plate boundaries and faults in the earth's crust. Different types of seismic waves are generated and can be measured using modern seismographs to determine the location, magnitude, and intensity of earthquakes. The most commonly used scales are the Richter magnitude scale and Modified Mercalli intensity scale. Earthquakes typically occur at depths shallower than 700km, with 90% occurring at less than 100km depth. Predicting earthquakes remains challenging but some indicators include animal behavior changes, increases in small foreshocks, and changes in groundwater levels or porosity.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    59 views23 pages

    Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering: Dr. Deepankar Choudhury

    Uploaded by

    mansoor_yakhchalian2
    This document discusses geotechnical earthquake engineering and engineering seismology. It explains that earthquakes are caused by the sudden release of energy at plate boundaries and faults in the earth's crust. Different types of seismic waves are generated and can be measured using modern seismographs to determine the location, magnitude, and intensity of earthquakes. The most commonly used scales are the Richter magnitude scale and Modified Mercalli intensity scale. Earthquakes typically occur at depths shallower than 700km, with 90% occurring at less than 100km depth. Predicting earthquakes remains challenging but some indicators include animal behavior changes, increases in small foreshocks, and changes in groundwater levels or porosity.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    You are on page 1of 23

    Geotechnical Earthquake

    Engineering
    by

    Dr. Deepankar Choudhury


    Professor
    Department of Civil Engineering
    IIT Bombay, Powai, Mumbai 400 076, India.
    Email: dc@civil.iitb.ac.in
    URL: http://www.civil.iitb.ac.in/~dc/
    Lecture - 5

    Module 3
    Engineering Seismology

    IIT Bombay, DC

    What is Earthquake ?
    An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's
    crust that creates seismic waves. Earthquake is also known as a quake,
    tremor or temblor.

    What causes an Earthquake?


    Movement of Tectonic Plates

    Earth is divided into sections called Tectonic


    plates that float on the fluid-like interior of the
    Earth. Earthquakes are usually caused by
    sudden movement of earth plates
    Rupture of rocks along a fault

    Faults are localized areas of weakness in the


    surface of the Earth,sometimes the plate
    boundary itself
    IIT Bombay, DC

    Why an earthquake occurs?


    The earth's crust (the outer layer of the planet) is made up of several
    pieces, called plates.
    The plates under the oceans are called oceanic plates and the rest
    are continental plates
    Earthquakes
    usually
    occur where two plates
    are running into each
    other or sliding past
    each other.

    An image of the world's plates and their boundaries.

    Where do Earthquakes occur?


    Plate boundaries
    Faults

    IIT Bombay, DC

    Release of Accumulated energy

    IIT Bombay, DC

    Elastic Rebound Theory


    Rocks bend under stress while storing elastic energy. When the
    strain in the rocks exceeds their strength, breaking will occur
    along the fault. Stored elastic energy is released as the
    earthquake. Rocks snap back or rebound to their original
    condition.

    IIT Bombay, DC

    Foreshocks and aftershocks


    Adjustments that follow a major earthquake
    often generate smaller earthquakes called
    aftershocks

    Small earthquakes, called foreshocks, often


    precede a major earthquake by days or, in some
    cases, by as much as several years

    IIT Bombay, DC

    Study of Earthquakes

    The study of earthquake waves,


    Seismology, dates back almost 2000
    years to the Chinese Seismographs,
    instruments that record seismic
    waves. The first seismograph called
    Di-Dong-Di was invented by Cheng
    Heng (132 A.D.).
    IIT Bombay, DC

    10

    How Are Earthquakes Measured?


    Device used to measure an earthquake is called
    seismograph
    The seismograph has three main devices, the Richter
    Magnitude Scale, the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale,
    and the Moment-Magnitude Scale.
    First invented in 132 AD, the Dragon
    Jar was the first instrument for
    determining the direction of an
    earthquake.
    Chang Heng, a Chinese scientist,
    developed the Dragon Jar.

    IIT Bombay, DC

    12

    The ancient Chinese seismograph consist of


    a special vase that had eight sculpted
    dragons mounted around the vase in eight
    primary directions. Each dragon held in its
    mouth a metal ball. When the ground
    shook, some of the balls would fall from
    the mouths of the dragons into the waiting
    mouths of the sculpted frogs to show how
    the ground had moved.

    IIT Bombay, DC

    13

    Earthquake Waves
    The energy released during the earthquake
    travels as waves
    Modern Seismograph can measure the
    intensity and duration of these waves in
    different directions.

    Seismogram is visual record of arrival time


    and magnitude of shaking associated with
    seismic wave, generated by a seismograph.
    IIT Bombay, DC

    14

    Modern
    Seismograph
    (Horizontal)

    IIT Bombay, DC, (Courtesy: NICEE, IITK)

    15

    Modern Seismograph (Vertical)

    IIT Bombay, DC

    (courtesy: NICEE, IITK)

    16

    Seismogram

    IIT Bombay, DC

    17

    How Are Earthquakes Measured?


    Modern Seismograph

    A Typical seismograph

    A typical seismogram

    Location and Intensity of Earthquake

    seismographic stations
    World work together to

    around

    the

    record earthquake location


    determine earthquake strength

    IIT Bombay, DC

    19

    How Are Earthquakes Measured?


    The magnitude of most
    earthquakes is measured on
    the Richter scale, invented
    by Charles F. Richter in
    1934.
    The Richter magnitudes are
    based on a logarithmic scale
    (base 10).

    Charles Richter studying a


    seismogram

    How Are Earthquakes Measured?


    Another way to measure the
    strength of an earthquake is
    to use the Mercalli scale.
    Invented
    by
    Giuseppe
    Mercalli in 1902.
    This
    scale
    uses
    the
    observations of the people
    who
    experienced
    the
    earthquake to estimate its
    intensity.

    Giuseppe Mercalli

    Earthquake Depth
    Earthquakes usually occur at some depth below the ground
    Surface. The depth can also be calculated from seismograph

    records
    Earthquake foci are described as:
    Shallow: less than 70 km depth
    Intermediate: 70 - 300 km depth
    Deep: 300 - 700 km depth
    90% of earthquake foci are less than 100 km deep
    Large earthquakes are mostly at < 60 km depth

    No earthquakes occur deeper than 700 km


    IIT Bombay, DC

    22

    Predicting Earthquakes
    Strange Animal Behavior
    stress in the rocks causes tiny hairline fractures to form, the cracking of
    the rocks evidently emits high pitched sounds and minute vibrations
    imperceptible to humans but noticeable by many animals.
    Foreshocks
    unusual increase in the frequency of small earthquakes before the main
    shock
    Changes in water level
    porosity increases or decreases with changes in strain
    Seismic Gaps
    based of the chronological distribution of major earthquakes
    IIT Bombay, DC

    23

    You might also like