Earthquake Science最新文献

In numerical simulations of ground motion, the constant quality factor Q of a viscoelastic medium can be determined using the time-domain constitutive approximation method of the generalized standard linear solid (GSLS) model. This study introduces a numerical seismic wavefield simulation method which combines the spectral element method with the constant-Q model. The method is used to simulate the seismic wavefield of the 1994 Northridge earthquake. The optimal attenuation coefficient for the simulated seismic waves in this study area is determined empirically based on a quantitative analysis of the deviation curve. Further, the effect of the quality factor on the simulated wavefield are analyzed according to the site characteristics of each seismic station. The quality factor shows a variable effect on the different frequency components of the simulated wavefield. The effect of the quality factor also varies with the characteristic parameters of each seismic station site, such as site velocity structure, fault distance, and azimuth angle.

The Xiluodu (XLD) reservoir is the second largest reservoir in China and the largest in the Jinsha River basin. The occurrence of two M > 5 earthquakes after reservoir impoundment has aroused great interest among seismologists and plant operators. We comprehensively analyzed the seismicity of the XLD reservoir area using precise earthquake relocation results and focal mechanism solutions and found that the seismicity of this area was weak before impoundment. Following impoundment, earthquake activity increased significantly. The occurrence of M ≥ 3.5 earthquakes within five years of impoundment also appear to be closely related to rapid rises and falls in water level, though this correlation weakened after five years because earthquake activity was far from the reservoir area. Earthquakes in the XLD reservoir area are clustered; near the dam (Area A), small faults are intermittently distributed along the river, while Area B is composed of multiple NW-trending left-lateral strike-slip faults and a thrust fault and Area C is composed of a NW-trending left-lateral strike-slip main fault and a nearly EW-trending right-lateral strike-slip minor fault. The geometries of the deep and the shallow parts of the NW-trending fault differ. Under the action of the NW-trending background stress field, a series of NW-trending left-lateral strike-slip faults and NE-trending thrust faults in critical stress states were dislocated due to the stress caused by reservoir impoundment. The two largest earthquakes in the XLD reservoir area were tectonic earthquakes that were directly triggered by impoundment.

Owing to the stochastic behavior of earthquakes and complex crustal structure, wave type and incident direction are uncertain when seismic waves arrive at a structure. In addition, because of the different types of the structures and terrains, the traveling wave effects have different influences on the dynamic response of the structures. For the tall concrete-faced rockfill dam (CFRD), it is not only built in the complex terrain such as river valley, but also its height has reached 300 m level, which puts forward higher requirements for the seismic safety of the anti-seepage system mainly comprising concrete face slabs, especially the accurate location of the weak area in seism. Considering the limitations of the traditional uniform vibration analysis method, we implemented an efficient dynamic interaction analysis between a tall CFRD and its foundation using a non-uniform wave input method with a viscous-spring artificial boundary and equivalent nodal loads. This method was then applied to investigate the dynamic stress distribution on the concrete face slabs for different seismic wave types and incident directions. The results indicate that dam-foundation interactions behave differently at different wave incident angles, and that the traveling wave effect becomes more evident in valley topography. Seismic wave type and incident direction dramatically influenced stress in the face slab, and the extreme stress values and distribution law will vary under oblique wave incidence. The influence of the incident direction on slab stress was particularly apparent when SH-waves arrived from the left bank. Specifically, the extreme stress values in the face slab increased with an increasing incident angle. Interestingly, the locations of the extreme stress values changed mainly along the axis of the dam, and did not exhibit large changes in height. The seismic safety of CFRDs is therefore lower at higher incident angles from an anti-seepage perspective. Therefore, it is necessary to consider both the seismic wave type and incident direction during seismic capacity evaluations of tall CFRDs.

Research has been conducted on reservoir-induced earthquakes in China since the Xinfengjiang reservoir-induced earthquakes in the 1960s. Regulations now require the risk of reservoir-induced earthquakes to be evaluated in the pre-research stage of all hydropower projects. Although nearly 40 cases of reservoir-induced earthquakes have been reported in China, analyses comparing the changes in seismic activity following reservoir impoundment with predictions are rare. In this study, we compared seismic activities observed in the reservoir area before and after the impoundment of the Xiluodu hydropower station in terms of the spatial distribution, frequency, and focal depths of the earthquakes, and clarified the correlation between their frequency/timing and reservoir level after impoundment. We then concluded that the seismic events in the head region were karst-type earthquakes, while those in the second segment of the reservoir were tectonic earthquakes. The spatial distribution of the earthquake epicenters and the seismic intensities validated some of the results for the reservoir-induced seismic risk assessment for the Xiluodu hydropower station, indicating that the proposed earthquake triggers and predictive models are reasonable. This study can provide a valuable reference for investigating the mechanism (s) of reservoir-induced earthquakes, revising reservoir-induced earthquake hazard assessment codes, and predicting the hazard zones of reservoir-induced seismicity under similar conditions.

Simulations of the spontaneous rupture of potential earthquakes in the vicinity of reservoir dams can provide accurate parameters for seismic resilience assessment, which is essential for improving the seismic performance of reservoir dams. In simulations of potential spontaneous ruptures, fault geometry, regional stress fields, constitutive parameters of the fault friction law, and many other factors control the slip rate, morphology, and dislocation of the rupture, thereby affecting the simulated ground motion parameters. The focus of this study was to elucidate the effects of the background stress field on the nucleation and propagation of spontaneous ruptures based on the factors influencing potential M > 7 earthquake events on the Leibo Middle Fault (LBMF) and the Mabian-Yanjing Fault (MB-YJF) in the Xiluodu dam (XLD) region. Our simulation results show that the magnitude of the regional background stress field plays a decisive role in whether a destructive earthquake exceeding the critical magnitude will occur. We found that the direction and magnitude of the regional stress significantly affect the range of rupture propagation on the fault plane, and fault geometry affects the spatial distribution of the rupture range. Under the same regional stress field magnitude and orientation, a more destructive, high-magnitude earthquake is more likely to occur on the LBMF than on the MB-YJF.

Seismic hazard analyses are mainly performed using either deterministic or probabilistic methods. However, there are still some defects in these statistical model-based approaches for regional seismic risk assessment affected by the near-field of large earthquakes. Therefore, we established a deterministic seismic hazard analysis method that can characterize the entire process of ground motion propagation based on stochastic finite-fault simulation, and we chose the site of the Xiluodu dam to demonstrate the method. This method can characterize earthquake source properties more realistically than other methods and consider factors such as the path and site attenuation of seismic waves. It also has high computational efficiency and is convenient for engineering applications. We first analyzed the complexity of seismogenic structures in the Xiluodu dam site area, and then an evaluation system for ground motion parameters that considers various uncertainties is constructed based on a stochastic finite-fault simulation. Finally, we assessed the seismic hazard of the dam site area comprehensively. The proposed method was able to take into account the complexity of the seismogenic structures affecting the dam site and provide multi-level parameter evaluation results corresponding to different risk levels. These results can be used to construct a dam safety assessment system of an earthquake in advance that provides technical support for rapidly and accurately assessing the post-earthquake damage state of a dam, thus determining the influence of an earthquake on dam safety and mitigating the risk of potential secondary disasters.

The current Chinese national standard, the Standard for Seismic Design of Hydraulic Structures (GB51247), released in 2018, is strictly based on China’s national conditions and dam engineering features. A comprehensive and systematic overview of the basis of the seismic fortification requirements, the framework of the fortification criteria, and the mechanisms of seismic input related to the seismic design of dams are presented herein. We first analyzed and clarified several conceptual aspects in traditional seismic design of dams. Then, for the seismic input at the dam site described in the first national standard for hydraulic structures, we expounded innovative concepts, ideas, and methods to make relevant provisions more realistic and practical and discussed whether reservoir earthquakes must be included in the seismic fortification framework of dams. This study seeks to incorporate seismic input at the dam site into traditional seismic design practice to promote its improvement from the quasi-static method to the dynamic method and from the closed vibration system to an open wave propagation system, to ensure that the seismic design of dams becomes more reasonable, reliable, scientific, and economic.