5 bridge engineering handbook seismic design

Bridge Engineering Handbook
SECOND EDITION

SEISMIC DESIGN
EDITED BY

Wai-Fah Chen and Lian Duan


Bridge Engineering Handbook
SECOND EDITION

seismic design


Bridge Engineering Handbook, Second Edition
Bridge Engineering Handbook, Second Edition: Fundamentals
Bridge Engineering Handbook, Second Edition: Superstructure Design
Bridge Engineering Handbook, Second Edition: Substructure Design
Bridge Engineering Handbook, Second Edition: Seismic Design
Bridge Engineering Handbook, Second Edition: Construction and Maintenance


Bridge Engineering Handbook
SECOND EDITION

seismic design
Edited by

Wai-Fah Chen and Lian Duan

Boca Raton London New York

CRC Press is an imprint of the
Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business


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Contents
Foreword .................................................................................................................................... vii
Preface to the Second Edition ................................................................................................ ix
Preface to the First Edition ..................................................................................................... xi
Editors . . ...................................................................................................................................... xiii
Contributors . . ............................................................................................................................. xv

1Geotechnical Earthquake Considerations......................................................... 1
Charles Scawthorn and Steven L. Kramer

2Earthquake Damage to Bridges................................................................................... 53
Mark Yashinsky, Jack Moehle, and Marc Eberhard

3Dynamic Analysis........................................................................................................... 99
Wei Zhang, Murugesu Vinayagamoorth, and Lian Duan

4Seismic Random Response Analysis........................................................................ 133
Jiahao Lin, Yahui Zhang, and Yan Zhao

5Nonlinear Analysis....................................................................................................... 163
Mahamad Akkari and Lian Duan

6Displacement-Based Seismic Design of Bridges................................................... 201
M. J. Nigel Priestley, Mervyn J. Kowalsky, and Gian Michele Calvi

7Seismic Bridge Design Specifications for the United States.............................. 237

Roy A. Imbsen

8Seismic Design of Concrete Bridges......................................................................... 279
Larry Wu

9Seismic Design of Steel Bridges................................................................................. 301
Chia-Ming Uang, Michel Bruneau, and Keh-Chyuan Tsai

10

Seismic Design of Thin-Walled Steel and CFT Piers .......................................... 337

11

Seismic Design of Cable-Supported Bridges . . ........................................................ 381

Yoshiaki Goto

Jian Ren Tao and Semyon Treyger

v


vi

Contents

12

Seismic Isolation Design for Bridges ...................................................................... 449

13

Seismic Retrofit Technology ...................................................................................... 481

14

Soil–Foundation–Structure Interaction........................................................ 513

15

Seismic Design Practice in California . . ................................................................... 567

16

Seismic Design Practice in China . . ........................................................................... 599

17

Seismic Design Practice in Italy . . .............................................................................. 633

18

Seismic Design Practice in Japan . . ............................................................................ 661

Roy A. Imbsen and Larry Wu

Kevin I. Keady, Fadel Alameddine, and Thomas E. Sardo
Wen-Shou Tseng and Joseph Penzien
Mark Yashinsky and Lian Duan

Kehai Wang, Qian Li, Han Wei, and Yue Li

Gian Michele Calvi, Paolo Emilio Pinto, and Paolo Franchin
Shigeki Unjoh


Foreword
Throughout the history of civilization bridges have been the icons of cities, regions, and countries. All
bridges are useful for transportation, commerce, and war. Bridges are necessary for civilization to exist,
and many bridges are beautiful. A few have become the symbols of the best, noblest, and most beautiful
that mankind has achieved. The secrets of the design and construction of the ancient bridges have been
lost, but how could one not marvel at the magnificence, for example, of the Roman viaducts?
The second edition of the Bridge Engineering Handbook expands and updates the previous ­edition
by including the new developments of the first decade of the twenty-first century. Modern bridge
­engineering has its roots in the nineteenth century, when wrought iron, steel, and reinforced c­ oncrete
began to compete with timber, stone, and brick bridges. By the beginning of World War II, the
­transportation infrastructure of Europe and North America was essentially complete, and it served to
sustain civilization as we know it. The iconic bridge symbols of modern cities were in place: Golden Gate
Bridge of San Francisco, Brooklyn Bridge, London Bridge, Eads Bridge of St. Louis, and the bridges of
Paris, Lisbon, and the bridges on the Rhine and the Danube. Budapest, my birthplace, had seven beautiful bridges across the Danube. Bridge engineering had reached its golden age, and what more and better
could be attained than that which was already achieved?
Then came World War II, and most bridges on the European continent were destroyed. All seven
bridges of Budapest were blown apart by January 1945. Bridge engineers after the war were suddenly
forced to start to rebuild with scant resources and with open minds. A renaissance of bridge ­engineering
started in Europe, then spreading to America, Japan, China, and advancing to who knows where in
the world, maybe Siberia, Africa? It just keeps going! The past 60 years of bridge engineering have
brought us many new forms of bridge architecture (plate girder bridges, cable stayed bridges, segmental ­prestressed concrete bridges, composite bridges), and longer spans. Meanwhile enormous knowledge and ­experience have been amassed by the profession, and progress has benefitted greatly by the
­availability of the digital computer. The purpose of the Bridge Engineering Handbook is to bring much of
this knowledge and experience to the bridge engineering community of the world. The contents encompass the whole s­ pectrum of the life cycle of the bridge, from conception to demolition.

The editors have convinced 146 experts from many parts of the world to contribute their knowledge
and to share the secrets of their successful and unsuccessful experiences. Despite all that is known, there
are still failures: engineers are human, they make errors; nature is capricious, it brings unexpected surprises! But bridge engineers learn from failures, and even errors help to foster progress.
The Bridge Engineering Handbook, second edition consists of five books:
Fundamentals
Superstructure Design
Substructure Design
Seismic Design
Construction and Maintenance
vii


viii

Foreword

Fundamentals, Superstructure Design, and Substructure Design present the many topics ­necessary
for planning and designing modern bridges of all types, made of many kinds of materials and ­systems,
and subject to the typical loads and environmental effects. Seismic Design and Construction and
Maintenance recognize the importance that bridges in parts of the world where there is a chance of
earthquake o
­ ccurrences must survive such an event, and that they need inspection, maintenance, and
possible repair throughout their intended life span. Seismic events require that a bridge sustain repeated
dynamic load cycles without functional failure because it must be part of the postearthquake lifeline for
the affected area. Construction and Maintenance touches on the many very important aspects of bridge
­management that become more and more important as the world’s bridge inventory ages.
The editors of the Bridge Engineering Handbook, Second Edition are to be highly commended for
undertaking this effort for the benefit of the world’s bridge engineers. The enduring result will be a safer
and more cost effective family of bridges and bridge systems. I thank them for their effort, and I also
thank the 146 contributors.

Theodore V. Galambos, PE
Emeritus professor of structural engineering
University of Minnesota


Preface to the
Second Edition
In the approximately 13 years since the original edition of the Bridge Engineering Handbook was p
­ ublished
in 2000, we have received numerous letters, e-mails, and reviews from readers including ­educators and
practitioners commenting on the handbook and suggesting how it could be improved. We  have also
built up a large file of ideas based on our own experiences. With the aid of all this information, we have
completely revised and updated the handbook. In writing this Preface to the Second Edition, we assume
readers have read the original Preface. Following its tradition, the second edition handbook stresses
professional applications and practical solutions; describes the basic concepts and assumptions omitting
the derivations of formulas and theories; emphasizes seismic design, rehabilitation, retrofit and maintenance; covers traditional and new, innovative practices; provides over 2500 tables, charts, and illustrations in ready-to-use format and an abundance of worked-out examples giving readers step-by-step
design procedures. The most significant changes in this second edition are as follows:
• The handbook of 89 chapters is published in five books: Fundamentals, Superstructure Design,
Substructure Design, Seismic Design, and Construction and Maintenance.
• Fundamentals, with 22 chapters, combines Section I, Fundamentals, and Section VI, Special
Topics, of the original edition and covers the basic concepts, theory and special topics of bridge
engineering. Seven new chapters are Finite Element Method, High-Speed Railway Bridges,
Structural Performance Indicators for Bridges, Concrete Design, Steel Design, High Performance
Steel, and Design and Damage Evaluation Methods for Reinforced Concrete Beams under Impact
Loading. Three chapters including Conceptual Design, Bridge Aesthetics: Achieving Structural
Art in Bridge Design, and Application of Fiber Reinforced Polymers in Bridges, are completely
rewritten. Three special topic chapters, Weigh-In-Motion Measurement of Trucks on Bridges,
Impact Effect of Moving Vehicles, and Active Control on Bridge Engineering, were deleted.
• Superstructure Design, with 19 chapters, provides information on how to design all types of bridges.
Two new chapters are Extradosed Bridges and Stress Ribbon Pedestrian Bridges. The Prestressed

Concrete Girder Bridges chapter is completely rewritten into two chapters: Precast–Pretensioned
Concrete Girder Bridges and Cast-In-Place Posttensioned Prestressed Concrete Girder Bridges.
The Bridge Decks and Approach Slabs chapter is completely rewritten into two chapters: Concrete
Decks and Approach Slabs. Seven chapters, including Segmental Concrete Bridges, Composite
Steel I-Girder Bridges, Composite Steel Box Girder Bridges, Arch Bridges, Cable-Stayed Bridges,
Orthotropic Steel Decks, and Railings, are completely rewritten. The c­ hapter Reinforced Concrete
Girder Bridges was deleted because it is rarely used in modern time.
• Substructure Design has 11 chapters and addresses the various substructure components. A new
chapter, Landslide Risk Assessment and Mitigation, is added. The Geotechnical Consideration
chapter is completely rewritten and retitled as Ground Investigation. The Abutments and
ix


x

Preface to the Second Edition

Retaining Structures chapter is divided in two and updated as two chapters: Abutments and Earth
Retaining Structures.
• Seismic Design, with 18 chapters, presents the latest in seismic bridge analysis and design. New
chapters include Seismic Random Response Analysis, Displacement-Based Seismic Design of
Bridges, Seismic Design of Thin-Walled Steel and CFT Piers, Seismic Design of Cable-Supported
Bridges, and three chapters covering Seismic Design Practice in California, China, and Italy. Two
chapters of Earthquake Damage to Bridges and Seismic Design of Concrete Bridges have been
rewritten. Two chapters of Seismic Design Philosophies and Performance-Based Design Criteria,
and Seismic Isolation and Supplemental Energy Dissipation, have also been completely rewritten
and retitled as Seismic Bridge Design Specifications for the United States, and Seismic Isolation
Design for Bridges, respectively. Two chapters covering Seismic Retrofit Practice and Seismic
Retrofit Technology are combined into one chapter called Seismic Retrofit Technology.
• Construction and Maintenance has 19 chapters and focuses on the practical issues of bridge

­structures. Nine new chapters are Steel Bridge Fabrication, Cable-Supported Bridge Construction,
Accelerated Bridge Construction, Bridge Management Using Pontis and Improved Concepts,
Bridge Maintenance, Bridge Health Monitoring, Nondestructive Evaluation Methods for
Bridge Elements, ­Life-Cycle Performance Analysis and Optimization, and Bridge Construction
Methods. The Strengthening and Rehabilitation chapter is completely rewritten as two chapters: Rehabilitation and Strengthening of Highway Bridge Superstructures, and Rehabilitation
and Strengthening of Orthotropic Steel Bridge Decks. The Maintenance Inspection and Rating
chapter is completely rewritten as three chapters: Bridge Inspection, Steel Bridge Evaluation and
Rating, and Concrete Bridge Evaluation and Rating.
• The section on Worldwide Practice in the original edition has been deleted, including the ­chapters
on Design Practice in China, Europe, Japan, Russia, and the United States. An international team
of bridge experts from 26 countries and areas in Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and South
America, has joined forces to produce the Handbook of International Bridge Engineering, Second
Edition, the first comprehensive, and up-to-date resource book covering the state-of-the-practice
in bridge engineering around the world. Each of the 26 country chapters presents that country’s
historical sketch; design specifications; and various types of bridges including girder, truss, arch,
cable-stayed, suspension, and so on, in various types of materials—stone, timber, concrete, steel,
advanced composite, and of varying purposes—highway, railway, and pedestrian. Ten benchmark highway composite girder designs, the highest bridges, the top 100 longest bridges, and
the top 20 longest bridge spans for various bridge types are presented. More than 1650 beautiful
bridge photos are provided to illustrate great achievements of engineering professions.
The 146 bridge experts contributing to these books have written chapters to cover the latest bridge
engineering practices, as well as research and development from North America, Europe, and Pacific
Rim countries. More than 80% of the contributors are practicing bridge engineers. In general, the
­handbook is aimed toward the needs of practicing engineers, but materials may be re-organized to
accommodate several bridge courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
The authors acknowledge with thanks the comments, suggestions, and recommendations made
during the development of the second edition of the handbook by Dr. Erik Yding Andersen, COWI
A/S, Denmark; Michael J. Abrahams, Parsons Brinckerhoff, Inc.; Dr. Xiaohua Cheng, New Jersey
Department of Transportation; Joyce E. Copelan, California Department of Transportation; Prof. Dan
M. Frangopol, Lehigh University; Dr. John M. Kulicki, Modjeski and Masters; Dr. Amir M. Malek,
California Department of Transportation; Teddy S. Theryo, Parsons Brinckerhoff, Inc.; Prof. Shouji

Toma, Horrai-Gakuen University, Japan; Dr. Larry Wu, California Department of Transportation; Prof.
Eiki Yamaguchi, Kyushu Institute of Technology, Japan; and Dr. Yi Edward Zhou, URS Corp.
We thank all the contributors for their contributions and also acknowledge Joseph Clements, a­ cquiring
editor; Jennifer Ahringer, project coordinator; and Joette Lynch, project editor, at Taylor & Francis/CRC Press.


Preface to the
First Edition
The Bridge Engineering Handbook is a unique, comprehensive, and state-of-the-art reference work and
resource book covering the major areas of bridge engineering with the theme “bridge to the ­t wenty-first
century.” It has been written with practicing bridge and structural engineers in mind. The ideal ­readers
will be MS-level structural and bridge engineers with a need for a single reference source to keep abreast
of new developments and the state-of-the-practice, as well as to review standard practices.
The areas of bridge engineering include planning, analysis and design, construction, maintenance,
and rehabilitation. To provide engineers a well-organized, user-friendly, and easy-to-follow resource,
the handbook is divided into seven sections. Section I, Fundamentals, presents conceptual design,
aesthetics, planning, design philosophies, bridge loads, structural analysis, and modeling. Section II,
Superstructure Design, reviews how to design various bridges made of concrete, steel, steel-concrete
composites, and timbers; horizontally curved, truss, arch, cable-stayed, suspension, floating, movable,
and railroad bridges; and expansion joints, deck systems, and approach slabs. Section III, Substructure
Design, addresses the various substructure components: bearings, piers and columns, towers, abutments and retaining structures, geotechnical considerations, footings, and foundations. Section IV,
Seismic Design, provides earthquake geotechnical and damage considerations, seismic analysis and
design, seismic isolation and energy dissipation, soil–structure–foundation interactions, and seismic
retrofit technology and practice. Section V, Construction and Maintenance, includes construction of
steel and concrete bridges, substructures of major overwater bridges, construction inspections, maintenance inspection and rating, strengthening, and rehabilitation. Section VI, Special Topics, addresses
in-depth treatments of some important topics and their recent developments in bridge engineering.
Section VII, Worldwide Practice, provides the global picture of bridge engineering history and practice
from China, Europe, Japan, and Russia to the U.S.
The handbook stresses professional applications and practical solutions. Emphasis has been placed
on ready-to-use materials, and special attention is given to rehabilitation, retrofit, and maintenance.

The handbook contains many formulas and tables that give immediate answers to questions arising
from practical works. It describes the basic concepts and assumptions, omitting the derivations of
formulas and theories, and covers both traditional and new, innovative practices. An overview of the
structure, organization, and contents of the book can be seen by examining the table of contents presented at the beginning, while the individual table of contents preceding each chapter provides an
in-depth view of a particular subject. References at the end of each chapter can be consulted for more
detailed studies.
Many internationally known authors have written the chapters from different countries covering
bridge engineering practices, research, and development in North America, Europe, and the Pacific
Rim. This handbook may provide a glimpse of a rapidly growing trend in global economy in recent
years toward international outsourcing of practice and competition in all dimensions of engineering.
xi


xii

Preface to the First Edition

In general, the handbook is aimed toward the needs of practicing engineers, but materials may be
­reorganized to accommodate undergraduate and graduate level bridge courses. The book may also be
used as a survey of the practice of bridge engineering around the world.
The authors acknowledge with thanks the comments, suggestions, and recommendations during the
development of the handbook by Fritz Leonhardt, Professor Emeritus, Stuttgart University, Germany;
Shouji Toma, Professor, Horrai-Gakuen University, Japan; Gerard F. Fox, Consulting Engineer; Jackson
L. Durkee, Consulting Engineer; Michael J. Abrahams, Senior Vice President, Parsons, Brinckerhoff,
Quade & Douglas, Inc.; Ben C. Gerwick, Jr., Professor Emeritus, University of California at Berkeley;
Gregory F. Fenves, Professor, University of California at Berkeley; John M. Kulicki, President and Chief
Engineer, Modjeski and Masters; James Chai, Senior Materials and Research Engineer, California
Department of Transportation; Jinrong Wang, Senior Bridge Engineer, URS Greiner; and David W. Liu,
Principal, Imbsen & Associates, Inc.
We thank all the authors for their contributions and also acknowledge at CRC Press Nora Konopka,

acquiring editor, and Carol Whitehead and Sylvia Wood, project editors.


Editors
Dr. Wai-Fah Chen is a research professor of civil engineering at the
University of Hawaii. He was dean of the College of Engineering at
the University of Hawaii from 1999 to 2007, and a George E. Goodwin
Distinguished Professor of Civil Engineering and head of the Department
of Structural Engineering at Purdue University from 1976 to 1999.
He earned his BS in civil engineering from the National Cheng-Kung
University, Taiwan, in 1959, MS in structural engineering from Lehigh
University in 1963, and PhD in solid mechanics from Brown University
in 1966. He received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the
National ­
Cheng-Kung University in 1988 and the Distinguished
Engineering Alumnus Medal from Brown University in 1999.
Dr. Chen’s research interests cover several areas, including constitutive  modeling of e­ngineering materials, soil and concrete plasticity,
structural connections, and structural stability. He is the ­recipient of several national engineering
awards, including the Raymond Reese Research Prize and the Shortridge Hardesty Award, both from
the American Society of Civil Engineers, and the T. R. Higgins Lectureship Award in 1985 and the
Lifetime Achievement Award, both from the American Institute of Steel Construction. In 1995, he was
elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering. In 1997, he was awarded Honorary Membership by
the American Society of Civil Engineers, and in 1998, he was elected to the Academia Sinica (National
Academy of Science) in Taiwan.
A widely respected author, Dr. Chen has authored and coauthored more than 20 engineering books
and 500 technical papers. His books include several classical works such as Limit Analysis and Soil
Plasticity (Elsevier, 1975), the two-volume Theory of Beam-Columns (McGraw-Hill, 1976 and 1977),
Plasticity in Reinforced Concrete (McGraw-Hill, 1982), and the two-volume Constitutive Equations for
Engineering Materials (Elsevier, 1994). He currently serves on the editorial boards of more than 15
technical journals.

Dr. Chen is the editor-in-chief for the popular Civil Engineering Handbook (CRC Press, 1995 and
2003), the Handbook of Structural Engineering (CRC Press, 1997 and 2005), the Earthquake Engineering
Handbook (CRC Press, 2003), the Semi-Rigid Connections Handbook (J. Ross Publishing, 2011), and the
Handbook of International Bridge Engineering (CRC Press, 2014). He currently serves as the consulting editor for the McGraw-Hill Yearbook of Science & Technology for the field of civil and architectural
engineering.
He was a longtime member of the executive committee of the Structural Stability Research Council
and the specification committee of the American Institute of Steel Construction. He was a consultant
for Exxon Production Research on offshore structures, for Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill in Chicago
on tall steel buildings, and for the World Bank on the Chinese University Development Projects, among
many others. Dr. Chen has taught at Lehigh University, Purdue University, and the University of Hawaii.
xiii


xiv

Editors

Dr. Lian Duan is a senior bridge engineer and structural steel committee chair with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans).
He  worked at the North China Power Design Institute from 1975 to
1978 and taught at Taiyuan University of Technology, China, from 1981
to 1985.
He earned his diploma in civil engineering in 1975, MS in structural
engineering in 1981 from Taiyuan University of Technology, China, and
PhD in structural engineering from Purdue University in 1990.
Dr. Duan’s research interests cover areas including inelastic behavior
of reinforced concrete and steel structures, structural stability, seismic
bridge analysis, and design. With more than 70 authored and coauthored
papers, chapters, and reports, his research focuses on the development of
unified interaction equations for steel beam-columns, flexural stiffness
of reinforced concrete members, effective length factors of compression members, and design of bridge

structures.
Dr. Duan has over 35 years experience in structural and bridge engineering. He was lead engineer for
the development of Caltrans Guide Specifications for Seismic Design of Steel Bridges. He is a registered
professional engineer in California. He served as a member for several National Highway Cooperative
Research Program panels and was a Transportation Research Board Steel Committee member from
2000 to 2006.
He is the coeditor of the Handbook of International Bridge Engineering, (CRC Press, 2014). He received
the prestigious 2001 Arthur M. Wellington Prize from the American Society of Civil Engineers for the
paper, “Section Properties for Latticed Members of San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge,” in the Journal
of Bridge Engineering, May 2000. He received the Professional Achievement Award from Professional
Engineers in California Government in 2007 and the Distinguished Engineering Achievement Award
from the Engineers’ Council in 2010.


Contributors
Mahamad Akkari
California Department of
Transportation
Sacramento, California

Kevin I. Keady
California Department of
Transportation
Sacramento, California

M. J. Nigel Priestley
IUSS Pavia and Eucentre
Foundation
Pavia, Italy

Fadel Alameddine
California Department of
Transportation
Sacramento, California

Mervyn J. Kowalsky
North Carolina State University
Raleigh, North Carolina

Thomas E. Sardo
Parsons Group
Irvine, California

Steven L. Kramer
University of Washington
Seattle, Washington

Charles Scawthorn
University of California
Berkeley, California

Qian Li
Research Institute of Highway
The Ministry of Transport
Beijing, China

and

Michel Bruneau
University at Buffalo

Buffalo, New York
Gian Michele Calvi
IUSS Pavia and Eucentre
Foundation
Pavia, Italy
Lian Duan
California Department of
Transportation
Sacramento, California

Yue Li
Research Institute of Highway
The Ministry of Transport
Beijing, China

Marc Eberhard
University of Washington
Seattle, Washington

Jiahao Lin
Dalian University of
Technology
Dalian, China

Paolo Franchin
Sapienza University of Rome
Rome, Italy

Jack Moehle
University of California

Berkeley, California

Yoshiaki Goto
Nagoya Institute of
Technology
Nagoya, Japan

Joseph Penzien
International Civil Engineering
Consultants, Inc.
Berkeley, California

Roy A. Imbsen
Imbsen Consulting
Fair Oaks, California

Paolo Emilio Pinto
Sapienza University of Rome
Rome, Italy

SPA Risk
San Francisco, California
Jian Ren Tao
HNTB Corporation
San Jose, California
Semyon Treyger
HNTB Corporation
Bellevue, Washington
Keh-Chyuan Tsai
National Taiwan University

Taipei, Republic of China
Wen-Shou Tseng
Paul C. Rizzo Associates, Inc.
Oakland, California
Chia-Ming Uang
University of California
San Diego, California
Shigeki Unjoh
Public Works Research Institute
Ibaraki, Japan
xv


xvi

Contributors

Murugesu Vinayagamoorth
California Department of
Transportation
Sacramento, California

Larry Wu
California Department of
Transportation
Sacramento, California

Yahui Zhang
Dalian University of
Technology

Dalian, China

Kehai Wang
Research Institute of Highway
The Ministry of Transport
Beijing, China

Mark Yashinsky
California Department of
Transportation
Sacramento, California

Yan Zhao
Dalian University of
Technology
Dalian, ChinaContents

Han Wei
Research Institute of Highway
The Ministry of Transport
Beijing, China

Wei Zhang
Taiyuan University of
Technology
Taiyuan, China


1
Geotechnical Earthquake

Considerations
1.1Introduction...........................................................................................1
1.2Seismology..............................................................................................2
1.3 Measurement of Earthquakes..............................................................3
1.4 Strong Motion Attenuation and Duration.......................................11

Charles Scawthorn
University of California

Steven L. Kramer
University of Washington

OpenSHA Attenuation Calculator

1.5

Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis.............................................16

1.6

Site Response........................................................................................18

1.7

Earthquake-Induced Settlement.......................................................29

1.8

Ground Failure.....................................................................................31

1.9

Soil Improvement................................................................................42

Open Source PSHA Tools

Evidence for Local Site Effects  •  Methods of Evaluation  •  Site
Effects for Different Soil Conditions
Settlement of Dry Sands  •  Settlement of Saturated Sands

Liquefaction • Liquefaction Susceptibility • Initiation of
Liquefaction • Lateral Spreading • Global Instability • Retaining
Structures

Densification Techniques • Drainage Techniques • Reinforcement
Techniques • Grouting/Mixing Techniques

Defining Terms................................................................................................44
References.........................................................................................................46

1.1 Introduction
Earthquakes are naturally occurring broad-banded vibratory ground motions, due to a number of causes,
including tectonic ground motions, volcanism, landslides, rockbursts, and man-made e­ xplosions, the
most important of which are caused by the fracture and sliding of rock along tectonic faults within the
earth’s crust. For most earthquakes, shaking and/or ground failure are the d
­ ominant and most widespread agents of damage. Shaking near the actual earthquake rupture lasts only during the time when
the fault ruptures, a process that takes seconds or at most a few minutes. The seismic waves generated
by the rupture propagate long after the movement on the fault has stopped; however, spanning the globe
in about 20 minutes. Typically earthquake ground motions are powerful enough to cause damage only
in the near field (i.e., within a few tens of kilometers from the causative fault)—in a few instances, longperiod motions have caused significant damage at great distances, to selected lightly damped structures,

such as in the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, where numerous collapses of mid- and high-rise buildings
were due to a Magnitude 8.1 earthquake occurring at a distance of approximately 400 kilometers from
Mexico City.
1


2

Bridge Engineering Handbook, Second Edition: Seismic Design

1.2 Seismology
Plate Tectonics: In a global sense, tectonic earthquakes result from motion between a number of large
plates comprising the earth′s crust or lithosphere (approximately 15 large plates in total, with many
smaller “platelets”). These plates are driven by the convective motion of the material in the earth′s
­mantle, which in turn is driven by heat ­generated at the earth′s core. Relative plate motion at the
fault interface is constrained by ­f riction and/or asperities (areas of interlocking due to protrusions in
the fault surfaces). However, strain energy accumulates in the plates, eventually overcomes any resistance, and causes slip between the two sides of the fault. This sudden slip, termed elastic rebound by
Reid (1910) based on his studies of regional deformation following the 1906 San Francisco earthquake,
releases large amounts of energy, which constitute the earthquake. The location of initial radiation of
seismic waves (i.e., the first location of dynamic rupture) is termed the hypocenter, whereas the projection on the surface of the earth directly above the hypocenter is termed the epicenter. Other terminology includes near-field (within one source dimension of the epicenter, where source dimension refers
to the length of faulting), far-field (beyond near-field) and meizoseismal (the area of strong shaking and
damage). Energy is radiated over a broad spectrum of f­ requencies through the earth, in body waves
and surface waves (Bolt, 1993). Body waves are of two types: P waves (transmitting energy via push–
pull motion), and slower S waves (­t ransmitting energy via shear action at right angles to the direction
of motion). Surface waves are also of two types: h
­ orizontally oscillating Love waves (analogous to S
body waves) and horizontally and vertically o
­ scillating Rayleigh waves.
Faults are typically classified according to their sense of motion (Figure 1.1). Basic terms include
transform or strike slip (relative fault motion occurs in the horizontal plane, parallel to the strike of the

fault), and dip-slip (motion at right angles to the strike, up- or down-slip), which includes normal (dipslip motion, two sides in tension, move away from each other), reverse (dip-slip, two sides in compression, move toward each other) and thrust (low-angle reverse) faulting.
Generally, earthquakes will be concentrated in the vicinity of faults, faults that are moving more rapidly than others will tend to have higher rates of seismicity, and larger faults are more likely than others
to produce a large event. Many faults are identified on regional geological maps, and useful information
on fault location and displacement history is available from local and national geological surveys in
areas of high seismicity. An important development has been the growing recognition of blind thrust
faults, which emerged as a result of the several earthquakes in the 1980s, none of which were accompanied by surface faulting (Stein and Yeats, 1989).

Strike-slip fault

Normal fault

FIGURE 1.1  Fault types.

Reverse fault


3

Geotechnical Earthquake Considerations

1.3  Measurement of Earthquakes
Magnitude: An individual earthquake is a unique release of strain energy—quantification of this energy
has formed the basis for measuring the earthquake event. C.F. Richter (1935) was the first to define
earthquake magnitude, as


M L = Log A − Log Ao

(1.1)

where ML is local magnitude (which Richter only defined for Southern California), A is the m
­ aximum
trace amplitude in microns recorded on a standard Wood–Anderson short-period t­ orsion ­seismometer,
at a site 100 km from the epicenter, Log Ao is a standard value as a function of ­distance for instruments
located at distances other than 100 km and < 600 km. A number of other m
­ agnitudes have since been
defined, the most important of which are surface wave magnitude MS, body wave magnitude mb and
moment magnitude MW. Magnitude can be related to the total energy in the expanding wave front generated by an earthquake, and thus to the total energy release—an empirical relation by Richter is


log10 Es = 11.8 + 1.5 M

(1.2)

where ES is the total energy in ergs. Owing to the observation that deep-focus earthquakes commonly
do not register measurable surface waves with periods near 20 seconds, a body wave magnitude mb was
defined (Gutenberg and Richter, 1956), which can be related to MS (Darragh et al., 1994):


mb = 2.5 + 0.63 M S(1.3)

Body wave magnitudes are more commonly used in stable continental regions, because of the deeper
earthquakes. Seismic moment has been employed to define moment magnitude MW (Hanks and
Kanamori, 1979; also denoted as bold face M), which is now the most widely used measure of earthquake magnitude:


Log M o = 1.5 M W + 16.0

(1.4)

where seismic moment Mo (dyne-cm) is defined as (Lomnitz, 1974)


M o = µ A u (1.5)

where μ is the material shear modulus, A the area of fault plane rupture, and u the mean relative displacement between the two sides of the fault (the averaged fault slip). Comparatively, MW and MS are
numerically almost identical up to magnitude 7.5. Figure 1.2 indicates the relationship between moment
magnitude and various magnitude scales.
From the foregoing discussion, it can be seen that magnitude and energy are related to fault rupture
length and slip. Slemmons (1977), Bonilla et al (1984) and (Wells and Coppersmith, 1994) have determined statistical relations between these parameters, for worldwide and regional data sets, aggregated
and segregated by type of faulting (normal, reverse, strike-slip). (Wells and Coppersmith, 1994) provide
regressions for rupture area, length, width, displacement, and surface rupture length and displacement
as a function of faulting type, the latter of which are given in Table 1.1, which indicates, for example, that
for Mw = 7, the average fault rupture length (fault type undifferentiated) is approximately 41 km. (and
the average displacement is approximately 1m).
Intensity: In general, seismic intensity is a metric of the effect, or the strength, of an earthquake hazard at a specific location. Although the term can be generically applied to engineering measures such
as peak ground acceleration (PGA), it is often employed for qualitative measures of location-specific
earthquake effects, based on observed human behavior and structural damage. Numerous intensity
scales developed in preinstrumental times—the most common in use today are the Modified Mercalli


4

Bridge Engineering Handbook, Second Edition: Seismic Design
9
~M

W

MS

M

MJMA

8

mB
ML
mb

6

5

S

4

M

L

M

Magnitude

7

3

2

2

3

4

5
6
7
Moment magnitude

8

9

10

FIGURE 1.2  Relationship between moment magnitude and various magnitude scales. (From Campbell, K. W.,
Earthquake Spectra, 1(4), 759–804, 1985. With permission; after Heaton, T.H., Tajima. F., and Mori, A.W., Surveys
in Geophysics, 8(1), 25–83, 1986.)

(MMI) (Wood and Neumann, 1931), Table 1.2, Rossi-Forel (R-F), Medvedev–Sponheur–Karnik (MSK64, 1981), and Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) scales.
Time History: Strong motion seismometers have been available since the 1930s, and record actual
ground motions specific to their location (Figure 1.3). Typically, the ground motion records, termed
“seismograms” or “time histories,” have recorded acceleration (these records are termed “accelerograms”), for many years in analog form on photographic film and, recently, digitally.
Time histories theoretically contain complete information about the motion at the instrumental location, recording three traces or orthogonal records (two horizontal and one vertical). Time histories
(i.e., the earthquake motion at the site) can differ dramatically in duration, frequency content, and

amplitude. The maximum amplitude of recorded acceleration is termed PGA (also termed the zero
period acceleration [ZPA])—peak ground velocity (PGV) and peak ground displacement (PGD) are
the maximum respective amplitudes of velocity and displacement. Acceleration is normally recorded,
with velocity and displacement being determined by integration; however, velocity and displacement
meters are deployed to a lesser extent. Acceleration can be expressed in units of cm/sec2 (termed gals),
but is often also expressed in terms of the fraction or percent of the acceleration of gravity (980.66 gals,
termed 1 g). Velocity is expressed in cm/sec (termed kine). Recent earthquakes (1994 Northridge, MW 6.7
and 1995 Hanshin (Kobe) MW 6.9) have recorded PGA′s of approximately 0.8 g and PGV′s of approximately 100 kine, whereas almost 2 g was recorded in the 1992 Cape Mendocino earthquake.
Elastic Response Spectra: If a single degree of freedom mass is subjected to a time history of ground
(i.e., base) motion similar to that shown in Figure 1.3, the mass or elastic structural response can
be readily calculated as a function of time, generating a structural response time history, as shown
in Figure 1.4 for several oscillators with differing natural periods. The response time history can be
­calculated direct integration in the time domain, or by solution of the Duhamel integral. However,


SS
{Rc
N
All
SS
{R
N
All
SS
{R
N
All
SS
{R
N

All

Slip Typeb
55
21
19
95
55
21
19
95
35
17
14
66
35
17
14
66

Number of Events
–1.69(0.16)
–0.44(0.34)
–1.98(0.50)
–1.38(0.15)
1.49(0.04)
1.36(0.09)
1.36(0.05)
1.43(0.03)
–1.70(0.23)

–0.60(0.39)
–1.99(0.72)
–1.43(0.18)
1.68(0.04)
1.45(0.10)
1.52(0.05)
1.61(0.04)

a(sa)
1.16(0.09)
0.42(0.23)
1.51(0.35)
1.02(0.09)
0.64(0.05)
0.35(0.19)
0.35(0.08)
0.56(0.05)
1.04(0.13)
0.31(0.27)
1.24(0,49)
0.88(0.11)
0.65(0.08)
0.26(0.23)
0.28(0.11)
0.57(0.07)

b(sb)
0.36
0.43
0.41

0.41
0.27
0.39
0.20
0.31
0.32
0.40
0.37
0.36
0.26
0.36
0.17
0.29

Standard
Deviation (s)

b

a

SRL is surface rupture length (km); MD maximum displacement (m); AD average displacement (m).
SS is strike slip; R reverse; N normal.
c Regressions for reverse-slip relationships shown in italics and brackets are not significant at a 95% probability level.
Source: Data from Wells, D. L., and Coppersmith, K. J., Bull. Seismol. Soc. Am., 84, 974–1002, 1994.

log (SRL) = a + b log (AD)

log (AD) : = a + b log (SRL)

log (SRL) = a + b log (MD)

log (MD) = a + b log (SRL)

Equationa

Coefficients and Standard Errors

TABLE 1.1  Regressions of Surface Rupture Length and Displacement

0.86
0.38
0.73
0.75
0.86
0.38
0.73
0.75
0.82
0.28
0.59
0.71
0.82
0.28
0.59
0.71

Correlation
Coefficient (r)
0.01–14.6

0.11–6.5
0.06–6.4
0.01–14.6
0.01–14.6
0.11–6.5
0.06–6.4
0.01–14.6
0.10–8.0
0.06–2.6
0.08–2.1
0.06–8.0
0.10–8.0
0.06–2.6
0.08–2.1
0.06–8.0

Displacement
Range (m)

1.3–432
4–148
3.8–75
1.3–432
1.3–432
4–148}
3.8–75
1.3–432
3.8–432
6.7–148}
15–75

3.8–432
3.8–432
6.7–148}
15–75
3.8–432

Rupture Length
Range (km)

Geotechnical Earthquake Considerations
5


6

Bridge Engineering Handbook, Second Edition: Seismic Design

TABLE 1.2  Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale of 1931
I
II
III
IV

V

VI
VII

VIII

IX

X

XI
XII

Not felt except by a very few under especially favorable circumstances.
Felt only by a few persons at rest, especially on upper floors of buildings. Delicately suspended objects may swing.
Felt quite noticeably indoors, especially on upper floors of buildings, but many people do not recognize it as an
earthquake. Standing motor cars may rock slightly. Vibration like passing truck. Duration estimated.
During the day felt indoors by many, outdoors by few. At night some awakened. Dishes, windows, and doors
disturbed; walls make creaking sound. Sensation like heavy truck striking building. Standing motorcars rock
noticeably.
Felt by nearly everyone; many awakened. Some dishes, windows, etc., broken; a few instances of cracked plaster;
unstable objects overturned. Disturbance of trees, poles, and other tall objects sometimes noticed. Pendulum
clocks may stop.
Felt by all; many frightened and run outdoors. Some heavy furniture moved; a few instances of fallen plaster or
damaged chimneys. Damage slight.
Everybody runs outdoors. Damage negligible in buildings of good design and construction slight to moderate in
well-built ordinary structures; considerable in poorly built or badly designed structures. Some chimneys broken.
Noticed by persons driving motor cars.
Damage slight in specially designed structures; considerable in ordinary substantial buildings, with partial collapse;
great in poorly built structures. Panel walls thrown out of frame structures. Fall of chimneys, factory stacks,
columns, monuments, and walls. Heavy furniture overturned. Sand and mud ejected in small amounts. Changes
in well water. Persons driving motor cars disturbed.
Damage considerable in specially designed structures; well-designed frame structures thrown out of plumb; great
in substantial buildings, with partial collapse. Buildings shifted off foundations. Ground cracked conspicuously.
Underground pipes broken.
Some well-built wooden structures destroyed; most masonry and frame structures destroyed with foundations;

ground badly cracked. Rails bent. Landslides considerable from river banks and steep slopes. Shifted sand and
mud. Water splashed over banks.
Few, if any (masonry), structures remain standing. Bridges destroyed. Broad fissures in ground. Underground
pipelines completely out of service. Earth slumps and land slips in soft ground. Rails bent greatly.
Damage total. Waves seen on ground surfaces. Lines of sight and level distorted. Objects thrown upward into
the air.

Source: Adapted from Wood, H. O., and Neumann, F., Bull. Seis. Soc. Am., 21, 277–283, 1931.
1992 Landers (M = 7.4)

1989 Loma prieta (M = 7.0)
1992 Big bear (M = 6.4)
1987 Whittier (M = 6.0)
0

10

20

30 seconds

FIGURE 1.3  Typical earthquake accelerograms. (From Darragh et al. Proceedings of Fifth U.S. National
Conference Earthquake Engineering, vol. III, 99–108, Earthquake Engineering Research Institute, Oakland CA,
1994. With permission.)

this is time-consuming, and the elastic response is more typically calculated in the frequency domain
(Clough and Penzien, 1975).
For design purposes, it is often sufficient to know only the maximum amplitude of the response
time history. If the natural period of the single degree of freedom oscillator (SDOF) is varied across a
­spectrum of engineering interest (typically, for natural periods from 0.03 to 3 or more sec., or frequencies

7

Geotechnical Earthquake Considerations

of 0.3 to 30 + Hz), then the plot of these maximum amplitudes is termed a response spectrum. Figure 1.4
illustrates this process, resulting in Sd, the displacement response spectrum, whereas Figure 1.5 shows
(1) the Sd, displacement response spectrum, (2) Sv, the velocity response spectrum (also denoted PSV, the
pseudo-spectral velocity, pseudo to emphasize that this spectrum is not exactly the same as the relative
velocity response spectrum [Hudson, 1979]), and (3) S a, the acceleration response spectrum. Note that
Sv =



2π
Sd = ϖSd (1.6)
T

and
Sa =



2

2π
 2π 
Sv = ϖSv =   Sd = ϖ2 Sd (1.7)
 T

T
El Centro
sooe component,
May 18, 1940

Ground
acceleration,
0g(t)

–0.4 g
0

–0.4 g

0

10

10

Time (s)

20

30

Umax = 2.48 in.

0

T = 0.5 second
ξ = 0.02
Deformation, u, in.

–10

T = 1 second
ξ = 0.02

10
0

Umax = 6.61 in.

–10
10
0

T = 2 second
ξ = 0.02

–10

Umax = 8.84 in.
0

10

20

30

Time (s)
20
Deformation
(or displacement)
Response spectrum
ξ = 2%

Sd, in.

15
10
5
0

0

1
2
Natural vibration period, Time (s)

3

FIGURE 1.4  Computation of deformation (or displacement) response spectrum. (From Chopra, A.K., Dynamics
of Structures: A Primer. Earthquake Engineering Research Institute, Oakland, CA, 1981.)


8

Bridge Engineering Handbook, Second Edition: Seismic Design

Response spectra form the basis for much modern earthquake engineering structural analysis and
design. They are readily calculated if the ground motion is known. For design purposes however,
response spectra must be estimated, either by methods of probabilistic seismic hazard analysis using
period-specific attenuation relations, by adjusting an idealized response spectral shape such as shown
in Figure 1.7 combined with estimates of peak ground acceleration and peak ground velocity, or by
­following code procedures as shown in Figure 1.8. Response spectra may be plotted in any of several
ways, as shown in Figure 1.5 with arithmetic axes, and in Figure 1.6, where the velocity response spectrum is plotted on tripartite logarithmic axes, which equally enables reading of displacement and acceleration response. Response spectra are most normally presented for 5% of critical damping.
Inelastic Response Spectra: Although the foregoing discussion has been for elastic response spectra,
most structures are not expected, or even designed, to remain elastic under strong ground motions.
Rather, structures are expected to enter the inelastic region—the extent to which they behave inelastically can be defined by the ductility factor, μ:
µ=



um
(1.8)
uy

20

Sd, in.

15
10
5
0

(a)

50

Sv, in./s

40
30
20
10
0

(b)

1.5

Sa, g

1.0
0.5
0

0

1

2
(c)
Natural vibration period, Time (s)

3

FIGURE 1.5  Response spectra spectrum. (From Chopra, A.K., Dynamics of Structures: A Primer. Earthquake
Engineering Research Institute, Oakland, CA, 1981.)