Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Thesis Format

Monograph

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy

Program

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Supervisor

El Naggar, M. H.

Abstract

Vibration measurement is an essential aspect of modern geotechnical engineering. It is particularly vital task for measuring the dynamic soil parameters, estimating seismic hazards and evaluating influence of industrial, traffic and construction vibrations on the surrounding buildings, structures and their elements. Meanwhile, commercial exploration seismic stations and data acquisition systems require significant professional knowledge and training in geophysics or vibration measurement, as well as practical skills and experience in adjusting data acquisition parameters. Furthermore, available seismological investigation and vibrometry sensors are not universally suitable for field applications in geophysical studies, soil-structure interaction investigations or structural vibrations. The frequency range suitable for seismic studies and industrial vibration measurement vary from 1 Hz to 300 Hz with sensitivity corresponding to the expected vibration level. To address these challenges, the first part of this thesis was focused on developing an innovative data acquisition system and sensors that are easy to use in a wide range of field applications.

Geophysical techniques, including the Multichannel Analysis of Surface Waves (MASW) and Horizontal to Vertical Spectral Ratio (HVSR) methods, are gaining popularity in site investigations and seismic hazard characterization applications. The second part of this thesis involved conducting field studies using MASW and HVSR methods to evaluate the influence of challenging site conditions such as sloping surface topography, complicated soil stratigraphy and sloping bedrock boundaries on the results of the applied methods.

The application of theoretical or numerical models of site amplification often poses a challenge under real field conditions. In the third part of the thesis, an analytical model was developed to allow for the removal of site effects from strong motion records and proposed a method for HVSR curve parameterization that resulted in an analytical expression for the amplification factor based on HVSR results.

Summary for Lay Audience

Accurate evaluation of dynamic soil parameters is important for many engineering applications such as proper design of industrial and civil buildings and infrastructure and urban planning for resilient and sustainable communities. Estimation of these parameters often requires extensive field studies and specialized equipment or laboratory testing.

Vibration measurement is an essential part of these undertakings. It is particularly vital task for estimating seismic hazards and evaluating influence of industrial, traffic and construction vibrations on the surrounding buildings, structures and their elements. Currently available commercial exploration seismic stations and vibration measurement systems are expensive and very difficult to use because they require significant professional knowledge and training in geophysics or vibration measurement. To address these challenges, this thesis is subdivided into three parts. The first part was focused on developing an innovative data acquisition system and sensors that are easy to use in a wide range of field applications. The second part of this thesis involved conducting field studies for Multichannel Analysis of Surface Waves (MASW) and Horizontal to Vertical Spectral Ratio (HVSR) studies to evaluate the influence of challenging site conditions such as sloping surface topography, complicated soil stratigraphy and sloping bedrock boundaries on the results of the applied methods. In the third part, a theoretical study was conducted to evaluate seismic amplification factors that resulted in an analytical expression for the amplification factor based on HVSR results.

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Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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