• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.169-176
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• 2018

An attempt has been made here to study the propagation of SH-type surface waves in an elastic medium, which is initially stressed and heterogeneous and has a point source inside the medium. The upper portion of the composite medium is a sandy layer. It is situated on an initially stressed heterogeneous half-space, whose density, rigidity and internal friction are function of depth. The analysis has been carried out by using Fourier transform and Green's function approach. The phase velocity has been investigated for several particular situations. It has been shown that the results of the study agree with those the case of Love wave propagation in a homogeneous medium in the absence of the sandy layer, when the initial stress is absent. In order to illustrate the validity of the analysis presented here, the derived analytical expression has been computed numerically, by considering an illustrative example and the variances of the concerned physical variables have been presented graphically. It is observed that the velocity of shear wave is amply influenced by the initial stress and heterogeneity parameters and the presence of the sandy layer. The study has an important bearing on investigations of different problems in the earth's interior and also in seismological studies.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.273-281
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• 2014

In most current seismic design codes, design earthquake ground motions are defined by a reference spectrum, based on bedrock and site amplification factors that quantify the geotechnical dynamic conditions. Earthquake engineering bedrock is the fundamental geotechnical formation where the seismic waves are attenuated without amplification. To better define bedrock in an earthquake engineering context, shear wave velocity ($V_S$ ) data obtained from in-situ seismic tests were examined for several rock strata in Korea; these data were categorized by borehole drilling investigations. The $V_S$ values for most soft rock data in Korea are > 750 m/s, which is the threshold $V_S$ value for identifying engineering bedrock from a strong motion station. Conversely, VS values are < 750 m/s for 60% of $V_S$ data in weathered rock in Korea. Thus, the soft (or harder) rock strata below the weathered rock layer in Korea can be regarded as earthquake engineering bedrock.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2010.09c
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• pp.24-30
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• 2010

The void ratio and elastic moduli are design parameters used in geotechnical engineering to understand soil behavior. Elastic and electromagnetic waves have been used to evaluate the various soil characteristics due to high resolution. The objective of this study is to evaluate the void ratio and elastic moduli based on elastic wave velocities and electrical resistivity. The Field Velocity Resistivity Probe (FVRP) is developed to obtain the elastic and electromagnetic wave profiles of soil during penetration. The Piezoelectric Disk Elements (PDE) and Bender Elements (BE) are used as transducers for measuring the elastic wave velocities such as compressional and shear wave velocities. The Electrical Resistivity Probe (ERP) is also installed for capturing the electrical resistivity profile. The application test is carried out on the southern coast of the Korean peninsula. The field tests are performed at a depth of 6~20 m, at 10 cm intervals for measuring elastic wave velocities and at 0.5cm intervals for measuring electrical resistivity. The elastic moduli such as constraint and shear moduli are calculated by using measured elastic wave velocities. The void ratios are also evaluated based on the elastic wave velocities and the electrical resistivity. Furthermore, the converted void ratios by using FVRP are compared with the volumetric void ratio obtained by a standard consolidation test. The comparison shows that the void ratios based on the FVPR match the volume based void ratio well. This study suggests that the FVRP may be a useful device to effectively determine the elastic moduli and void ratio in the field.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.57-65
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• 2014

For economic and technical reasons, it is difficult to obtain high quality undisturbed cohesionless samples, hence most researchers rely on preparing remolded and reconstituted representative samples of sandy soils. In this study, moist tamping, air pluviation, and dry deposition methods were applied to make remolded samples at similar relative densities. A series of isotropically consolidated drained tests were conducted with accompanied by measured elastic wave velocities in order to evaluate a difference between sample preparation methods and relative densities. For the elastic wave velocity measurements, piezoelectric elements were installed on the top and bottom cap of the triaxial device. The results showed that soil behavior relies on sample preparation methods, and that the trend of shear wave velocity was the same with volumetric strain behavior.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.66 no.1
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• pp.45-59
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• 2018

The bi-material elastic system consisting of the pre-stressed hollow cylinder and pre-stresses surrounding infinite elastic medium is considered and it is assumed that the mentioned initial stresses in this system are caused with the compressing or stretching uniformly distributed normal forces acting at infinity in the direction which is parallel to the cylinder's axis. Moreover, it is assumed that on the internal surface of the cylinder the ring load which moves with constant velocity acts and within these frameworks it is required to determine the influence of the aforementioned initial stresses on the critical velocity of the moving load. The corresponding investigations are carried out within the framework of the so-called three-dimensional linearized theory of elastic waves in initially stresses bodies and the axisymmetric stress-strain state case is considered. The "moving coordinate system" method is used and the Fourier transform is employed for solution to the formulated mathematical problem and Fourier transformation of the sought values are determined analytically. However, the originals of those are determined numerically with the use of the Sommerfeld contour method. The critical velocity is determined from the criterion, according to which, the magnitudes of the absolute values of the stresses and displacements caused with the moving load approaches an infinity. Numerical results on the influence of the initial stresses on the critical velocity and interface normal and shear stresses are presented and discussed. In particular, it is established that the initial stretching (compressing) of the constituents of the system under consideration causes a decrease (an increase) in the values of the critical velocity.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.25 no.8
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• pp.774-783
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• 2004

The S wave velocity and Q$s^{-1}$ structure of the uppermost part of the soil in Nakdong Delta area have been obtained to determine the characteristics of the forementioned soil. The phase and attenuation coefficients of multichannel seismic records were inverted to obtain the S wave velocity and Q$s^{-1}$ structure of the soil. The inversion results have been compared with the borehole measurements of the area. The seismic signal of the nearest geophone from a seismic source was used as the source signal to obtain the attenuation coefficients. Amplitude ratios of the signal at each geophone to the source signal wave plotted as a function of distance for the frequency range between 10 Hz and 45 Hz. The slope of a linear regression line which fits amplitude ratio-distance relationship best for a given frequency was used as the attenuation coefficients for the frequency. The dispersion curve of Rayleigh waves and the attenuation coefficients were inverted to obtain the S-wave velocity and Q$s^{-1}$, respectively, in the uppermost 8 meter of soil layer. The borehole measurements of the area show that are two distinct layers; the upper 4 meter of silty-sand and the lower 4 meter of silty-clay. The inversion results indicate that the shear wave velocity of the upper layer is 80 m/sec and 40m/sec in the lower silty-clay layer. The spacial resolution of the shear wave velocity structure is very good down to a depth of 8 meter. The Q$s^{-1}$ in the upper silty-sand layer is 0.02 and increase to 0.03 in the lower silty-sand layer. The spacial resolution of quality factor is relatively good down to a depth of 5 meter, but very poor below the depth. In this study, the S-wave velocity is higher in the silty-clay and the Q$s^{-1}$ is smaller silty-sand than in the silty-clay. However, much more data should be analyzed and accumulated before making any generalization on the shear wave velocity and Q$s^{-1}$ of the sediments.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.313-322
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• 2018

The present study is dedicated to investigate the SH body-as well as Love-waves propagation effects in porous media with uncertain porosity and permeability. A unified formulation of the governing equations for one-dimensional (1-D) wave propagation in anisotropic porous layered media is presented deterministically. The uncertainties around the above two cited parameters are taken into account by random fields with the help of Monte Carlo Simulations (MCS). Random samples of the porosity and the permeability are generated according to the normal and lognormal distribution functions, respectively, with a mean value and a coefficient of variation for each one of the two parameters. After performing several thousands of samples, the mathematical expectation (mean) of the solution of the wave propagation equations in terms of amplification functions for SH waves and in terms of dispersion equation for Love-waves are obtained. The limits of the Love wave velocity in a porous soil layer overlaying a homogeneous half-space are obtained where it is found that random variations of porosity change the zeros of the wave equation. Also, the increase of uncertainties in the porosity (high coefficient of variation) decreases the mean amplification function amplitudes and shifts the fundamental frequencies. However, no effects are observed on both Love wave dispersion and amplification function for random variations of permeability. Lastly, the present approach is applied to a case study in the Adapazari town basin so that to estimate ground motion accelerations lacked in the fast-growing during the main shock of the damaging 1999 Kocaeli earthquake.

• Composites Research
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.1-7
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• 2000

A new ultrasonic test method is proposed to obtain elastic constants of unidirectional composite materials nondestructively. In the proposed test method, only longitudinal transducers are used to measure wave velocities by through-transmission method. An aluminum wedge and a flat aluminum rectangular block are placed on each side of the test specimen. Oblique incident longitudinal wave is transmitted from a wedge to the specimen and the mode conversions are occurred sequentially at two interfaces between the specimen and aluminium. Measuring wave velocities converted to longitudinal waves in the rectangular block give all information to determine elastic constants of the composites. In order to determine shear stiffness coefficients, transverse wave velocity is measured indirectly from received longitudinal wave. Effects of anisotropy on waves are also considered in this study.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.47-57
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• 2006

The shear wave velocity is related with the stiffness of granular skeleton and mass density. The shear stiffness of the granular skeleton remains unaffected by the presence of the fluid. Bender elements are convenient shear wave transducers for instrumenting soil cells due to optimal soil-transducer coupling. This study addresses the principles of the shear wave, the design and implementation of bender elements including electromagnetic coupling prevention, directivity, resonant frequency, detection of first arrival, and near field effects. It is shown that electromagnetic coupling effects can be minimized using parallel-type bender elements. Thus, the in-plane S-wave directivity is quasi-circular. The resonant frequency of bender element installations depends on the geometry of the bender element, the anchor efficiency and the soil stiffness. One of the most cumbersome parts in the bender element test is near field effects, which affect the selection of arrival time. The selection of the first arrival within the near field Is effectively solved by the multiple reflection technique and signal matching technique. Bender elements, which requires several considerations, may be effective tools for the subsurface characterization by using S-wave.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.132-142
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• 2009

The Tamar rift valley runs through the City of Launceston, Tasmania. Damage has occurred to city buildings due to earthquake activity in Bass Strait. The presence of the ancient valley, the Tamar valley, in-filled with soft sediments that vary rapidly in thickness from 0 to 250mover a few hundreds metres, is thought to induce a 2D resonance pattern, amplifying the surface motions over the valley and in Launceston. Spatially averaged coherency (SPAC), frequency-wavenumber (FK) and horizontal to vertical spectrum ratio (HVSR) microtremor survey methods are combined to identify and characterise site effects over the Tamar valley. Passive seismic array measurements acquired at seven selected sites were analysed with SPAC to estimate shear wave velocity (slowness) depth profiles. SPAC was then combined with HVSR to improve the resolution of these profiles in the sediments to an approximate depth of 125 m. Results show that sediments thicknesses vary significantly throughout Launceston. The top layer is composed of as much as 20m of very soft Quaternary alluvial sediments with a velocity from 50 m/s to 125 m/s. Shear-wave velocities in the deeper Tertiary sediment fill of the Tamar valley, with thicknesses from 0 to 250m vary from 400 m/s to 750 m/s. Results obtained using SPAC are presented at two selected sites (GUN and KPK) that agree well with dispersion curves interpreted with FK analysis. FK interpretation is, however, limited to a narrower range of frequencies than SPAC and seems to overestimate the shear wave velocity at lower frequencies. Observed HVSR are also compared with the results obtained by SPAC, assuming a layered earth model, and provide additional constraints on the shear wave slowness profiles at these sites. The combined SPAC and HVSR analysis confirms the hypothesis of a layered geology at the GUN site and indicates the presence of a 2D resonance pattern across the Tamar valley at the KPK site.