EARTHQUAKE

ENGINEERING
1.2. Nature
N off
Earthquakes

1.2.1. Causes of Earthquakes

1.2.2. Faults

1.2.3. Earthquake Effects

 1.2.1. Causes of Earthquakes

Tectonic Earthquakes
are caused by the sudden dislocation of large rock masses along
geological faults within the earth's crust. The Earth is formed of
severall layers
l that
h have
h very different
diff physical
h i l and d chemical
h i l
properties. The outer layer, which averages about 70 kilometers
in thickness, consists of about a dozen large, irregularly shaped
plates that slide over,
over under and past each other on top of the
partly molten inner layer .Most earthquakes occur at the
boundaries where the plates meet .

Plate Tectonic Interactions

Flash movie

Dr. Osman Shalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.1. Causes of Earthquakes

Tectonic Earthquakes

Dr. Osman Shalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.1. Causes of Earthquakes

Volcanic Earthquakes
Earthquakes that can be
reasonably associated with
volcanoes are relatively rare
and fall into three categories:

(i) volcanic explosions,

(ii) shallow earthquakes from

magma movements, and

(iii) sympathetic tectonic

earthquakes

Dr. Osman Shalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.1. Causes of Earthquakes

Volcanic Earthquakes

Dr. Osman Shalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.1. Causes of Earthquakes

Volcanic Earthquakes

Dr. Osman Shaalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.1. Causes of Earthquakes

Explosions

Earthquakes
q mayy be p
produced
by the underground
detonation of chemical or
nuclear devices.
devices When a
nuclear device is detonated in
a borehole underground,
enormous nuclear energy is
released .

Dr. Osman Shalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.1. Causes of Earthquakes

Collapse Earthquakes

Collapse earthquakes are small earthquakes occur in

regions of underground caverns and mines. The immediate
cause of gground shakingg is the sudden collapse
p of the roof
of the mine or cavern.

Dr. Osman Shalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.1. Causes of Earthquakes

Large Reservoir
Reservoir--induced Earthquakes

The idea that earthquakes

q might
g be triggered
gg byy impounding
p g
surface water is not new. The first detailed evidence of such an
effect came with the filling of Lake Mead behind Hoover Dam
(height 221 m. After impounding began , reports of local shaking
b
became prevalent.
l t

Dr. Osman Shalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.1. Causes of Earthquakes

Tsunami
Underwater earthquakes,
volcanoes, or landslides
can produce a tsunami or
tidal wave. This wave can
travel very rapidly
thousands of miles across
the ocean. In deep water
the tsunami may only raise
the ocean level by a few
centimeters hardly enough
centimeters,
to notice. But as it
approaches land, the
shallower water causes the
wave to build in height to
as much as 10-20 meters
or more and suddenly
flood coastal areas
Dr. Osman Shalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr
 1.2.2. Faults

Definition
A fault is a fracture within some
particular rocky mass within the
earth's
h' crust. TheTh depth
d h and d
length of faults vary greatly.
Faults may range in length from
few meters to many kilometers
and are drawn on a geological
map as continuous or broken
lines. Earthquakes
q are caused byy
active faults,
faults that is, faults along
which the two sides of the
fracture move with respect to
eachh other.
th So,S an earthquake
th k is
i
caused by the sudden movement
of the two sides of a fault with
respect to another .

Dr. Osman Shalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.2. Faults

Active Faults

Prof.Dr. Osman Shaalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.2. Faults

Tectonic Plates

Dr. Osman Shalan Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.2. Faults

Types of Faults
a) Normal faults
These occur in response to pulling
or tension:
i the
h overlying
l i bl k
block
moves down the dip of the fault
plane. movie
b) Thrust (reverse) faults
These occur in response to
squeezing or compression: the
overlying
y g block moves up p the dip
p
of the fault plane. movie
c) Strike‐
Strike‐slip (lateral) faults
These occur in response to either
t
type off stress:
t th blocks
the bl k move
horizontally past one another .
movie

Prof.Dr. Osman Shaalan Earthquake Engineering Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.2. Faults

Earthquake Focus
The point on the fault where
rupture initiates is referred to
as the
h focus
f or hypocenter
h t
of an earthquake.

The hypocenter of an
earthquake
q is described byy
its depth in kilometers, its
map location in latitude and The term epicenter is the
longitude, its date and time point on the earth
earth’ss surface
off occurrence, andd its i directly above the
magnitude hypocenter

Prof. Dr. Osman Shaalan Earthquake Engineering Dr. Tharwat Sak

 1.2.3. Earthquake Effects
How do Earthquakes
q affect Structures?

1‐ By inertial forces
generated
d by
b severe
ground shaking

Overturning collapse of a high-rise building

Chi-Chi
Chi Chi earthquake, Taiwan, September 20,
1999, Magnitude 7.6
Prof.Dr. Osman Shaalan Earthquake Engineering Dr. Tharwat Sakr
 1.2.3. Earthquake Effects
How do Earthquakes
q affect Structures?

2. By earthquake‐
i d d fi
induced fires: 

Damage caused by the earthquake induced fires

Hanshin (Kobe) earthquake, January 17, 1995, Japan,
Magnitude 6.9

Prof.Dr. Osman Shaalan Earthquake Engineering Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.3. Earthquake Effects
How do Earthquakes
q affect Structures?
3. By changing the physical properties of the foundation soils such as
Liquefaction:

Overturning
Damage g due
due to
to liquefaction
q
liquefaction
Kocaeli earthquake, Turkey,
1964 Niigata, Japan,1999, Magnitude 7.4
earthquake.
Prof.Dr. Osman Shaalan Earthquake Engineering Dr. Tharwat Sakr
 1.2.3. Earthquake Effects
How do Earthquakes
q affect Structures?

Prof.Dr. Osman Shaalan Earthquake Engineering Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.3. Earthquake Effects
How do Earthquakes
q affect Structures?

Prof.Dr. Osman Shaalan Earthquake Engineering Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.3. Earthquake Effects
How do Earthquakes
q affect Structures?
4. By direct fault displacement at the site of a structure:

Prof.Dr. Osman Shaalan Earthquake Engineering Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.3. Earthquake Effects
How do Earthquakes
q affect Structures?
5. By landslides, or other movement:

Prof.Dr. Osman Shaalan Earthquake Engineering Dr. Tharwat Sakr

 1.2.3. Earthquake Effects
How do Earthquakes
q affect Structures?
6. By seismic sea waves (tsunamis) or fluid motions in
reservoirs and lakes (seiches):

Prof.Dr. Osman Shaalan Earthquake Engineering Dr. Tharwat Sakr