Chapter 2: Plate Tectonics and Earthquakes

2.1. Introduction to tectonic plates

(Source: Frederick K. Lutgens, Edward J. Tarbuck, Dennis Tasa, 2017. Essentials of Geology, 13th ed. Pearson
Education, New Jersey, USA.)
Plate tectonics is the first theory to provide a comprehensive view of the processes that
produced Earth’s major surface features, including the continents and ocean basins. Within the
framework of this model, geologists have found explanations for the basic causes and
distribution of earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountain belts. Further, the plate tectonics theory
helps to explain the formation and distribution of igneous and metamorphic rocks and their
relationship with the rock cycle.
According to the plate tectonics model, the crust and the uppermost part of the mantle
constitute Earth’s strong outer layer, the lithosphere (lithos = stone). The lithosphere varies in
both thickness and density, depending on whether it is oceanic or continental (Figure 2.1).
Oceanic lithosphere is about 100 kilometers thick in the deep-ocean basins but is considerably
thinner along the crest of the oceanic ridge system. In contrast, continental lithosphere averages
about 150 kilometers thick but may extend to depths of 200 kilometers or more beneath the
stable interiors of the continents. Oceanic crust is composed of basalt, a rock rich in dense iron
and magnesium, whereas continental crust is composed largely of less dense granitic rocks.
Because of these differences, the overall density of oceanic lithosphere is greater than the
overall density of continental lithosphere.

Figure 2.1: The rigid lithosphere overlies the weak asthenosphere

The asthenosphere (asthenos = weak) is a hotter, weaker region in the mantle that lies
below the lithosphere. In the upper asthenosphere (located between 100 and 200 kilometers
depth), the pressure and temperature bring rock very near to melting. Consequently, although
the rock remains largely solid, it responds to forces by flowing, similarly to the way clay may
deform if you compress it slowly. By contrast, the relatively cool and rigid lithosphere tends to
respond to forces acting on it by bending or breaking but not flowing. Because of these
differences, Earth’s rigid outer shell is effectively detached from the asthenosphere.

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2.1.1. Earth’s major plates
The lithosphere is broken into about two dozen segments of irregular size and shape
called lithospheric plates, or simply plates, that are in constant motion with respect to one
another (Figure 2.2). Seven major lithospheric plates are recognized and account for 94 percent
of Earth’s surface area: the North American, South American, Pacific, African, Eurasian,
Australian-Indian, and Antarctic plates. The largest is the Pacific plate, which encompasses a
significant portion of the Pacific basin. Each of the six other large plates consists of an entire
continent, as well as a significant amount of oceanic crust. Note that none of the plates are
defined entirely by the margins of a single continent.
Intermediate-sized plates include the Caribbean, Nazca, Philippine, Arabian, Cocos,
Scotia, and Juan de Fuca plates. These plates, with the exception of the Arabian plate, are
composed mostly of oceanic lithosphere. In addition, several smaller plates (microplates) have
been identified but are not shown in Figure 2.2.

Figure 2.2: Earth’s major lithospheric plates-The block diagrams below the map illustrate divergent,
convergent, and transform plate boundaries.
2.1.2. Plate movement
One of the main tenets of the plate tectonics theory is that plates move as somewhat
rigid units relative to all other plates. As plates move, the distance between two locations on
different plates, such as New York and London, gradually changes, whereas the distance
between sites on the same plate—New York and Denver, for example—remains relatively
constant. However, parts of some plates are comparatively “weak,” such as southern China,
which is literally being squeezed as the Indian subcontinent rams into Asia proper.
Because plates are in constant motion relative to each other, most major interactions
among them (and, therefore, most deformation) occur along their boundaries. Plates are
delimited by three distinct types of boundaries, which are differentiated by the type of

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movement they exhibit. These boundaries are depicted at the bottom of Figure 2.2 and are
briefly described here:
• Divergent plate boundaries—where two plates move apart, resulting in upwelling and
partial melting of hot material from the mantle to create new seafloor, called seafloor spreading
(Figure 2.2A).
• Convergent plate boundaries—where two plates move towards each another, resulting
either in oceanic lithosphere descending beneath an overriding plate, eventually to be
reabsorbed into the mantle (forming either volcanic island arc or continental volcanic arc), or
possibly in the collision of two continental blocks to create a mountain belt (Figure 2.2B).
• Transform plate boundaries—where two plates grind past each other without the
production or destruction of lithosphere (Figure 2.2C).
Divergent and convergent plate boundaries each account for about 40 percent of all
plate boundaries. Transform boundaries account for the remaining 20 percent.
2.2. Earthquakes
(Sources: F. K. Lutgens, E. J. Tarbuck, D. Tasa, 2017. Essentials of Geology, 13th ed. Pearson Education,
New Jersey, USA. + S. J. Reynolds, J. K. Johnson, P. J. Morin, C. M. Carter, C. C. Shaw, 2018. Exploring
Geology, 5th ed. McGraw-Hill Education, NY, USA)

2.2.1. What is an earthquake?

An earthquake is ground shaking caused by the sudden and rapid movement of one
block of rock slipping past another along fractures in Earth’s crust, called faults. Most faults
are locked, except for brief, abrupt movements when sudden slippage produces an earthquake.
Faults are locked because the confining pressure exerted by the overlying crust is enormous,
causing these fractures in the crust to be “squeezed shut.”
Earthquakes tend to occur along preexisting faults where internal stresses cause the
crustal rocks to rupture or break into two or more units. The location where slippage begins is
called the hypocenter, or focus. The point on Earth’s surface directly above the hypocenter is
called the epicenter (Figure 2.3). Large earthquakes release huge amounts of stored up energy
as seismic waves—a form of energy that travels through the lithosphere and Earth’s interior.
Seismic waves are analogous to waves produced when a stone is dropped into a calm pond.
Just as the impact of the stone creates a pattern of circular waves, an earthquake generates
waves that radiate outward in all directions from the zone of slippage.

Figure 2.3: Earthquakes hypocenter and epicenter

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 Thousands of earthquakes occur around the world every day. Fortunately, most are
small enough that people cannot detect them. Only about 15 strong earthquakes (magnitude 7
or greater) are recorded each year, many of them occurring in remote regions. The occasional
large earthquakes that are triggered near a major population centers are among the most
destructive natural events on Earth. The shaking of the ground, coupled with the liquefaction
of soils, wreaks havoc on buildings, roadways, and other structures. In addition, a quake
occurring in a populated area can rupture power and gas lines, causing numerous fires.
2.2.2. Causes of earthquakes
2.2.2.1. Faults
An earthquake occurs when energy stored in rocks is suddenly released. Most
earthquakes are generated by movement along faults. When rocks on opposite sides of a fault
slip past one another abruptly, the movement generates seismic waves, while materials near
the fault are pushed, pulled, and sheared. Different types of faults and earthquakes associated
with them are explained in Table 2.1.
Table 2.1: Major types of faults and earthquakes associated with these faults

In a normal fault, the rocks
above the fault (the hanging
wall) move down with respect
to rocks below the fault (the
footwall). The crust is stretched
horizontally, so earthquakes
related to normal faults are most
common along divergent plate
boundaries, such as oceanic
spreading centers, and in
continental rifts.
Many large earthquakes are
generated along reverse faults.
In thrust and reverse faults, the
hanging wall moves up with
respect to the footwall. Such
faults are formed by
compressional forces, like
those associated with
subduction zones and
continental collisions.
In strike-slip faults, the two sides
of the fault slip horizontally past
each other. This can generate
large earthquakes. Most strike-
slip faults are near vertical, but
some have moderate dips. The
largest strike-slip faults are
transform plate boundaries, like
the San Andreas fault in
California.

2.2.2.2.Landslides
Catastrophic landslides, whether on land or beneath water, cause ground shaking. On
the Big Island of Hawaii, lava flows form new crust that can become unstable and suddenly
collapse into the ocean leading to sliding of land and subsequently generation of seismic waves.
2.2.2.3.Explosions
Mine blasts and nuclear explosions compress Earth’s surface, producing seismic waves
measurable by distant seismic instruments. Seismic waves generated by a blast such as this are
more abrupt than those caused by a natural earthquake.

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2.2.2.4.Volcanoes and magmas
The earthquakes caused by volcanoes and magmas are explained in Figure 2.4.

Figure 2.4: Causes of earthquakes associated with volcanoes and magmas

2.2.2.5.Earthquakes caused by humans
Humans can cause earthquakes in several ways. Reservoirs built to store water fill
rapidly and load the crust, which responds by flexing and faulting. After Lake Mead behind
Hoover Dam in Nevada and Arizona was filled, hundreds of moderate earthquakes occurred
under the reservoir between 1934 and 1944. Most of the seismic activity occurs during the
initial filling of a reservoir by water, which adds additional stress to underlying rocks.
Humans have also caused earthquakes by injecting wastewater underground into a deep
well (drill hole). At the Rocky Mountain Arsenal northwest of Denver, this caused more than
a thousand small earthquakes and two magnitude 5 earthquakes. Similar small earthquakes are
interpreted to have been caused by the process of hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”), where
drilling fluids are injected in drill holes to increase fluid pressure in order to open fractures
enough to allow the extraction of oil and gas from shale and other rocks.
2.2.3. Where do earthquakes occur?
The maps in Figure 2.5 and Figure 2.6 show the worldwide distribution of earthquake
epicenters, colored according to depth. Yellow dots represent shallow earthquakes (0 to 70
km), green dots mark earthquakes with intermediate depths (70 to 300 km), and red dots
indicate earthquakes deeper than 300 km. Note how this distribution compares to other features,
such as edges of continents, mid-ocean ridges, sites of subduction, and continental collisions.

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 Figure 2.5: Distribution of earthquakes epicenters occurred in Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia

2.3. Seismology: The study of earthquake waves

(Sources: F. K. Lutgens, E. J. Tarbuck, D. Tasa, 2017. Essentials of Geology, 13th ed. Pearson Education,
New Jersey, USA. + S. J. Reynolds, J. K. Johnson, P. J. Morin, C. M. Carter, C. C. Shaw, 2018. Exploring
Geology, 5th ed. McGraw-Hill Education, NY, USA)

2.3.1. Kinds of seismic waves

Earthquakes generate several different types of seismic waves. Seismologists study
body waves, which are waves that travel inside Earth, and surface waves, which travel on the
surface of Earth.
2.3.1.1.Body waves
Most earthquakes occur at depth, so they first produce seismic waves that travel through
the Earth as body waves. The waves propagate (move outward) in all directions. There are two
main types of body waves, Primary waves (P-waves) and Secondary waves (S-waves), which
propagate in different ways (Figure 2.7). A P-wave compresses the rock in the same direction
as the wave propagates (Figure 2.7A). It is like a sound wave that compresses the air through
which it travels. P-waves can travel through solids and liquids because these materials can be
compressed and then released. The P-wave is the fastest seismic wave, traveling through rocks
at 6 to 14 km/s depending on the properties of the rock. For comparison, sound waves in air
travel at an average of 0.3 km/s; P-waves are more than 20 times faster.
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 Figure 2.6: Distribution of earthquake epicenters occurred in Americas

Figure 2.7: Body waves; (A) P-waves, (B) S-waves

Secondary waves, also called S-waves, shear the rock side to side or up and down
(Figure 2.7B). This movement is perpendicular to the direction of travel. The wave shown here
propagates to the right, but the material shifts up and down. It could also shift side to side, but
the motion would still be perpendicular to the propagation direction of the wave. S-waves are
slower (3.5 km/s) than P-waves and cannot travel through liquids, such as magma. When S-
waves fail to pass through some part of the Earth, like the outer core, we infer that this region
is mostly molten, rather than a solid.
2.3.1.2.Surface waves
When body waves reach Earth’s surface, some energy is transformed into new waves
that only travel on the surface (surface waves). There are two main kinds of surface waves:
Rayleigh waves and Love waves (Figure 2.8).
Rayleigh wave is also called a vertical surface wave because it displaces the surface in
a vertical (up and down) direction. A Rayleigh wave is similar to an ocean wave, in that
material moves up and down in an elliptical path. Rayleigh waves cause most of the damage
during an earthquake, in part because they accelerate buildings up and then down, literally

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shaking and flexing the building apart. During large earthquakes, observers sometimes can see
these waves rippling across the surface.
Love wave which is also described as a horizontal surface wave for the way material
vibrates horizontally and shuffles side to side. Like an S wave, the motion of material in a Love
wave is perpendicular to the direction in which the wave travels. This motion, if strong enough,
can cause buildings to slide sideways off their foundations. When strengthening buildings for
earthquakes, one goal is to more firmly secure the building to its foundation, countering the
motion of both types of surface waves.

Figure 2.8: Surface waves; (A) Rayleigh waves, (B) Love waves
2.3.2. Recording of seismic waves
Sensitive digital instruments called seismometers (Figure 2.9) are able to precisely
detect a wide range of earthquakes. The recorded seismic data are uploaded to computers that
process signals from hundreds of instruments registering the same earthquake. These
computers calculate the location of the hypocenter and the magnitude or strength of the
earthquake. From these data, we gain insight about how and where earthquakes occur.
A seismometer detects and records the ground motion during earthquakes. A large mass
is suspended from a wire (Figure 2.9A). It resists motion during earthquakes. The mass hangs
from a frame that in turn is attached to the ground. When the ground shakes, the frame shakes
too, but the suspended mass resists moving because of inertia. As the ground and frame move
under the mass, a pen attached to the mass marks a roll of slowly rotating recording paper. As
a result, the pen draws a line that records the ground movement over time. This device only
records ground movement parallel to the red arrows, so it only records a single direction or
single component of motion. A modern seismic detector, called a seismograph, contains three
seismometers oriented 90° from each other to record three components of motion (north-south,
east-west, and up-down). From these three components, seismologists can determine the source
and strength of the seismic signal. Seismologists place seismographs away from human noise
and vibration and bury them to reduce wind noise. Seismic waves (in yellow) can come from
any direction (Figure 2.9B).
The plot of vibrations recorded on paper by seismometer is called seismogram. A
typical seismogram of a single earthquake is shown in Figure 10A. It plots vibrations versus
time. On seismometers, time is marked at regular intervals so that we can determine the time
of the arrival of the first P- and S-waves. Background vibrations, unrelated to the earthquake,
commonly look like small, somewhat random squiggles on seismogram.
Figure 10B represents an example of typical seismogram of another earthquake
demonstrating the variations due to different kinds of waves and their relative time of arrival.

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After the earthquake, P-waves arrive first, marked by the larger squiggles. The earthquake
occurred at 8:00 a.m., and the time of the P-wave’s arrival was 2.5 minutes later in this example.
The S-wave arrives later. The delay between the P-wave and the S-wave depends primarily on
how far away the earthquake occurred. The longer the distance from the earthquake, the greater
the delay. Surface waves arrive last and cause intense ground shaking, as recorded by the higher
amplitude squiggles on the seismogram.

Figure 2.9: (A) Typical seismometer, (B) Placement of seismometer in earth

Figure 10: (A) A typical seismogram for a single earthquake, (B) Variations in amplitude in a typical
seismogram due to differences in time of arrival of different kinds of seismic waves

2.3.3. Determining location of earthquake

When seismologists analyze an
earthquake, they first determine its epicenter,
the point on Earth’s surface directly above the
hypocenter, or focus. One method used for
locating an earthquake’s epicenter relies on
the fact that P waves travel faster than S
waves. The first P wave always arrives at the
seismic station ahead of the first S wave. The
greater the distance of travelling, the greater
the difference in their arrival times at the
seismic station. Therefore, the longer the
interval between the arrival of the first P wave
and the arrival of the first S wave, the greater
the distance to the epicenter.
Figure 11 shows three simplified
seismograms for the same earthquake. From
these seismograms, travel–time graphs were
constructed (Figure 12). Using the sample
seismogram for New York in Figure 11 and
the travel–time curve in Figure 12, we can
determine the distance separating the

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recording station from the earthquake in three seismic stations (Figure 13). On a map or
steps: globe, we draw a circle around each seismic
1. Using the seismogram for New York, we station with a radius equal to the distance
determine that the time interval between from that station to the epicenter. The point
the arrival of the first P wave and the where the three circles intersect is the
arrival of the first S wave is 5 minutes. approximate epicenter of the quake.
2. Using the travel–time graph, we find the
location where the vertical separation
between P and S curves is equal to the P–
S time interval (5 minutes in this
example).
3. From the position in step 2, we draw a
vertical line to the horizontal axes and
read the distance to the epicenter.

Figure 12: Travel–time graph A travel–time graph

is used to determine the distance to an
earthquake’s epicenter.

Figure 11: Seismograms of the same earthquake

recorded at three different locations
Using these steps, we determine the
distance that the earthquake occurred 3700
kilometers (2300 miles) from the recording
instrument in New York City. Using a method
called triangulation, we can determine the
location of an epicenter if we know the
distance to it from two or more additional Figure 13: Triangulation to locate an earthquake

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2.3.4. Determining the size of earthquake
Seismologists use a variety of methods to determine two fundamentally different
measures that describe the size of an earthquake: intensity and magnitude. An intensity scale
uses observed property damage to estimate the amount of ground shaking at a particular
location. Magnitude scales, which were developed more recently, use data from seismographs
to estimate the amount of energy released at an earthquake’s source.
2.3.4.1. Intensity scale
Intensity scale accounts severity of earthquake shaking and destruction. The first
attempt to scientifically describe the aftermath of an earthquake came following the great
Italian earthquake of 1857. By systematically mapping the effects of the earthquake, a measure
of the intensity of ground shaking was established. The map generated by this study used lines
to connect places of equal damage and hence equal ground shaking. Using this technique, zones
of intensity were identified, with the zone of highest intensity located near the center of
maximum ground shaking and often (but not always) the earthquake epicenter.
In 1902, Giuseppe Mercalli developed a more reliable intensity scale, which is still used
today in a modified form. The Modified Mercalli Intensity scale, shown in Table 2.2, was
developed using California buildings as its standard.
Table 2.2: Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale
I Not felt except by a very few under especially favorable circumstances.
II Felt only by a few persons at rest, especially on upper floors of buildings.
III Felt quite noticeably indoors, especially on upper floors of buildings, but many people do not recognize
it as an earthquake.
IV During the day felt indoors by many, outdoors by few. Sensation like heavy truck striking building.
V Felt by nearly everyone, many awakened. Disturbance of trees, poles, and other tall objects sometimes
noticed.
VI Felt by all; many frightened and run outdoors. Some heavy furniture moved; few instances of fallen
plaster or damaged chimneys. Damage slight.
VII 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.
VIII Damage slight in specially designed structures; considerable, with partial collapse, in ordinary buildings;
great in poorly built structures (falling chimneys, factory stacks, columns, monuments, walls).
IX Damage considerable in specially designed structures. Buildings shifted off foundations. Ground
cracked conspicuously.
X Most masonry and frame structures destroyed. Some well-built wooden structures destroyed. Ground
badly cracked.
XI Few, if any, (masonry) structures remain standing. Bridges destroyed. Broad fissures in ground.
XII Damage total. Waves seen on ground surfaces. Objects thrown upward into air.

2.3.4.2.Magnitude scales
To compare earthquakes more
accurately around the globe, scientists
searched for a way to describe the energy
released by earthquakes that did not rely on
factors such as building practices, which
vary considerably from one part of the
world to another. As a result, several
magnitude scales were developed.
Richter Magnitude: In 1935 Charles
Richter of the California Institute of
Technology developed the first magnitude
scale to use seismic records. As shown in

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Figure 14 (top), the Richter scale is
calculated by measuring the amplitude of
the largest seismic wave (usually an S wave
or a surface wave) recorded on a
seismogram. Because seismic waves
weaken as the distance between the
hypocenter and the seismograph increases,
Richter developed a method that accounts
for the decrease in wave amplitude with
increasing distance. Theoretically, as long
as equivalent instruments are used,
monitoring stations at different locations
will obtain the same Richter magnitude for
each recorded earthquake. In practice,
however, different recording stations often
obtain slightly different magnitudes for the
same earthquake—a result of the variations
in the rock types through which the waves
travel.
Earthquakes vary enormously in
strength, and great earthquakes produce Figure 14: Determining the Richter magnitude
wave amplitudes thousands of times larger of an earthquake
than those generated by weak tremors. To
accommodate this wide variation, Richter
used a logarithmic scale to express
magnitude, in which a 10-fold increase in
wave amplitude corresponds to an increase
of 1 on the magnitude scale. Thus, the
intensity of ground shaking for a magnitude
5 earthquake is 10 times greater than that Figure 15: Magnitude versus ground motion
produced by an earthquake having a Richter and energy released.
magnitude of 4 (Figure 15).
2.4. Seismic Site Response
(Sources: L. I. González de Vallejo and M. Ferrer, 2011. Geological Engineering, 1 st Edition, CRC Press, Taylor
& Francis Group Florida, USA.)

Regional seismic hazard studies generally assess strong ground motion in rock
conditions. Nevertheless, local conditions specific to each site (nature of the soil, topography,
depth of water table, etc.) may imply a different seismic response within the geographical area
under consideration. These effects, also known as local or site effects, are of great importance
in seismic-resistant planning and design.

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2.4.1. Seismic parameters of ground
motion
The movement of the ground due to an
earthquake is expressed by a series of physical
parameters that form the basis of seismic
design. If accelerometer records are available
for the site, parameters such as acceleration,
velocity, displacement, fundamental period
and duration can be obtained. The earthquake
accelerogram (graphic representation of the
variation in acceleration with time recorded by
an accelerometer) allows the calculation of
maximum acceleration for a specific damping
and dominant period, through numeric
integration. Representation of these maximum
accelerations with relation to different
vibration periods of a single-degree-of-
freedom oscillator constitutes the so-called
ground response spectrum (Figure 16), which
shows amplification of ground motion with
respect to acceleration, velocity or
displacement. The response spectrum is used
in seismic-resistant structural design, in which
it is essential that the ground motion response
spectrum does not exceed that of structure Figure 16: Examples of response spectra of ground
design. motion caused by an earthquake
If representative accelerograms of local earthquakes are unavailable, international
databases can be consulted for records of events of similar size, with distances and geotechnical
conditions comparable to those at the site. Response spectra can also be constructed directly
from the results of seismic hazard analysis if a spectral strong-ground motion attenuation
relationship is used in the calculations. In conventional construction work, regulations on
seismic resistance established for each country must be adhered to.
2.4.2. Modification of ground motion by local conditions
The seismic characteristics of a particular earthquake characterized by its accelerogram,
may be modified by local conditions (type of soil, topography, etc.). This can lead to an
amplified seismic response. Factors having most influence on the seismic response at a site are:
— Type and lithological composition of the materials, especially superficial deposits with a
geotechnical behaviour corresponding to that of soils.
— Thickness of sediments and the depth of substratum.
— Dynamic soil properties.
— Depth of water table.
— Surface and substratum morphology.
— Presence of faults, their situation and characteristics.

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 The effects of local conditions are of great importance in that they determine the
chances of surface rupture, soil liquefaction and landslides arising from faults, as well as
seismic signal amplification.
2.5. Concept of damping and its importance for civil engineering
(Source: Several articles and a blog)

Damping is one of many different methods that have been proposed for allowing a
structure to achieve optimal performance when it is subjected to seismic, windstorm or other
types of transient shock and vibration disturbances. Vibration is an element which is hard to
avoid in practice. Excitation of resonant frequencies of some structural parts can occur with
existence of vibration even if it is only a small insignificant vibration. Damping is the
phenomenon by which mechanical energy is dissipated (usually converted into internal thermal
energy) in dynamic systems.
Several types of damping are inherently present in a mechanical system. They are: 1.
Internal (material) damping 2. Structural damping 3. Fluid damping. Internal (material)
damping results from mechanical-energy dissipation within the material due to various
microscopic and macroscopic processes. Structural damping is caused by mechanical energy
dissipation resulting from relative motions between components in a mechanical structure that
has common points of contact, joints, or supports. Fluid damping arises from the mechanical
energy dissipation resulting from drag forces and associated dynamic interactions when a
mechanical system or its components move in a fluid.
2.5.1. Measurement of damping
Damping can be represented by various parameters (such as specific damping capacity,
loss factor, Q-factor, and damping ratio) and models (such as viscous, hysteretic, structural,
and fluid). Before attempting to measure damping in a system, one should decide on a
representation (model) that will adequately characterize the nature of mechanical-energy
dissipation in the system. There are several ways by which damping can be described from a
mathematical point of view. Some of the more popular descriptions are summarized below.
One of the most obvious manifestations of damping is the amplitude decay during free
vibrations as shown in Figure 17. The rate of the decay depends on how large the damping is.
It is most common that the vibration amplitude decreases exponentially with time. This is the
case when the energy lost during a cycle is proportional to the amplitude of the cycle itself.

Figure 17: Decay of a free vibration for three different values of the damping ratio.

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2.5.2. Seismic Dampers
A particular case where much effort is spent on damping is in civil engineering
structures in seismically active areas. It is of the utmost importance to reduce the vibration
levels in buildings if hit by an earthquake. The purpose of such dampers can be both to isolate
a structure from its foundation and to provide dissipation. An example of a such kind of
dampers is provided in Figure 18.

Figure 18: A seismic damper for a municipal building.

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