Centrifuge Tests of Adjacent Mat-Supported Buildings Affected by Liquefaction
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 141, Issue 3
Abstract
Geotechnical centrifuge tests can provide valuable insights into the mechanisms governing the performance of buildings affected by liquefaction. An area particularly lacking knowledge is the effect of liquefaction on adjacent structures, which is a common possibility in urban areas. Two well-instrumented centrifuge tests were performed to investigate the response of isolated and adjacent structures founded on ground that underwent varying degrees of liquefaction. Three types of single-degree-of-freedom model structures were used in the experiments. Acceleration, pore water pressure, and settlement measurements illustrated that liquefaction-induced settlement of structures depends on a complex interaction of ground motion, soil, and structural characteristics. For the cases examined in this study, adjacent structures experienced moderately lower foundation accelerations than isolated structures of the same type. Adjacent structures tended to tilt away from one another and settled less than isolated structures. The physical restraint imposed by an adjacent foundation limited lateral soil movement and reduced the total settlement of the neighboring structure.
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Acknowledgments
This paper is based on work supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) under grant number CMMI-0830331. Opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the NSF. Experiments were conducted at the Center for Geotechnical Modeling at University of California, Davis (UCD), which is supported by the Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation program under award number CMMI-0402490. The authors gratefully acknowledge the assistance of the staff at the Center for Geotechnical Modeling at UC Davis. We also acknowledge the contributions of the principal investigators and other researchers involved in the various stages of this study: T. Hutchinson, N. Trombetta, G. Fiegel, H. Mason, C. Bolisetti, D. Paez, H. Puangnak, I. Rawlings, Z. Chen, A. Whittaker, and R. Reitherman. We also acknowledge our professional practice committee: M. Lew, M. Moore, F. Naeim, F. Ostadan, P. Somerville, and M. Willford.
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Published In
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 141 • Issue 3 • March 2015
Copyright
© 2014 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Apr 6, 2014
Accepted: Oct 29, 2014
Published online: Dec 5, 2014
Published in print: Mar 1, 2015
Discussion open until: May 5, 2015
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