SEISMOLOGY

EARTHQUAKE ENGINEERING
INTRODUCTION:

Seismology is the study of earthquakes and

seismic waves that move through and around the
earth.
A seismologist is a scientist who studies
earthquakes and seismic waves.
Seismographs Horizontal 1000
kg Wiechert
seismograph in
Zagreb
(built in 1909)
Seismographs

Modern digital
broadband
seismographs
Types of Seismology
• OBSERVATIONAL SEISMOLOGY

• ENGINEERING SEISMOLOGY

• ‘PHYSICAL’ SEISMOLOGY
OBSERVATIONAL SEISMOLOGY
Recording earthquakes (microseismology)

 Cataloguing earthquakes

 Observing earthquake effects

(macroseismology)
 Seismicity of
Croatia after the
Croatian
Earthquake
Catalogue that
lists over 15.000
events
ENGINEERING SEISMOLOGY

Estimation of seismic hazard and risk

 Aseismic building
Estimation of seismic hazard and risk
In order to estimate the parameters, seismologists need:
Complete earthquake catalogues that extend well into the
past,
Information on the soil structure and properties at the
construction site, as well as on the path between epicentre
and the site,
Records of strong earthquakes and small events from near-
by epicentral regions,
Results of geological surveys ...
METHODS OF ESTIMATING PARAMETERS

1. PROBABILISTIC APPROACH

2. DETERMINISTIC APPROACH

3. A combination of the two

‘PHYSICAL’ SEISMOLOGY

Study of the properties of the Earth’s interior

 Study of physical characteristics of seismic

sources
 Our knowledge
about the structure of
the Earth deeper than
several km was gained
almost exclusively using
seismological methods.
Seismologists use
seismic rays to look into
the interior of the Earth
in the same way doctors
use X-rays.
 Seismic waves
get reflected,
refracted and
converted on many
discontinuities within
the earth thus forming
numerous seismic
phases. The rays also
bend because the
velocity of elsastic
waves changes with
depth.
THREE MAJOR
CHEMICAL RADIAL
DIVISIONS
CRUST:
• An extremely thin layer of rock that makes up the outermost solid
shell of our planet.
• It amounts to less than half of 1% of the planet’s total mass but plays
a vital role in most of Earth’s natural cycles.
• It is composed of many different types of rocks that fall into three
main categories: Igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary.
• Just as the depth of the crust varies, so does its temperature.
• Earth’s crust is divided into two types: oceanic crust and continental
crust.
MANTLE:
• The mostly-solid bulk of Earth’s interior.
• It lies between Earth’s dense, super-heated core and its thin outer
layer, the crust.
• It’s about 2900 km (1802 miles) thick and makes up a whopping
84% of Earth’s total volume.
• The temperature of the mantle varies greatly, from 1000° Celsius
(1832° Fahrenheit), near its boundary with the crust, to 3700°
Celsius (6692° Fahrenheit) near its boundary with the core.
• It is divided into several layers: the upper mantle, the transition
zone, the lower mantle and D”, the strange region where the
mantle meets the outer core.
Upper Mantle – Its extends from the crust to a depth of about 410
km. The upper mantle is mostly solid, but its more malleable regions
contribute to tectonic activity.

Transition Zone – From about 410 km to 660 km beneath Earth’s

surface, rocks undergo radical transformations.

Lower Mantle – The lower mantle extends from about 660 km to

about 2700 km beneath Earth’s surface. It is hotter and denser
than the upper mantle and transition zone.

D Double-Prime – Beneath the lower mantle is a shallow region

called D”. In some areas, D” is a nearly razor-thin boundary with
the outer core. In other areas, D” has thick accumulations of iron
and silicates. In still other areas, geologists and seismologists have
detected areas of huge melt.
CORE:
• Core is the very hot, very dense centre of our planet. It is found
about 2900 km below Earth’s surface and has a radius of about
3485 km.
• Unlike the mineral-rich crust and mantle, the core is made
specifically of iron and nickel.
• The fluctuating temperatures in the core depend on pressure, the
rotation of the Earth and the varying composition of core
elements.
• In general, temperatures range from abut 4400° Celsius to about
6000° C.
• The core is made of two layers: The outer core, is about 2200 km
thick, is mostly composed of liquid iron and nickel. The NiFe alloy
of the outer core is very hot, between 4500° C and 5500°.
• The liquid metal of the outer core has very low viscosity, meaning
it is easily deformed and malleable.
• The inner core – It is a hot, dense ball of iron. It has a radius of
about 1220 km.
• Temperature in the inner core is about 5200° C. The pressure is
nearly 3.6 million atm.
• Unlike the outer core, the inner core is not liquid or even molten.
The inner core’s intense pressure – the entire rest of the planet
and its atmosphere – prevents the iron from melting.
CONTINENTAL DRIFT THEORY
ALFRED WENEGER
 A German meteorologist
and geophysicist,
 He is most remembered as
the originator of the theory
of CONTINENTAL DRIFT
PANGEA

• A supercontinent
that existed
between 270 to 200
million years ago.
• Is a greek term
which means entire
earth.
1. Matching of the continents

• By looking at
maps Africa's
and South
America's shores
were a perfect
match to
interlock.
2. Fossil correlation

•Mosasaurs
•Cynognathus
•Lystrosaurus
•Glossopteris
3. Rock and mountain correlation
• Appalachian
Mountains from the
United States and
the Caledonian
Mountains from
Scotland make a
perfect match
when measured
and put together
on a map.
4. Past climate data
• He began with glaciers which are ordinarily
found in large rivers in the coldest parts of
the world such as the North and the South
poles. Glacier streams are constantly
moving, and while they do, they scratch the
rock beneath them, leaving evidence of
their trajectory. These scratches are called
glacier striation. The interesting finding was
that he discovered glacier striations in the
tropical rainforest of Africa and South
America.
• He explored Bituminous Coal
MECHANICAL LAYERS

• LITHOSPHERE
• ASTHENOSPHERE
• MESOSPHERE
 Mechanical Layers
The mechanical layers of the Earth is
differentiated by their strength or rigidity.
These layers are not the same as the
compositional layers of the Earth, such as the
crust, mantle, and core, though sometimes
the boundaries fall in the same places.
LITHOSPHERE

 The word lithosphere is derived from the Greek

words 'litho' which means 'rocky', and 'sphaira'
which means 'sphere'.
 Located at the upper crust and mantle, the
uppermost solid earth layer.
 Made of continental and oceanic.
 Divided into pieces called tectonic plates.
ASTHENOSPHERE

• It exists between depths of 100-200 km.

• It is the weakest part of mantle.
• It is a solid over short time scales, but behaves
like a fluid over million of years.
• Geologists often refer to the asthenosphere
as the jelly in between two pieces of bread:
the lithosphere and mesosphere.
 MESOSPHERE

• The strong , lower part of mantle.

• The middle layer.
• Extends to the earth’s core.
 TECTONIC PLATE
PLATES
• Plates are made of rigid lithosphere.
• The lithosphere is made up of the crust and the upper part of
the mantle.
• A section of the lithosphere that slowly moves over the
asthenosphere, carrying pieces of continental and oceanic
crust.
TECTONIC
The word, tectonic, refers to the deformation of the crust as a
consequence of plate interaction.
Each type of interaction produces a characteristic “tectonic
feature”, like mountain ranges, volcanoes and (or) rift valleys
TECTONIC PLATE
Is a massive, irregularly shaped slab of solid rock, generally
composed of both continental and oceanic lithosphere.
 PLATE TECTONIC THEORY
• In the late 1960’s scientific studies of the ocean
floor led to the development of a theory that
better explained the idea of a mobile Earth,
This theory was called the Plate Tectonic
Theory.
THEORY OF TECTONIC PLATES STATES THAT:
• “Earth’s crust is divided into approximately
twenty (20) rigid slabs called tectonic plates.”
• “These tectonic plates are in continuous slow
motion relative to each other . Motion occurs
along one of three types of boundaries
bordering each plate.”
• Tectonic theories attempt to explain why
mountains, earthquakes, and volcanoes occur
where they do, the ages of deformational
events, and the ages and shapes of continents
and ocean basins.
PLATE MOVEMENT
• Convection within the Earth’s mantle
causes the plates to move. Mantle
material is heated above the core.
The hot mantle rises up towards the
surface.
• As the mantle rises it cools. At the
surface the material moves
horizontally away from a mid-ocean
ridge crest. The material continues to
cool. It sinks back down into the
mantle at a deep sea trench. The
material sinks back down to the core.
It moves horizontally again,
completing a convection cell.
• This slow but incessant movement in
the mantle causes the rigid tectonic
plates to move (float) around the
earth surface (at an equally slow rate).
 PLATE BOUNDARIES
• Plate boundaries are where two plates meet. Most
geologic activity takes place at plate boundaries.
This activity includes volcanoes, earthquakes, and
mountain building.
• There are three different plate boundaries:
Divergent Boundaries
Convergent Boundaries
Transform Boundaries Ocean Ocean Crust

DIVERGENT BOUNDARIES
Divergent boundaries are where plates move away
from each other
Plates move apart, resulting in upwelling of molten
material from the mantle to create new ocean floor.
Features on the ocean floor called Ridges, show this
form of plate movement.
Tensional forces cause the plates to move apart. Moho Magm Continental Crust
a
CONVERGENT BOUNDARIES
• Convergent boundaries are where the plates move
towards each other.
• Plates move together, causing one slab of lithosphere
to be consumed into the mantle as it descends
beneath the overriding plate.
• Features called ocean trenches are formed at these
boundaries.
• Lithosphere is destroyed at these boundaries.
• Compressional forces cause the plates to move
together.
  Oceanic-Continental

Oceanic-Oceanic 

 Continental-Continental
TRANSFORM BOUNDARIES
• Plates move past each other in opposite directions.
Lithosphere is not created or destroyed at these
boundaries.
• No vertical movement. For example, San Andreas Fault.
• Shearing forces cause the plates to move past one
another.
• These plate boundaries experience massive earthquakes.
The world’s best known transform fault is the San Andreas
Fault in California.
• Transform plate boundaries are different from the other
two types. At divergent plate boundaries, new oceanic
crust is formed. At convergent boundaries, old oceanic
crust is destroyed. But at transform plate boundaries, crust
is not created or destroyed.
THE ORIGIN OF EARTHQUAKES
What is an Earthquake?
The shaking of the surface of the Earth caused
by sudden motions along fractures of the Earth’s
crust called faults.
What causes an Earthquake ?
•Earthquakes are usually caused when rock
underground suddenly breaks along a fault. This
sudden release of energy causes the seismic waves
that make the ground shake.
•An earthquake originates in one place then
spreads out in all directions along the fault
PLANE.