Ground Motion Values for Use in the Seismic Design of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System
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Ground Motion Values for Use in the Seismic Design of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System By Robert A. Page, David M. Boore, William 8. Joyner, and Henry W. Coulter - -- -- -- GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CIRCULAR 672 Washington 1972 I United States Department of the Interior ROGERS C. 8. MORTON, Secretary Geological Survey V. E. McKelvey, Director Free on application to the U.S. Geological Survey, Washington, D.C. 20242 I I CONTENTS Page Abstract ............................................................................................. I Introduction ..................................................................................... I Seismic potential ............................................................................ 2 Design approach ............................................................................. 2 Ground motion values ...................................................................... 3 Acceleration ........................................................................... 4 Velocity ..................................................................................... 9 Displacement ........................................................................... 10 Duration .................................................................................... I I References ..................................................................................... 13 Appendix A . Recurrence intervals ................................................. 14 Appendix 0, Procedure of Newmark and Hall for determination of response spectra ..................................................................... 15 Appendix C, Ground motion data .................................................... I5 ILLUSTRATIONS Figure I. Map of proposed route of trans-Alaska oil pipeline showing seismic zonation and magnitudes of design earthquakes........ 2 2 . Accelerogram from 19bb Parkfield earthquake illustrating definition of ground motion parameters ................................... 4 3 .6 Graphs showing: 3. Peak horizontal acceleration versus distance to slipped fault as a function of magnitude ........................................................ 5 4 . Peak horizontal acceleration versus distance to slipped fault (or epicentral distance) for magnitude 5 earthquakes.......... b 5 . Peak horizontal accelerations and 0.05g horizontal dura fault (or epicentral distance) for magnitude b earthquakeS. ......... 7 6 . Peak horizontal acceleration versus distance to slipped Fernando earthquake .......................................................................... 8 7. Unfiltered and filtered accelerograms of the 1971 Santions versus distance to slipped fault for 1966 Parkfield earthquake 9 8- 11 Graphs showing: 8 . Peak horizontal velocity versus distance to slipped fault (or epicentral distance) for magnitudes 5, 6, and 7 .................... 10 9 . Peak horizontal dynamic displacement versus distance to slipped fault (or epicedral distance) for magnitudes 6, 6, and 7 ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 12 Duration of shaking versus distance to slipped fault (or epicentral distance) for magnitudes 5, 6, and 7 .......................... 13 Examples of tripartite logarithmic ground and respon;e spectre .............................................................................................. 45 TABLES Page Table I. Design earthquakes along the pipeline route................................................................................................................................... 2 2 . Near-fault horizontal ground motion................................................................................................................................................ 3 3 . Peak horizontal ground accelerations from filtered and unfiltered accelerograrns at Pacoirna dam........................................ 8 4 . Peak ground acceleration data for which distances to the causative fault are most acourately known.................................... I6 5 . Strong motion data plotted on graphs showing peak horizontal acceleration, velocity, and dynamic displacement and dura- tion of shaking as a function of distance to slipped fault [or epicentral distance) ............................................................. 19 Ground Motion Values for Use in the Seismic Design of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System By Robert A. Page, David M. Boore, William B. Joyner, and Henry W. Coulter ABSTRACT paction, and liquefaction. This report is con- The proposed trans-Alaska oil pipeline, which would cerned only with seismic shaking that, if not traverse the state north to south from Prudhoe Bay on accommodated in the design, could cause defor- the Arctic coast to Valdez on Prince William Sound, will mation leading to failure in the pipeline, storage be subject to serious earthquake hazards over much of its length. To be acceptable from an environmental tanks, and appurtenant structures and equip- standpoint, the pipeline system is to be designed to mini- ment and ultimately to the leakage of oil. It mize the potential of oil leakage resulting from seismic might also induce effects such as seiching of shaking, faulting, and seismically induced ground de- liquids in storage tanks and liquefaction, land- formation. sliding, and differential compaction in founda- The design of the pipeline system must accommodate tion materials, all of which could result in defor- the effects of earthquakes with magnitudes ranging mation and potential failure. from 5.5 to 8.5 as specified in the "stipulations for Pro- To protect the environment, the pipeline sys- posed Trans-Alaskan Pipeline System." This report characterizes ground motions for the specified earth- tem is to be designed so as to minimize the po- quakes in terms of peak levels of ground acceleration, tential of oil leakage resulting from effects of velocity, and displacement and of duration of shaking. earthquakes. The magnitudes of the earth- Published strong motion data from the Western quakes which the design must accommodate are United States are critically reviewed to determine the given in "Stipulations for Proposed Trans-Alas- intensity and duration of shaking within several kilom- eters of the slipped fault. For magnitudes 5 and 6, for kan Pipeline System" ( [U.S.] Federal Task which sufficient near-fault records are available, the Force on Alaskan Oil Development, 1972, Ap adopted ground motion values are based on data. For Set. 3.4.1,. p.- 55), hereinafter referred larger earthquakes the values are based on extrapola- to "Stipulations*~ hi^ characterizes tions from the data for smaller shocks, guided by simpli- fied theoretical models of the faulting process. ground motions for the specified design earth- quakes. The seismic design of the proposed pipeline INTRODUCTION involves a combination of problems not usually The route of the proposed trans-Alaska oil encountered. In the design of important struc- pipeline from Prudhoe Bay on the Arctic Ocean tures, detailed geologic and soil investigations to Valdez on Prince William Sound intersects of the site generally provide the background several seismically active zones. Sections of the data. Such detailed site investigations are not proposed pipeline will be subject to serious economically feasible for a linear structure earthquake hazards, including seismic shaking, nearly 800 miles long. In addition, a structure faulting, and seismically induced ground defor- more limited in extent can be located on compe- mation such as slope failure, differential com- tent foundation materials and away from known inelastic and nonlinear for large ground mo- There is substantial evidence that the dura- tions. Finally, smoothed tripartite logarithmic tion of shaking strongly affects the extent of response spectra are constructed from the de- damage caused by an earthquake ; yet the prob- sign seismic motions by the general procedure lem of how duration is related to magnitude has of Newrnark and Hall (1969)) outlined in Ap- received little attention in the literature. In this pendix B. study, the measure of duration used corresponds The initial step in the design process discussed to the time interval between the first and last herein characterizes ground motion appropriate peaks of absolute acceleration equal to or larger to the design earthquakes. This step is based than 0.06 g. Operational definitions of the ac- solely on seismological data and principles and celeration and duration parameters are illus- does not incorporate factors dependent on soil- trated on an accelerogram in figure 2. structure interactions, deformational processes The values in table 2 are based on instrumen- within structures, or the importance of the tal data insofar as possible. Strong-motion data structures to be designed. It involves scientific have been obtained within 10 km of the causa- data and interpretation, whereas the subsequent tive fault for shocks as large as magnitude 6, steps involve engineering, economic, and social but no accelerograms are available from within judgments relating to the nature and value of 40 km of the fault for a magnitude 7 shock and the structures. from within more than 100 km for a magnitude The choice of parameters with which to spec- 8 shock. Estimates of intensity of near-fault ify ground motion was guided by the design ap- ground motion for shocks larger than magni- proach adopted for