Quantification of Ground Motion Reductions by Fault Zone Plasticity with 3D Spontaneous Rupture Simulations

Abstract:

We explore the effects of fault zone nonlinearity on peak ground velocities (PGVs) by simulating a suite of surface rupturing earthquakes in a visco-plastic medium. Our simulations, performed with the AWP-ODC 3D finite difference code, cover magnitudes from 6.5 to 8.0, with several realizations of the stochastic stress drop for a given magnitude. We test three different models of rock strength, with friction angles and cohesions based on criteria which are frequently applied to fractured rock masses in civil engineering and mining. We use a minimum shear-wave velocity of 500 m/s and a maximum frequency of 1 Hz. In rupture scenarios with average stress drop (~3.5 MPa), plastic yielding reduces near-fault PGVs by 15 to 30% in pre-fractured, low-strength rock, but less than 1% in massive, high quality rock. These reductions are almost insensitive to the scenario earthquake magnitude. In the case of high stress drop (~7 MPa), however, plasticity reduces near-fault PGVs by 38 to 45% in rocks of low strength and by 5 to 15% in rocks of high strength. Because plasticity reduces slip rates and static slip near the surface, these effects can partially be captured by defining a shallow velocity-strengthening layer.

We also perform a dynamic nonlinear simulation of a high stress drop M 7.8 earthquake rupturing the southern San Andreas fault along 250 km from Indio to Lake Hughes. With respect to the viscoelastic solution (a), nonlinearity in the fault damage zone and in near-surface deposits would reduce long-period (> 1 s) peak ground velocities in the Los Angeles basin by 15-50% (b), depending on the strength of crustal rocks and shallow sediments. These simulation results suggest that nonlinear effects may be relevant even at long periods, especially for earthquakes with high stress drop.