Liquefaction-Induced Settlement of Structures on Shallow Foundation

Abstract

Unlike the liquefaction potential assessment, the liquefaction-induced ground settlement has not been studied extensively. The uncertainty of the ground profile and associated soil engineering properties is the major challenging to advance the current knowledge on this subject. Within Ishihara and his colleagues’ framework, the liquefaction-induced settlement is computed by the associated post-liquefaction volumetric strain, once the factor of safety for liquefaction is evaluated. For estimating settlement of a building with shallow foundation in liquefiable soils, on the other hand, dynamic behavior of the soils, its relative density, and the thickness of liquefiable soil, building’s weight and dimensions, seismic intensity, and structure-soil interaction should be considered accordingly. This paper aims to develop a practical and simple procedure to estimate the liquefaction-induced settlement on structures on shallow foundation, based on the framework proposed by Sawicki and Mierczynski in 2009. A series of comprehensive numerical analyses were carried out to incorporate the above-mentioned factors in the developed procedure. Data of liquefaction-induced settlement of structures on shallow foundation reported in the literature were used to compared with the estimated ones.