Sismic microzonation based on site effects for the metropolitan area of Mendoza

Abstract

The territorial ordering of a region must contemplate different aspects that make the characteristics of the environment and the human habitat inserted in it. Some of the potential hazards associated with seismic activity are soil liquefaction, landslide, rockfall, site effects due to earthquakes, topographic variations, tsunamis, among others. The site response can be evaluated by theoretical or empirical methods. The theoretical methods allow a more detailed analysis of the different soil layers and the empirical methods are based on the recording of vibrations produced by earthquakes or other causes, in sites of different geological conditions. Among the experimental methods for considering local effects, those based on ambient vibrations have been widely accepted in recent decades. In the present paper, an area of high population density is selected in the city of Mendoza, Argentina, to perform a seismic microzoning based on natural soil frequencies obtained by the H/V spectral ratio procedure. In this way the areas exposed to the phenomenon of seismic amplification are identified when a medium or high magnitude earthquake occurs. This microzoning will provide useful information for the organization of land use and urban planning.