The conventional magnitude scale M suffers saturation when the rupture dimension of the earthquake exceeds the wavelength of the seismic waves used for the magnitude determination (usually 5-50 km). This saturation leads to an inaccurate estimate of energy released in great earthquakes. To circumvent his problem the strain energy drop W (difference in strain energy before and after an earthquak...

Intense crises of crustal stress appear to cross large regions, and to precede by several months the eventual occurrence of some strong earthquake within them. The phenomenon is not linear, and the stress control reflects some wide scale-size rather than local effects. The stress propagation through the crust can be effectively monitored by means of acoustic emission (AE) techniques (ultrasound...

A MEMS vibration-driven electret generator for energy harvesting has been developed. Parylene high-aspect-ratio flexible spring is employed to support the seismic mass with high-performance patterned electret. The seismic structure enables large in-plane oscillation amplitude of 1 mm and low resonant frequency of 37Hz. With our early prototype, we have obtained 21 Vp-p voltage output, correspon...

The sloshing phenomenon is an important field of fluid dynamics in liquid storage tanks under earthquake excitation. When the frequency gets close to tank’s natural frequency, resulting resonance could lead instability and even damage structures, followed by catastrophic economic losses environmental damages. As passive control devices, baffles are a place for energy dissipation. This study use...

We introduce a new conserved quantity, Normalized Energy Density (NED), alternative to the conventional definition of energy for a layered structure in a 2D SH problem. NED is defined by the average of power of a half transfer function multiplied by the impedance, and the conservation across the material interface is analytically proved for a two-layered case. For three, four, and tenlayered ca...

Seismic design may require non-conventional concept, due to the fact that the stiffness and layout of the structure have a great effect on the overall structural behaviour, on the seismic load intensity as well as on the internal force distribution. To find an economical and optimal structural configuration the key issue is the optimal design of the lateral load resisting system. This paper foc...

D analyses of structures responding elastically to ground motions recorded during severe earthquakes have shown that the theoretical response inertia loads are generally significantly greater than the static design lateral loads recommended by codes. Hence, structures designed for the lateral earthquake loads recommended by codes can only survive severe earthquakes if they have sufficient ducti...

Generally speaking, seismoelectric modeling is a prospecting method based on seismic and electromagnetic waves, in which waves generated by a seismic source at the boundary of the two environments generate a relative fluid-solid motion formed as a result of antagonism between the elastic properties of the environment with the saturated fluid. This research has as its objective, a study of the e...

Recorded ground motions in near fault region have completely distinct nature from others that recorded in far field of the fault. Near source outcomes cause much of the seismic energy to appear in a single large and long period pulse at the beginning of the velocity record. Assaluyeh complex is located near the reverse Assaluyeh fault that is a segment of Mountain Front Fault. This complex cont...

Near field earthquakes have imposed major damage to buildings in the past years. In some cases, the intensity of such damage is too considerable to be disregarded. The most effective way to improve seismic performance of buildings is applying a seismic control technique. The cylindrical friction damper is one of these methods, which has become popular for its desirable performance in the energy...