Faculty of Technology and Built Environment

Department of Civil Engineering

BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY PROGRAMME

SEMESTER 2, 2013 EXAMINATION

SUBJECT:
Geotechnical Engineering C
ENGG MG7045
SHEET: 1 of 9 SEMESTER: 2
DATE: 22 November 2013 DURATION: 3 Hours
Assessment breakdown: This examination 50% Other 50%
This examination has 6 questions

The total mark for this examination is 125 marks

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES

10 minutes reading time will be allowed before commencement of this

examination.

Answer ALL questions.

Non programmable electronic calculators are permitted.

Start each question on a new page and write on one side of the paper only.

Upon completion of this examination, ensure that on the front page of your answer
book you have ticked the questions that you have completed, and also recorded
your student ID number, subject and subject code.

Before handing in your script, ensure that your student ID number is on the top of
any loose pages, and that all pages are attached and in the correct order.
QUESTION 1 - Soil structure interaction (21 marks)

Consider the SDOF system below, with a 4 m diameter circular footing. Assume the
mass of the footing is small compared to the mass of the structure.

(a) Calculate the undamped natural frequency, ω, and also the

damped natural frequency, ωD, of the soil-structure system (6.5 marks)
assuming fixed base conditions.

(b) Assuming that the footing can translate horizontally (but not
rotate), find the translational frequency, ωh, and the equivalent (5.5 marks)
natural frequency, ωe, of the system.

(c) Find the rotational frequency, ωr, and assuming that the footing
can both translate horizontally and rotate, the equivalent natural (5.5 marks)
frequency, ωe, of the system.

(d) Write a few sentences to explain soil structure interaction, and its (3.5 marks)
consideration in the design of structures.

USEFUL FORMULAE

Semester 2, 2012 Examination ENGG MG6004 Project Management Principles Page 2 of 9

QUESTION 2 - Earthquake Engineering and Seismology (21 marks)

(a) Describe using simple sketches three basic fault rupture

mechanisms. Define also using sketches the concepts of foot wall, (3 marks)
hanging wall, dip and strike.

(b) Describe using simple sketches three types of plate boundaries. (3 marks)

(c) Write a short paragraph on NZ's tectonic environment. (3 marks)

(d) After an earthquake, field investigations identify a fault rupture

aligned in a north-south direction with a total length of 60km, with
an average vertical movement of 120cm.

Evidence suggests the west side has moved upwards, and that
there is no evidence of lateral movement. The epicentre is located
20km west of the mid-point of the surface rupture and the focal
depth has been estimated as 12km

Answer the following:

(i) What is the mechanism of the fault rupture? (2 marks)

(ii) Calculate the strike and dip angle of the fault (2 marks)

(iii) What is the rake angle of the fault rupture?

(2 marks)

(iv) If the rigidity of the Earth's crust is 3.3 x 1010 N.m2 calculate the
seismic moment of the earthquake (2 marks)

(v) Calculate the moment magnitude of the earthquake, Mw (2 marks)

(vi) Explain the concept of seismic moment (2 marks)

USEFUL FORMULAE

μ. .

2
log .
3

Semester 2, 2012 Examination ENGG MG6004 Project Management Principles Page 3 of 9

QUESTION 3 - Strong motion parameters (20 marks)

(a) Write a paragraph on the Response Spectrum, and how it is (4 marks)

derived and utilised.

(b) What is the significance of the response for T = 0 on a Response (1 mark)

Spectrum?

(c)

Consider the water tower below, which can be modelled as a single-degree-of-

freedom (SDOF) structure.

You will need to refer to the supplementary sheets to carry out the following:

(i) Calculate the natural frequency of the SDOF structure in radians

per second, and also in Hertz (Hz) (ignore any possible damping (4 marks)
effects in your calculation and ignore the mass of the column).

(ii) Calculate the natural period of the SDOF structure. (2 marks)

(iii) If the SDOF structure was located in Wanganui, New Zealand,

calculate the maximum response accelerations of the structure
and associated base shears for (i) a 500 year return period design
level earthquake on soil type C, and (ii) a 2500 year maximum
credible earthquake on soil type D. (9 marks)

(ignore any ductility, near-fault, and structural performance factor

effects)

USEFUL FORMULAE

Semester 2, 2012 Examination ENGG MG6004 Project Management Principles Page 4 of 9

QUESTION 4 - Seismic Hazard Analysis (23 marks)

(a) To evaluate seismic hazards for a region or site, all possible

sources of seismic activity must be identified. Write a few (6 marks)
sentences on the investigation and evaluation of earthquake
seismic sources

(b) Write a short paragraph explaining the framework of Probabilistic

Seismic Hazard Analysis and how it is used to generate a seismic (5 marks)
hazard curve

(c) Explain the concept of epistemic uncertainty and how it is often (3 marks)
accounted for in PSHA

(d) The Gutenburg Richter recurrence relationship for a particular fault

is estimated to be as follows:

log(λ) = 2.6 - 0.80Mw

(i) Determine the magnitude that should be considered for

earthquakes with return period of 500 years (1 mark)

(ii) What is the probability that exactly one earthquake greater than
magnitude 6.5 will occur in 100 years? (2 marks)

(iii) What is the probability that at least one earthquake greater than
magnitude 6.5 will occur in 100 years? (3 marks)

(iv) What is the earthquake magnitude that will have exactly 10%
probability of being exceeded at least once in a 50 year period? (2 marks)

(v) Explain the shortcoming of the Poisson model in terms of its (1 marks)
applicability to seismicity

USEFUL FORMULAE

P x|λ, T λ, T e /x!

Semester 2, 2012 Examination ENGG MG6004 Project Management Principles Page 5 of 9

QUESTION 5 - Dynamic Soil Properties and Ground Response Analysis (20
marks)

(a) Explain the phenomena of attenuation (2 marks)

(b)
Sketch a stress-strain hysteresis loop for a soil undergoing a cyclic
(2 marks)
(i) triaxial test showing, the tangent shear modulus Gtan, and the
secant shear modulus Gsec

(ii) Describe how the damping ratio ξ can be obtained from the
hysteresis loop of (i) above. (1 mark)

(c) Sketch the Transfer Function for:

(i) The case of a uniform, undamped soil on rigid rock. (2.5 marks)
(2.5 marks)
(ii) The case of a uniform, damped soil on rigid rock.

(d) Describe with the use of sketches/diagrams how the Transfer

Function and Fourier analysis can be utilised to estimate the
amplification of a bedrock motion at the surface of an overlying soil (5 marks)
layer.

(e) For a uniform damped soil profile, it is assumed the following

Transfer Function modulus may be utilised to estimate the
amplification of bedrock ground motion at the surface

1
| |

cos

From the above it can be seen that the natural frequency of the (5 marks)
deposit occurs when

2
If the fundamental period of the soil deposit is estimated to be 2
sec and the shear wave velocity of the soil to be 75m/s, estimate
the height of the soil layer above bedrock.

USEFUL FORMULAE

Semester 2, 2012 Examination ENGG MG6004 Project Management Principles Page 6 of 9

QUESTION 6 - Liquefaction, Seismic Slope Stability and Settlement (20 marks)

(a) Explain the possible impact of liquefaction on the stability of (5 marks)

retaining walls.

(b) Briefly describe the two forms of instability that may occur to
slopes subject to seismic loading. You should mention the
susceptibility of particular soils and the analysis methods to assess (5 marks)
the effect of instability.

(c) Briefly describe the causes of earthquake induced settlement. (5 marks)

(d) There are many factors that govern a sites susceptibility to (5 marks)
liquefaction. Write a paragraph about this.

Supplementary sheet (for Q3) 
Semester 2, 2012 Examination ENGG MG6004 Project Management Principles Page 7 of 9
  

Supplementary sheet (for Q3) 
Semester 2, 2012 Examination ENGG MG6004 Project Management Principles Page 8 of 9
 

Semester 2, 2012 Examination ENGG MG6004 Project Management Principles Page 9 of 9