ENGINEERING

GEOLOGY
EARTHQUAKE
EARTHQUAKE
An “earthquake” is a sudden vibration of the
earth surface caused by release of energy
or sudden changes inside the earth.
TECHNICAL TERMS
 Following are the technical terms related
earthquakes:
 Focus
 Epicenter
 Isoseismal Lines
 Earthquake Intensity
 Seismograph
 Seismogram
TECHNICAL TERMS
 Focus or Center of Origin:
 The place of origin of an earthquake within
the earth’s crust
 Vibrations (or waves) are propagated in all
directions from its center of origin or focus
TECHNICAL TERMS
 Epicenter:
 The area immediately vertically above on
the Earth’s surface of earthquake focus.
 The effects and shaking are most intense at
the epicenter.
TECHNICAL TERMS
 Isoseismal Lines:
 A curve or line connecting points/places at
which an earthquake-shock is felt with
equal intensity
 On a map an isoseismal line is a contour or
line representing points of
equal intensity for a particular earthquake
 Isoseismal lines help in locating the
epicenter by showing one single clear area
of maximun intensity, also known as
epicentral area
TECHNICAL TERMS
 Isoseismal Lines:
 The depth to the focus can be estimated by
comparing the sizes of different isoseismal
areas. In shallow earthquakes the lines are
close together while in deep earthquakes
the lines are spread further apart
TECHNICAL TERMS
 Earthquake Intensity:
 It is the measure of the degree of
destruction caused by an earthquake.
 It can be estimated from the effects felt or
seen by an observer
 Earthquakes are graded by a scale of
intensity, for instance, Modified Mercalli
Intensity Scale
TECHNICAL TERMS
 Seismograph
 The instrument used to detect and record the
earthquake vibrations
 An instrument consisting essentially of a lightly
suspended beam which is pivoted to a frame fixed to the
ground, and which carries heavy mass
 Owing to the inertia of the heavy mass a movement is
imparted to the beam when vibrations reach the
instrument
TECHNICAL TERMS
 Seismogram
 Movement is recorded on a chart on a rotating
drum
 This record is called seismogram
 Time intervals are marked, from which the
times of arrival of the vibrations can be read
 Seismogram is a series of zig zag lines
CLASSIFICATION OF
EARTHQUAKES
 Earthquakes may be classified according to
their mode of origin as follows:
 Earthquake due to Surface Cause: Earthquake
may be generated by landslips and collapse of
the roof of underground caverns.
 Earthquake due to Volcanic Cause: Earthquake
may be generated by volcanic eruptions. But
they are usually feeble.
 Earthquake due to Tectonic Cause: Earthquake
may be generated by tectonic movement. This
type of earthquake usually occur and most
disastrous. It happens usually due to sudden
movements along the plate boundaries.
CLASSIFICATION OF
EARTHQUAKES
 Earthquakes may be classified according to
their depth of focus are as follows:
 Shallow Earthquakes: When the focus lies up to
the depth of 60 km.
 Intermediate Earthquake: When the focus lies
between the depth of 60 to 200 km.
 Deep Earthquake: When the focus lies below the
depth of 300 km
CAUSES OF EARTHQUAKE
 Most earthquakes take place along boundaries of
tectonic plates
 The mechanism of earthquakes are explained by H.F.
Reid by “elastic rebound theory”
 According to Elastic Rebound Theory:
 In certain zones of the earth’s crust the stresses
accumulate gradually in rock masses
 When the stresses just exceed the elastic limit of rocks,
they rebound and crack
 When the stresses further exceed to an amount enough to
overcome the frictional resistance along the crack, the
fractured blocks fail and rebound to the position of no
strain, thereby generating vibrations that produces
earthquakes. Some adjustments along the faults zone after
the main earthquake produce “aftershocks”
CAUSES OF EARTHQUAKE
 There is another theory called Plate
Tectonic Theory
 According to plate tectonic theory the earth
is divided into different plates that are in
constant motion
 This motion plates either thrust, converge or
drift away from each other
 In any case, earthquakes are caused at the
boundaries of plates
EARTHQUAKE WAVES
 During an
earthquake three
types of waves are
generated:
 Primary/P-waves
 Secondary/S-waves
 Long/L-waves
EARTHQUAKE WAVES
 Primary/P-wave: These are longitudinal in
nature and travel with very high velocity.
They are fastest and first to arrive at
recording station. These can be transmitted
through solids as well as fluids.
 Secondary/S-wave: They are transverse or
shear vibrations in nature and their velocity
is less than P-waves. The S-waves do not pass
through fluids.
 P and S waves are collectively called “Body
Waves”.
EARTHQUAKE BODY WAVES
EARTHQUAKE WAVES
 Long Wave: These travel along the earth’s
surface. They are transverse in nature and
their velocity is much less than the P and S
waves. The L-waves are believed to be
produced by reflection and refraction of P
and S waves at the earth’s surface.
 They are the slowest but have a large
amplitude and do the greatest damage at the
surface
 They are similar to ripples seen expanding
from the point where a stone is dropped into
water
 L-wave is also called “Surface Wave”
EARTHQUAKE SURFACE WAVES
 Long waves is composed of two parts:
 Love wave (LQ)
 Rayleigh waves (LR)
MODIFIED MERCALLI’S
INTENSITY SCALE
EFFECTS OF EARTHQUAKE
 There are numerous social and economical
effects of an earthquake
 Some of them are enlisted below:
 Collapse i.e. domestic and commercial
buildings, roads, bridges etc.
 Loss of life due to collapse
 Psychological impact i.e. panic, anxiety etc.
 Fires
 Tsunami
 Landslides
 Disease
 Famine
 Soil liquefaction
EFFECTS OF EARTHQUAKE
 Collapse i.e. domestic and commercial buildings,
roads, bridges etc.
EFFECTS OF EARTHQUAKE
 Fire- earthquake destroy gas pipes and electric
cables, causing fire to spread. Broken water mains
hurdles in fire extinguish. Fires spread very quickly
in cities, especially in poor-quality housing areas
where wooden buildings are common
 For example, after the Great San Francisco
Earthquake in 1906, the city burned for three
days. Most of the city was destroyed and 250,000
people were left homeless
EFFECTS OF EARTHQUAKE
 Tsunamis and Seiches can also cause a great deal of
damage
 Tsunamis is a huge wave caused by an earthquake under
the ocean. It can be tens of feet high when they hit the
shore and can do enormous damage to the coastline
 Seiches are like small tsunamis. They occur on lakes that
are shaken up by the earthquake and are usually only a
few feet high, but they can still flood or knock down
houses, and tip over trees
EFFECTS OF EARTHQUAKE
 Ground Movement- it can be landslide, ground
displacement etc.
 Landslides - earthquakes often cause landslides,
especially in steep river valleys and areas of weak
rock/soil. Damage to structures can be caused from
landslides and ground subsidence, or the sinking of the
ground triggered by vibrations
 Ground Displacement - ground movement along a fault. If
a structure (a building, road, etc.) is built across a fault,
the ground displacement during an earthquake could
seriously damage or rip apart that structure
EFFECTS OF EARTHQUAKE
 Liquefaction - is the mixing of sand or soil and
groundwater during earthquake
 When the water and soil are mixed, the ground becomes
very soft
 soil lose their strength and behave like a fluid
 If liquefaction occurs under a building, it may start to lean,
tip over, or sink several feet
EFFECTS OF EARTHQUAKE
 Disease and famine - fresh water supplies are
often cut off causing typhoid and cholera. Lack of
shelter and food increase suffering
 After earthquakes, water and power failures.
Stores closed, travel is difficult
PROTECTIVE MEASURES AGAINST
AN EARTHQUAKE
 New buildings must be made according to prevailing
building codes and best industry practices
 Older buildings must be made stronger and more flexible by
retrofitting measures.
 Construction Methods
 Base-isolated building is a building designed to reduce
the amount of energy that reaches the building during an
earthquake.
 Cause floods and fire when gas pipes and water mains
break. Therefore, Flexible joints and automatic shut off
valves can be installed
PROTECTING YOURSELF
DURING AN EARTHQUAKE
 Crouch against inner walls avoiding windows,
mirrors, wall hangings, and furniture
 Outdoors - move to an open space. Avoid
vehicles, power lines, trees, and buildings.
Sit down to avoid being thrown down
 Prepare an earthquake kit - canned food,
water, first aid supplies, stored where it is
easy to reach.
PROTECTING YOURSELF
DURING AN EARTHQUAKE
 Increase public awareness about hazard risk
management
 Build capacity of professionals and
government officials.
 Safe building practices and earthquake
resistant design.
 Develop and enforce simple building codes
for rural and urban areas.
SEISMIC ZONING OF PAKISTAN
SEISMIC ZONING OF BALOCHISTAN
SEISMIC ZONING OF SIND
SEISMIC ZONING OF PUNJAB
SEISMIC ZONING OF NWFP, AJK
AND NORTHERN AREAS
SEISMIC ZONING OF PAKISTAN
 Seismic Zones: For the purpose of seismic
design of buildings, Pakistan has been divided
into five zones. These zones are based on the
Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA) ranges
summarized in Table below:
SEISMIC ZONING OF PAKISTAN
 The table below shows few cities of Pakistan
and their respective seismic zones:
Cities Seismic Zones
Islamabad 2B
Karachi (Central, East,
2B
West and South)
Lahore (City and Cantt) 2A
Peshawar 2B
Quetta 4
Gwadar 3