The linear, large-scale and small-scale amplification effects in the Mexico City valley, related to both the surficial clay layer and the underlying thick sediments, are investigated with two-dimensional (2D) models and compared with the results of simple one-dimensional (1D) models. The deep sediments are shown to be responsible, on their own, for an amplification ranging between 3 and 7, a part of which is due to the 2D effects in case of low damping and velocity gradient. This result is consistent with the observed relative amplification around 0.5 Hz at CU stations with respect to TACY station. The amplification due to the clay layer is much larger (above 10), and the corresponding 2D effects have very peculiar characteristics. On the one hand, the local surface waves generated on any lateral heterogeneity exhibit a strong spatial decay, even in case of low damping (2%), and the motion at a given site is therefore affected only by lateral heterogeneities lying within a radius smaller than 1 km. On the other hand, these local 2D effects may be extremely large, either on the very edges of the lake-bed zone, or over localized thicker areas, where they induce a duration increase and an overamplification. The main engineering consequences of these results are twofold: i) microzoning studies in Mexico City should take into account the effects of deep sediments, and ii) as the surface motion in the lake-bed zone is extremely sensitive to local heterogeneities, 1D models are probably inappropriate in many parts of Mexico City.
We used the vertical displacement records of the ground motion in Mexico City during the great 1985 Michoacan earthquake to identify the nature of the waves responsible for the heavy damage suffered by the town. The records at the different stations exhibit very similar waveshapes. A multichannel phase analysis shows the arrival, from the source zone, of a strong coherent wavetrain which represent the most of the energy incident at periods around 3 sec. We interpreted this arrival as the regional continental phase Lg. The study of other instrumental data in the period range relevant to the present investigation shows the efficiency of Lg propagation between the subduction zone and Mexico City. We have computed the response to Lg waves of a sedimentary basin whose characteristics correspond to the deep basin beneath Mexico City. The amplification reaches a value of about 5. The results obtained are in good agreement with the response of the basin to a single obliquely incident plane wave. The durations of the theoretical signals are similar to those of actual observations at sites in the hills zone and in the intermediate zone.
The single-station microtremor horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (MHVSR) method was initially proposed to retrieve the site amplification function and its resonance frequencies produced by unconsolidated sediments overlying high-velocity bedrock. Presently, MHVSR measurements are predominantly conducted to obtain an estimate of the fundamental site frequency at sites where a strong subsurface impedance contrast exists. Of the earthquake site characterization methods presented in this special issue, the MHVSR method is the furthest behind in terms of consensus towards standardized guidelines and commercial use. The greatest challenges to an international standardization of MHVSR acquisition and analysis are (1) the what — the underlying composition of the microtremor wavefield is site-dependent, and thus, the appropriate theoretical (forward) model for inversion is still debated; and (2) the how — many factors and options are involved in the data acquisition, processing, and interpretation stages. This paper reviews briefly a historical development of the MHVSR technique and the physical basis of an MHVSR (the what). We then summarize recommendations for MHVSR acquisition and analysis (the how). Specific sections address MHVSR interpretation and uncertainty assessment.
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