Paleoliquefaction Studies and the Evaluation of Seismic Hazard

Abstract

Recent and historical studies of earthquake-induced liquefaction, as well as paleoliquefaction studies, demonstrate the potential usefulness of liquefaction data in the assessment of the earthquake potential of seismic sources. Paleoliquefaction studies, along with other paleoseismology studies, supplement historical and instrumental seismicity and provide information about the long-term behavior of earthquake sources. Paleoliquefaction studies focus on soft-sediment deformation features, including sand blows and sand dikes, which result from strong ground shaking. Most paleoliquefaction studies have been conducted in intraplate geologic settings, but a few such studies have been carried out in interplate settings. Paleoliquefaction studies provide information about timing, location, magnitude, and recurrence of large paleoearthquakes, particularly those with moment magnitude, M, greater than 6 during the past 50,000 years. This review paper presents background information on earthquake-induced liquefaction and resulting soft-sediment deformation features that may be preserved in the geologic record, best practices used in paleoliquefaction studies, and application of paleoliquefaction data in earthquake source characterization. The paper concludes with two examples of regional paleoliquefaction studies-in the Charleston seismic zone and the New Madrid seismic zone in the southeastern and central United States, respectively-which contributed to seismic source models used in earthquake hazard assessment.the New Madrid seismic zone in the central United States (US) (e.g., ), the Charleston seismic zone in the southeastern US (e.g., References [9-12]), and the Charlevoix seismic zone in southeastern Canada [13], where large historical earthquakes are known to have induced liquefaction ( Figure 1). They have been carried out in the Wabash Valley (e.g., References [14,15]) and the Eastern Tennessee [16] seismic zones, where only small to moderate earthquakes occurred during the historical period. In addition, paleoliquefaction studies were conducted in interplate settings like the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico in the northeastern Caribbean and the Pacific Northwest in the US, where subduction zones and crustal faults pose a significant seismic hazard (e.g., References [3,[17][18][19][20]). Paleoliquefaction studies have been conducted in a lacustrine setting in eastern Turkey [21] and a volcanic setting in southern Italy [22]. Studies focusing on soft-sediment deformation structures in lacustrine deposits were reported for southern Italy [23], Mexico [24], and Argentina [25]. Recently, several paleoliquefaction studies were carried out in the Canterbury region of New Zealand, where a system of crustal faults, some of which did not rupture the surface, produced the 2010-2011 sequence of earthquakes and caused extensive and recurrent liquefaction (e.g., References [26][27][28][29][30][31][32]).Paleoliquefaction data were used to develop seismic source models for the US national seismic hazard maps [33,34] and for t...

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