The Polito Surface Wave flat-file Database (PSWD): statistical properties of test results and some inter-method comparisons

Abstract

The compilation and maintenance of experimental databases are of crucial importance in all research fields, allowing for researchers to develop and test new methodologies. In this work, we present a flat-file database of experimental dispersion curves and shear wave velocity profiles, mainly from active surface wave testing, but including also data from passive surface wave testing and invasive methods. The Polito Surface Wave flat-file Database (PSWD) is a gathering of experimental measurements collected within the past 25 years at different Italian sites. Discussion on the database content is reported in this paper to evaluate some statistical properties of surface wave test results. Comparisons with other methods for shear wave velocity measurements are also considered. The main novelty of this work is the homogeneity of the PSWD in terms of processing and interpretation methods. A common processing strategy and a new inversion approach were applied to all the data in the PSWD to guarantee consistency. The PSWD can be useful for further correlation studies and is made available as a reference benchmark for the validation and verification of novel interpretation procedures by other researchers.

Quality assessment for site characterization at seismic stations

“…It is not so uncommon to get different V S profiles by using different data and techniques, especially when data are collected at different times and analyzed by different teams in a blind way. In general, amv methods based on surface-wave analysis can provide lower velocities in the uppermost part of the profile with respect to DH and CH surveys (Passeri et al 2021). This discrepancy may be related to the grouting hole operations, to the different volumes investigated by the methodologies, and to the lower resolution of surface-wave methods in resolving very thin layers.…”

“…It is also possible to have values of V S30 at a finer spatial scale using available observations from previous studies performed in the area where the station is located, e.g. information from microzonation activities (such as Amanti et al 2020 for the Central Apennine or Saroli et al 2020 at municipal scale), or from existing geotechnical-engineering database (Passeri et al 2021).…”

Assessment of a Fast Proxy of Vs30 (Vs30m)

“…In the case of low cost projects, it is also not economically feasible to estimate the Vs. using the CS and DS approaches. The surface wave methods, however, are reliable, non-intrusive, affordable, and useful approaches to estimate the vs. of the near-surface materials [17,18]. In order to estimate the Vs. of the near-surface materials for seismic site assessment, surface wave methods are therefore regarded as innovative techniques by geotechnical earthquake engineers, geophysicists, and geologists.…”