Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Evaluation of the influence of experimental conditions on H/V results from ambient noise recordings

  • Original Research Paper
  • Published:
Bulletin of Earthquake Engineering Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The H/V-noise technique is now widely used to estimate site effect parameters (fundamental frequency and sometimes the associated soil amplification), and many surveys using this technique have provided convincing results. However, a general agreement on a methodology for data acquisition, data processing and result interpretation has yet to be found. H/V measurements from ambient noise recordings imply both reliability of the results and rapidity of data collection. It is therefore important to understand which experimental conditions (1) influence data quality and reliability, and (2) can help speeding up the recording process. Within the framework of the SESAME European project, a specific task was defined to investigate the reliability of the H/V spectral ratio technique in assessing the site effects. The aim of WP02, one specific Work Package of the SESAME project, is to study the effects of experimental conditions on both stability and reproducibility of H/V results. This study has been conducted in a purely experimental way, by testing the possible influence of various experimental conditions on H/V results both on the frequency peak value and on its amplitude. WP02 results help setting up the experimental conditions under which ambient noise recordings have to be performed in order to provide reproducible, reliable and meaningful H/V results. In this paper we present the results of the WP02 SESAME project concerning the evaluation of the influence of experimental conditions of ambient noise recording on H/V results.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bard P-Y (1999). Microtremor measurements: a tool for site effect estimation?. In: Irikurak, K, Kudok, K, Okadah, H and Sasatanit, T (eds) The effects of surface geology on seismic motion., pp 1251–1279. Balkema, Rotterdam

    Google Scholar 

  • Bard P-Y (2002) Extracting information from ambient seismic noise: the SESAME project (Site EffectS assessment using AMbient Excitations). European Project EVG1-CT-2000-00026 SESAME, http://sesame-fp5.obs.ujf-grenoble.fr Review meeting, Brussels, Belgium

  • Bard P-Y, the SESAME team (2003) The EU SESAME project: presentation, latest results and perspectives. Workshop on effects of surface geology on seismic motion, IUGG/IASPEI 2003, July 11 2003, Sapporo, Japan

  • Bour M, Fouissac D, Dominique P and Martin C (1998). On the use of microtremor recordings in seismic microzonation. Soil Dyn Earth Eng 17(7–8): 465–474

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cara F, Di Gulio G and Rovelli A (2003). A study on seismic noise variations at Colfiorito, Central Italy: implications for the use of H/V spectral ratios. Geophys Res Lett 30(18): 1972

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chatelain J-L, Guéguen P, Guillier B, Fréchet J, Bondoux F, Sarrault J, Sulpice P and Neuville J-M (2000). Cityshark: a user-friendly instrument dedicaced to ambient noise (microtremor) recording for site and building response studies. Seism Res Lett 71(6): 698–703

    Google Scholar 

  • Chávez-García FJ and Cárdenas-Soto M (2002). The contribution of the built environment to the ‘free-field’ ground motion in Mexico City. Soil Dyn Earth Eng 22: 773–780

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cornou C, Guéguen P, Bard P-Y and Haghshenas E (2005). Ambient noise energy bursts observation and modeling: trapping of harmonic structure-soil induced waves in a topmost sedimentary layer. J Seismol 8: 507–524

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Di Giulio G, Azzara RM, Cultrera G, Giammarinaro MS, Vallone P and Rovelli A (2005). Effect of local geology on ground motion in the city of Palermo, Italy, as inferred from aftershocks of the 6 September 2002 Mw 5.9 earthquake. Bull Seism Soc Am 95(6): 2328–2341 doi: 10.1785/0120040219

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dunand F (2005) Pertinence du bruit de fond sismique pour la caractérisation dynamique et l’aide au diagnostic sismique des structures de génie civil. Ph.D. thesis, Grenoble University, France, 378 pp

  • Dunand F, Bard P-Y, Chatelain J-L, Guéguen P. Vassail T, Farsi M (2002) Damping and frequency from randomdec method applied to in situ measurements of ambient vibrations: evidence for effective soil structure interaction. Proceedings of the 12th European Conference on Earthquake Engineering, London, September 9–13, 2002

  • Gallipoli MR, Mucciarelli M, Castro RR, Monachesi G and Contri P (2004). Structure, soil-structure response and effects of damage based on observations of horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratios of microtremors. Soil Dyn Earth Eng 24: 487–495

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guéguen Ph (2000) Interaction sismique entre le sol et le bâti: de l’interaction sol-structure à l’interaction site-ville. Ph.D. thesis, Grenoble University, France, 184 pp

  • Guillier B, Atakan K, Duval A-M, Ohrnberger M, Azzara R, Cara F, Havskov J, Alguacil G, Teves-Costa P, Theodulidis N, the SESAME Project WP02-Team (2002a) Influence of instrumentation on H/V spectra of ambient noise. EGS, 22–26 April 2002, Nice, France

  • Guillier B, Atakan K, Duval A-M, Ohrnberger M, Azzara R, Cara F, Havskov J, Alguacil G, Teves-Costa P, Theodulidis N, the SESAME Project WP02-Team (2002b) Influence of instrumentation on H/V spectra of ambient noise. European Seismological Commission, September 2002, Genova, Italy

  • Guillier B, Atakan K, Chatelain J-L, Havskov J, Ohrnberger M, Cara F, Duval A-M, Zacharopoulos S, Teves-Costa P, the SESAME Team (2005) Influence of instruments on the H/V spectral ratios of ambient vibrations. this volume

  • Horike M, Zhao B and Kawaze H (2001). Comparison of site response characteristics inferred from microtremors and earthquake shear waves. Bull Seism Soc Am 91(6): 1526–1536

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koller MG, Chatelain J-L, Guillier B, Duval AM, Atakan K, Lacave C, Bard P-Y, the SESAME participants (2004) Practical user guideline and software for the implementation of the H/V ratio technique on ambient vibrations: measuring conditions, processing method and results interpretation. In: Proceedings of the 13th World Conference on Earthquake Engineering, Vancouver, BC, Canada August 1–6, 2004, Paper n°3132

  • Konno K and Ohmachi T (1998). Ground-motion characteristics estimated from sSpectral ratio between horizontal and vertical components of microtremor. Bull Seism Soc Am 88(1): 228–241

    Google Scholar 

  • Louie JN (2001). Faster, better: shear-wave velocity to 100 meters depth from refraction microtremor arrays. Bull Seism Soc Am 91(2): 347–364

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller RD, Xia J, Park CB and Ivanov JM (1999). Multichannel analysis of surface waves to map bedrock. Leading Edge 18: 1392–1396

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mucciarelli M (1998). Reliability and applicability of Nakamura’s technique using microtremors: an experimental approach. J Earthq Eng 2(4): 625–638

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mucciarelli M and Monachesi G (1998). A quick survey of local amplifications and their correlation with damage observed during the Umbro-Marchesan earthquake of September 26, 1997. J Earthquake Eng 2: 325–337

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mucciarelli M, Gallipoli M and Arcieri M (2003). The stability of the horizontal-to-vertical ratio of triggered noise and earthquake recordings. Bull Seism Soc Am 93(3): 1407–1412

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mucciarelli M, Gallipoli M, Di Giacomo D, Di Nota F and Nino E (2005). The influence of wind on measurements of seismic noise. Geophys J Int 161(2): 303–308 doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2004.02561.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nakamura Y (1989). A method for dynamic characteristics estimation of subsurface using microtremor on the ground surface. Quaterly Rep Railway Tech Res Inst 30(1): 25–30

    Google Scholar 

  • Parolai S and Galiana-Merino JJ (2006). Effect of transient seismic noise on estimates of H/V Spectral ratios. Bull Seis Sco Am 96(1): 228–236 doi: 10.1785/0120050084

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • SESAME WP02 team (2002) WP02, Controlled Instrumental Specifications, University of Bergen. European Commission—Research General Directorate Project No. EVG1-CT-2000-00026 SESAME, report D01.02, 80 fig., 250 pp

  • SESAME WP02 team (2003) WP02, Final report on Measurement Guidelines, H/V Technique: experimental conditions, LGIT Grenoble, CETE Nice. European Commission—Research General Directorate Project No. EVG1-CT-2000-00026 SESAME, report D08.02, 57 fig., 96 pp

  • Volant Ph, Orbovic N, Cotton F (1998) Estimation of site response using the H/V method: application and limits of this technique on Garner Valley downhole array dataset (California). In: Proceedings of the 11th European conference on earthquake engineering, Paris

  • Whiters M, Aster R, Young C and Chael E (1996). High-frequency analysis of seismic background noise as a function of wind speed and shallow depth. Bull Seism Soc Am 86(5): 1507–1515

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. IRD-LGIT, BP 53, 38041, Grenoble Cedex 9, France

    Jean-Luc Chatelain & Bertrand Guillier

  2. INGV, Roma, Italy

    Fabrizio Cara

  3. CETE, Nice, France

    Anne-Marie Duval

  4. UiB, Bergen, Norway

    Kuvvet Atakan

  5. LCPC-LGIT, Grenoble, France

    Pierre-Yves Bard

Authors
  1. Jean-Luc Chatelain
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Bertrand Guillier
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Fabrizio Cara
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Anne-Marie Duval
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Kuvvet Atakan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Pierre-Yves Bard
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Consortia

The WP02 SESAME team

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jean-Luc Chatelain.

Additional information

The WP02 SESAME team: R. Azzara, INGV; S. Bonnefoy-Claudet, LGIT; A. Borges, ICTE; M. Bottger Sorensen, UiB; G. Cultrera, INGV; G. Di Giulio, INGV; F. Dunand, LGIT; D. Fäh, ETHZ; Ph. Guéguen, LGIT; J. Ripperger, ETHZ; P. Teves Costa, ICTE; J.-F. Vassiliades, CETE; S. Vidal, CETE; J. Wassner, ETHZ.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Chatelain, JL., Guillier, B., Cara, F. et al. Evaluation of the influence of experimental conditions on H/V results from ambient noise recordings. Bull Earthquake Eng 6, 33–74 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10518-007-9040-7

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10518-007-9040-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation