Study of Love-type wave vibrations in double sandy layers on half-space of viscoelastic An analytical approach

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the dependency of dispersion and damping behavior of Love-type waves on wave number in a heterogeneous dry sandy double layer of finite thickness superimposed on heterogeneous viscoelastic substrate under the influence of hydrostatic initial stress. Design/methodology/approach The mechanical properties of the material of both the dry sandy layers vary with respect to a certain depth as quadratic and hyperbolic function, while it varies as an exponential function for the viscoelastic semi-infinite medium. The method of the separation of variables is employed to obtain the complex frequency equation. Findings The complex frequency equation is separated into real and imaginary components corresponding to dispersion and damping equation. After that, the obtained result coincides with the pre-established classical equation of Love wave, as shown in Section 5. The response of all mechanical parameters such as heterogeneities, sandiness, hydrostatic stress, thickness ratio, attenuation and viscoelasticity on both the phase and damped velocity against real wave number has been discussed with the help of numerical example and graphical demonstrations. Originality/value In this work, a comparative study clarifies that the Love wave propagates with higher speed in an isotropic elastic structure as compared to the proposed model. This study may find its applications in the investigation of mechanical behavior and deformation of the sedimentary rock.