Predicting Nonlinear Site Response Using Spectral Acceleration Vs PGV/Vs30: A Case History Using the Volvi-Test Site

In this study, we analyze the efficiency of the ratio between particle velocity and shear wave velocity as a strain proxy for evaluating the nonlinear seismic response of sediments. The in situ stress-strain relationships are derived from accelerometric vertical array recordings at the TST site in Volvi (Thessaloniki, Greece). First, the shear wave velocity between two successive sensors was computed by seismic interferometry and strain was computed as the velocity ratio or the relative displacement between sensors. The shear-wave velocity profile and in situ shear modulus degradation curve with strain were compared with previous studies performed at the TST site. Finally, the stress-strain relationships were derived from data recorded at the surface by extending the strain proxy and stress values to the ratio between peak ground velocity and the Vs30 parameter used for site classification, i.e. without requiring the accelerometric vertical array. Our model captures the in situ nonlinear response of the site, without consideration of azimuth or distance of the earthquakes. In conclusion, the acceleration (stress) values, based on the accelerometric response spectra instead of peak ground acceleration compared with the deformation (strain) proxy, provide an effective model of the in situ nonlinear response, providing information that can be integrated into ground motion prediction equations.