Seismic effects of incident P waves on an embedded foundation in poroelastic half-space

Dynamic vibrations of a circular rigid foundation, which is embedded in poroelastic soil and subjected to incident P waves, are studied by semi-analytical methods in this present work. The motion of the soil is governed by Biot's dynamic poroelastic theory. A set of potentials are introduced to represent the incident waves, and the scattering waves caused by the foundation are considered based on the decomposition of the total wave field in soil. The soil along the vertical side of the foundation is assumed to be composed of series of infinitesimally thin poroelastic layers, while the soil under the foundation base is regarded as the poroelastic half-space and to be independent of the overlying soil. The interaction problem is solved by Hankel transforms. Then, combining the boundary conditions along the contact surface between the soil and the foundation and the dynamic equilibrium equation of the foundation, expressions of the vertical and rocking vibration amplitudes of the embedded foundation excited by the incident P waves are acquired. Numerical results are presented to demonstrate the influences of embedded depth, foundation mass, pore water in the soil and incident angle on the vibrations of the foundation. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.