Journal of Seismology and Earthquake Engineering
Volume:10 Issue: 3, Autumn 2008

Here, the site effects of seismic hazard zonation of urban areas on the ground motions and earth deformations is studied in Shahrekord. The main purpose is zoning the geological engineering features and assessing the seismicity of the region. In this regard the microtremors are measured by single point sampling method and Nakamura analysis. The microtremors of all over the city are processed by J-SESAME. The information layers are prepared in GIS used for detecting the zonations of potential landslide hazard. Shear wave velocity is calculated in 20 profiles for soil classification. The microtremors are measured in 65 points and 70 wells and boreholes. To study the earth deformation, geological engineering condition is investigated using Digital Elevation Model (DEM), slope, slope orientation, soil type, soil thickness, underground water, rockfall and liquefaction maps. The natural period of site and amplification factor are analyzed using microtremor and shear-wave velocity.

The objective of this article is to study the effect of various components of earthquake on sloshing response of liquid storage tanks. First, commonly used theory for unidirectional analysis of liquid behavior in cylindrical tanks was reviewed. Second, the Finite Element Modeling (FEM) strategy which was used to simulate dynamic response of the liquid tank system was described. The FEM was validated using a set of experimental measurements reported by previous researchers. Third, a parametric study for some vertical, cylindrical tanks with different aspect ratios excited by various time series of earthquake accelerations was performed. Each tank was subjected to unidirectional and bidirectional excitations of earthquake accelerations. Fourth, provision suggested by some seismic codes for the estimation of Maximum Sloshing Wave Height (MSWH) were reviewed and the accuracy of the codes prediction was numerically investigated. Finally, the available simplified formulation for evaluating MSWH under unidirectional excitation was extended for bidirectional excitation.

This paper addresses the nature and functions of command systems in major sudden impact disasters such as earthquakes. It discusses the bases of emergency command, including the lead agency concept and the support function principle. It reviews various models of co-ordination and control, including the Incident Command System (ICS) and the strategic-tactical-operational approach. With regard to the impact of modern information and communications technology, the paper discusses emergency command processes in relation to how emergency situations are perceived. It goes on to examine popular support for disaster management with respect to how the response to disasters can be democratised, especially with regard to the general transition from military to civilian forms of command. This debate is further developed with respect to overseas humanitarian operations and the transfer of know-how to countries that are in the early stages of developing their civil protection systems. The paper ends by restating the objectives of emergency command and considering possible future trends in this critically important field.

In this paper the attenuation of Iranian strong motions is studied using Iranian strong motions database. This database comprises more than 6000 well recorded three-components data (analog and digital) for which the teleseismic source parameters were available, or calculated by the records. Here, the one-step regression method is used in order to develop the attenuation model. The spectral values of the recorded strong motions in Iran are used to derive the empirical attenuation laws for different response spectral ordinates at different site conditions. The empirical relationships are established for the spectral acceleration as the function of moment magnitude, hypocentral distances, and constant parameter representing the site conditions. The data set consists of 87 three component accelerograms, all recorded in 1975-2003. In this paper the attenuation coefficients are in general accordance with the previous attenuation coefficients established for Iran. However, the spectral values, obtained here, are greater in comparison with those gained by the previous studies (1999 and 2006). The difference might be due to selecting greater motions, recorded in the distances nearer to the seismic source