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Site-City Interaction in the Valley of Mexico: 3D Simulations and Observations

Description: 

We investigate the built environment's impact on ground motion in Mexico City. Our research is based on robust velocity and city models, the details of which are thoroughly discussed, and numerical simulations. In our velocity model, we incorporated over two hundred one-dimensional profiles obtained from a noise tomography of the southern part of Mexico City. Additionally, we integrated more than one hundred geotechnical profiles into a regional velocity model. The shear beams, representing the utilized buildings, are the first comprehensive digital model of the Mexico City metropolitan area. The building inventory was compiled by merging LIDAR information from the Valley of Mexico, data from the current building inventory published by the government of Mexico City, and data available from the metropolitan area of the State of Mexico. Regarding system modeling, we conducted finite element simulations using data from a local earthquake and the M7.1 2017 Puebla-Morelos earthquake. Preliminary analyses, valid up to 1Hz, reveal an increment in ground motion duration attributable to the presence of buildings. Also, we observe a velocity reduction at ground level in areas with high building density, along with the formation of waveguides channeling energy in several areas of the lake zone due to arrays of structures. We compared our simulations with the reported damage during the Puebla-Morelos event. Our findings indicate that the observed damage levels are better explained when considering the city than in simulations that ignore the city.

This work was supported by UNAM-PAPIIT IT104223.

Session: Integrative Assessment of Soil-Structure Interaction and Local Site Effects in Seismic Hazard Analysis [Poster Session]

Type: Poster

Date: 5/3/2024

Presentation Time: 08:00 AM (local time)

Presenting Author: Leonardo

Student Presenter: No

Invited Presentation: 

Authors