NUCLEAR ENGINEERING AND DESIGN 3 (1966) 308-319. NORTH-HOLLAND PUBLISHING COMP.

, AMSTERDAM

EARTHQUAKE RESEARCH PROBLEMS OF

NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS *
G. W. HOUSNER and D. E. HUDSON
Division of Engineering and Applied Science,
California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, USA

Received 27 January 1966

Earthquake problems associated with the construction of nuclear power plants require a more exten-
sive and a more precise knowledge of earthquake characteristics and the dynamic behavior of struc-
tures than has been considered necessary for ordinary buildings. Economic considerations indicate the
desirability of additional research on the problems of earthquakes and nuclear reactors. The nature of
these earthquake-resistant design problems is discussed and programs of research are recommended.

1. INTRODUCTORY CONSIDERATIONS c e i v a b l e incident, s c r a m , s e i s m i c s c r a m , and

The d e v e l o p m e n t of n u c l e a r r e a c t o r e l e c t r i c
p o w e r g e n e r a t o r s has involved many unique en-
g i n e e r i n g f e a t u r e s which d is t in g u is h this field
f r o m the o r d i n a r y i n d u s t r i a l p r o c e s s e s with
which we a r e f a m i l i a r . One noteworthy f e a t u r e of
n u c l e a r p o w e r is the v e r y s h o r t i n t e r v a l b e t w e e n
the in i t i al d i s c o v e r y of c o n t r o l l e d f i s s i o n and its
p r a c t i c a l application to p o w e r generation. F r o m
the f i r s t a t o m i c p i l e to the c o n s t r u c t i o n of non-
experimental nuclear electric power generating
plants r e q u i r e d l e s s than t w e n t y - f i v e y e a r s . This
is a r e m a r k a b l y s h o r t t i m e f o r e n g i n e e r i n g d e -
v e l o p m e n t in view of the highly s o p h i s t i c a t e d
s c i e n t i f i c and t e c h n i c a l p r o b l e m s involved.
The p o t en t i al h a z a r d of u n c o n t r o l l e d r e l e a s e
of r a d i o a c t i v e m a t e r i a l into the a t m o s p h e r e has
f r o m the beginning p o s e d a s p e c i a l p r o b l e m in
r e a c t o r safety. T h e r e a r e , of c o u r s e , many
o t h e r i n d u s t r i a l p r o c e s s e s i n v o l v i n g m a t e r i a l s of
pot e n t i al h a z a r d to human life, and th e s e indus-
t r i e s a r e also faced with p r o b l e m s of safety.
However, the attention given to the safety of nu-
c l e a r r e a c t o r s by t e c h n i c a l e x p e r t s is undoubted-
ly f a r g r e a t e r than f o r any o t h e r i n d u s t r i a l p r o -
c e s s . T h e r e has even d e v e lo p e d a new p r o f e s s i o n
of r e a c t o r safety, the m e m b e r s of which a r e e x -
p e r t in the v a r i o u s p o t e n ti a l h a z a r d s and t h e i r
avoidance. A new v o c a b u l a r y has been d e v e lo p e d
to d e s c r i b e c o n c e p t s of h a z a r d and safety that
p r i o r to this t i m e had hardly been contemplated.
E x a m p l e s of such new t e r m s p e r t i n e n t to our
present problem are: maximum probable inci-
dent, m a x i m u m c r e d i b l e incident, m a x i m u m con-
* Accepted by T. A. Jaeger.
total s c r a m . The r e a c t o r safety e x p e r t s have
d e v e l o p e d methods of a n a l y z i n g the e f f e c t s of
malfunctions, f a i l u r e s , a c c i d e n t s , etc., with a
view of p r o v i d i n g a p p r o p r i a t e s a f e g u a r d s .
The c o n c e r n of the public o v e r h a z a r d s of nu-
c l e a r r e a c t o r s , and also the c o n c e r n of v a r i o u s
g o v e r n m e n t a l a g e n c i e s , is much g r e a t e r than
might have been anticipated. T h i s is no doubt in
l a r g e m e a s u r e due to the e x t e n s i v e publicity
given to the ef f ect s of n u c l e a r weapons and the
c o n s c i o u s , o r u n c o n s c i o u s , a s s o c i a t i o n in the
mind of the public of n u c l e a r p o w e r plants with
the h a z a r d s of n u c l e a r weapons.
The i m p o r t a n c e of e l i m i n a t i n g p o s s i b l e ha-
z a r d s in the o p e r a t i o n of n u c l e a r p o w e r g e n e r a t -
ing plants has led to d e s i g n s w h e r e c o n s i d e r a -
tions of safety a r e p a r a m o u n t . In fact, it has
been s u g g e s t e d that the d e s i g n s a r e o v e r l y safe
and, hence, o v e r l y costly. T h i s may well be
t r u e, but by the v e r y n a t u r e of the p r o b l e m , this
o v e r d e s i g n is at p r e s e n t unavoidable. The r e a s o n
f o r this can be explained by m e a n s of a v e r y
s i m p l e example. Suppose a b r i d g e i s to be d e -
signed to be safe in the o r d i n a r y sense. The
loading conditions and the allowable s t r e s s e s to
be u s e d in the d e s i g n will be s p e c i f i e d by the
code, and a d e s i g n can be m a d e that i n c o r p o r a t e s
a f a c t o r of safety b a s e d on p a s t e x p e r i e n c e of
many s i m i l a r s t r u c t u r e s . It should be kept in
mind, however, that the f a c t o r s s p e c i f i e d in the
code r e p r e s e n t m e r e l y the c o n s e n s u s of the
c o m m i t t e e that d r a f t e d the code, and that the
t r u e " f a c t o r of safety" is not c l e a r l y defined. On
the o t h e r hand, suppose that t h e r e w e r e no ap-
p l i c a b l e codes o r p a s t e x p e r i e n c e and the b r i d g e
was to be safe in the s e n s e that a n u c l e a r p o w e r
 EARTHQUAKE RESEARCH PROBLEMS OF NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
g e n e r a t o r i s safe. In this c a s e the design would
have to take i n t o ' a c c e u n t the m a x i m u m p r o b a b l e
load which might be the h e a v i e s t t r u c k that is
known to t r a v e l in that region, and the m a x i m u m
c r e d i b l e load which might be the h e a v i e s t wheeled
vehicle i n the e n t i r e country. The design m u s t
also take into account the m a x i m u m p r o b a b l e
(MP) and m a x i m u m c~.~edible (MC) vehicle veloc-
i t i e s as well as the MP and MC v a r i a t i o n s in
m a t e r i a l p r o p e r t i e s and foundation conditions.
The MP and MC floods, winds, t e m p e r a t u r e s ,
etc., m u s t also be accounted for in the design.
The p o s s i b i l i t y of an o u t - o f - c o n t r o l vehicle such
as a truck, a i r p l a n e o r ship c r a s h i n g into the
b r i d g e s t r u c t u r e i s a c r e d i b l e incident and m u s t
be taken into account. Such c o n s i d e r a t i o n s will
obviously lead to a v e r y c o n s e r v a t i v e design.
The MP and MC v a i u e s and likelihood of oc-
c u r r e n c e can u s u a l l y be specified only in a m o r e
o r l e s s a p p r o x i m a t e p r o b a b i l i t y s e n s e and the
n a t u r e of the a v a i l a b l e i n f o r m a t i o n will have a
m o s t i m p o r t a n t influence. A type of u n c e r t a i n t y
p r i n c i p l e is involved which s t a t e s that the l e s s
c e r t a i n one is of the facts the m o r e c o n s e r v a t i v e
and costly m u s t be the design. This is i l l u s t r a t e d
by the two p r o b a b i l i t y c u r v e s shown in fig. 1.
Design
Maximum probable Requirement
Maximum credible
(A) "
~ / ~ ' ~ % I Estim~ed
Maximum arobable _r,I I Desiqn
Requirement
Maximum credible
(B) ~ '
Fig. 1. Schematic probability curves for design re-
quirements. Curve A represents the true probability.
Curve B represents the same case when lack of infor-
mation does not permit the true curve to be estab-
lished.
In fig. 1A is shown the c u r v e one might obtain
when all of the p e r t i n e n t facts a r e known; the
c u r v e in fig. 1B might r e p r e s e n t the s a m e s i t u a -
tion when t h e r e is u n c e r t a i n t y about the facts. In
fig. 1A, the MP and MC a r e e a s i l y located
w h e r e a s in fig. 1B t h e i r p r o p e r location is far
f r o m obvious. In fact, the a s s u m e d MP and MC
in fig. 1B m u s t be located beyond t h e i r t r u e po-
sitions, as shown in fig. 1A, b e c a u s e of the u n -
309
c e r t a i n t y . If, for the b r i d g e , t h e r e a r e a half-
dozen design f a c t o r s subject to such u n c e r t a i n t y ,
and the design is to be safe i n the n u c l e a r r e a c -
t o r sense, it will be n e c e s s a r y for the b r i d g e to
be o v e r d e s i g n e d and o v e r l y costly. To avoid this,
it is n e c e s s a r y to reduce the u n c e r t a i n t i e s by
developing m o r e p r e c i s e i n f o r m a t i o n about the
f a c t o r s p e r t i n e n t to the p r o b l e m .
Although design of o r d i n a r y s t r u c t u r e s i n -
volves many of the s a m e u n c e r t a i n t i e s encoun-
t e r e d in the n u c l e a r power g e n e r a t o r design, the
p r o b l e m i s u s u a l l y s i m p l i f i e d by adopting the
following point of view. It is supposed that in the
unlikely event that the MC incident should occur,
a m o d e r a t e expenditure would be r e q u i r e d to r e -
p a i r the damage. It is u s u a l l y concluded that it is
not e c o n o m i c a l l y justifiable to spend an a p p r e -
ciable amount of money i n i t i a l l y to f o r e s t a l l the
cost of future r e p a i r s r e q u i r e d by an event which
has a s m a l l p r o b a b i l i t y of o c c u r r e n c e . It is ob-
vious that such a b a s i c design philosophy is not
a p p r o p r i a t e for n u c l e a r r e a c t o r s ; for these, all
of the u n c e r t a i n t i e s in loading conditions, m a t e -
r i a l p r o p e r t i e s , etc., m u s t be c o v e r e d by e x t r a
f a c t o r s of safety.
At p r e s e n t , earthquake design c r i t e r i a for
n u c l e a r power g e n e r a t o r s a r e t h r e e to six t i m e s
m o r e s e v e r e than those specified by the building
codes for o r d i n a r y s t r u c t u r e s . If only a few nu-
c l e a r power plants were to be built it might be
a r g u e d that the cost of the e x t r a f a c t o r s of safety
would not exceed the cost of the r e s e a r c h r e -
q u i r e d to reduce the u n c e r t a i n t i e s to a m o r e
e c o n o m i c a l level. However, if n u c l e a r power
g e n e r a t o r s continue to be used in g r e a t e r n u m -
b e r s in the future, the cost of e l i m i n a t i n g the
chief u n c e r t a i n t i e s and thus achieving m o r e eco-
n o m i c a l d e s i g n s will be much l e s s than the cu-
m u l a t i v e cost of p r o v i d i n g l a r g e f a c t o r s of safety.
2. NUCLEAR REACTORS AND EARTHQUAKES
The o c c u r r e n c e of s t r o n g earthquakes in many
r e g i o n s of the world p o s e s s p e c i a l p r o b l e m s of
safety in the design and c o n s t r u c t i o n of m a n - m a d e
works. In addition to the m a t t e r of public safety,
t h e r e is also a m o n e t a r y aspect involved s i n c e it
is not e c o n o m i c a l l y f e a s i b l e to design all o r d i -
n a r y s t r u c t u r e s to r e s i s t without some damage
the g r e a t e s t earthquake, which may be only a
o n c e - i n - a - t h o u s a n d - y e a r s event. To allow for
this, the r e q u i r e m e n t s of b u i l d i n g codes in Cal-
i f o r n i a a r e b a s e d on the p r e m i s e that buildings
should s u r v i v e without damage the m o d e r a t e l y
s t r o n g ground m o t i o n s whose p r o b a b i l i t y of oc-
 310 G.W. HOUSNER and D. E. HUDSON
c u r r e n c e is r e l a t i v e l y high, but that some d a m -
age will be t o l e r a t e d in the event of l a r g e and
r e l a t i v e l y i n f r e q u e n t earthquakes. This philoso-
phy of design is in direct" c o n t r a d i c t i o n to that
used in d e s i g n i n g n u c l e a r power g e n e r a t o r s [1-3].
In the past, r e s e a r c h in e n g i n e e r i n g s e i s -
mology has b e e n d i r e c t e d m a i n l y at the p r o b l e m s
of designing o r d i n a r y s t r u c t u r e s such as a r e
found in l a r g e cities, in p a r t i c u l a r , Los Angeles,
San F r a n c i s c o , and Tokyo. As a consequence,
the p r o b l e m s of d e s i g n i n g s p e c i a l s t r u c t u r e s to
withstand great e a r t h q u a k e s without suffering
even slight damage has not been given p a r t i c u l a r
study. B e c a u s e of this the knowledge of e a r t h -
quake f a c t o r s is not as p r e c i s e as would be de-
s i r a b l e . Although no single earthquake factor
p e r t i n e n t to the design is subject to l a r g e u n c e r -
t a i n t i e s , the c o n s e r v a t i s m r e q u i r e d to cover a
n u m b e r of s m a l l u n c e r t a i n t i e s can have an ap-
p r e c i a b l e economic effect. The e x i s t i n g body of
i n f o r m a t i o n should now be extended and made
m o r e p r e c i s e by r e s e a r c h whose b r e a d t h and
depth a r e suited to the s p e c i a l r e q u i r e m e n t s of
n u c l e a r r e a c t o r facilities. Some of the s p e c i a l
r e q u i r e m e n t s r e l a t e d to n u c l e a r applications are:
(1) The g e n e r a l level of safety which is de-
manded of an e a r t h q u a k e - r e s i s t a n t design is
closely r e l a t e d to the c o n s e q u e n c e s of failure.
The d e s i r e to e l i m i n a t e any p o s s i b i l i t y of f a i l u r e
of c e r t a i n components in a n u c l e a r i n s t a l l a t i o n
m e a n s that many u n c e r t a i n t i e s which could be
accepted in o r d i n a r y s t r u c t u r a l e a r t h q u a k e -
r e s i s t a n t work cannot be t o l e r a t e d in n u c l e a r
design. A m o r e p r e c i s e knowledge of earthquake
p h e n o m e n a is r e q u i r e d than has been available,
and t h e o r i e s which have in the p a s t given a c c e p t -
able a c c u r a c i e s m u s t now be extended to attain
an i n c r e a s e d c e r t a i n t y .
(2) Special s t r u c t u r e s a r e often e n c o u n t e r e d
in n u c l e a r p l a n t s which a r e outside u s u a l expe-
rience. In such s p e c i a l s t r u c t u r e s , t h e r e is little
guidance f r o m past p r a c t i c e , and i n f o r m a t i o n as
to the b e h a v i o r of such s t r u c t u r e s in past e a r t h -
quakes i s not available. E x a m p l e s a r e g r a p h i t e -
block a s s e m b l i e s for g a s - c o o l e d r e a c t o r s , c o m -
plex cooling s y s t e m s and c o n t r o l s y s t e m s .
(3) The design of the s t r u c t u r e s may be much
influenced by the r e q u i r e m e n t s of the n u c l e a r
p r o c e s s e s t h e m s e l v e s , which may dictate types
of m a t e r i a l s as well as shape and size of s t r u c -
t u r a l m e m b e r s . F o r example, m a t e r i a l s might
have to be l i m i t e d to those having low n e u t r o n
absorption cross-sections.
(4) The b e h a v i o r of m a t e r i a l s u n d e r the con-
ditions e n c o u n t e r e d at c e r t a i n c r i t i c a l points in a
r e a c t o r a s s e m b l y may be i m p o r t a n t in the de-
sign. The effects of s t r o n g r a d i a t i o n fields on
s t r u c t u r a l p r o p e r t i e s of m a t e r i a l s i s an i t e m
which may be i m p o r t a n t in future designs.
(5) The n e c e s s i t y for r e m o t e c o n t r o l of many
p r o c e s s e s , and for safety devices, r e s u l t s in an
i n t e r - r e l a t i o n between s t r u c t u r e and m e c h a n i s m
which may i m p o s e s p e c i a l l i m i t s on deflections
or other s t r u c t u r a l r e s p o n s e s .
(6) The p r o b l e m of the effects of t r a n s i e n t
f o r c e s on fluid motion b e c o m e s of c r i t i c a l i m -
p o r t a n c e in some applications, such as cooling
s y s t e m s and e m e r g e n c y w a t e r supplies.
(7) The development of s e i s m i c detection and
w a r n i n g s y s t e m s , as well as automatic shut-
down devices, b e c o m e s of i m p o r t a n c e .
(8) N u c l e a r r e a c t o r s a r e u s u a l l y e r e c t e d at
some d i s t a n c e f r o m a city on s i t e s where the
local geology may be quite different f r o m that
within the city which has b e e n studied f r o m the
point of view of its influence on the earthquake
r e s p o n s e of s t r u c t u r e s . Since the n u m b e r of good
s i t e s is l i m i t e d it will eventually be n e c e s s a r y to
build r e a c t o r s on s i t e s where geology is l e s s
favorable.
The c o n s e q u e n c e s of these new conditions a r e
that an i n c r e a s e d r e s e a r c h effort m u s t be made
to extend the scope and i m p r o v e the p r e c i s i o n of
our knowledge of the facts p e r t i n e n t to all of the
o r d i n a r y p r o b l e m s of d e s t r u c t i v e e a r t h q u a k e s
and, in addition, s p e c i a l i n v e s t i g a t i o n s r e l a t e d
p a r t i c u l a r l y to n u c l e a r i n s t a l l a t i o n s m u s t be u n -
dertaken.
3. C U R R E N T P R O B L E M S IN E A R T H Q U A K E
ENGINEERING FOR NUCLEAR POWER
PLANTS
The fundamental p r o b l e m s of earthquake en-
g i n e e r i n g as they r e l a t e to n u c l e a r power plant
design may be s u m m a r i z e d as:
a. P r e d i c t i o n of the m a x i m u m expected ground
motion at a p a r t i c u l a r site.
b. D e s c r i p t i o n of typical s t r o n g earthquake
ground m o t i o n s f r o m the standpoint of t h e i r
effects on s t r u c t u r e s .
c. Calculation of s t r u c t u r a l r e s p o n s e to e a r t h -
quake f o r c e s , i n c l u d i n g u n d e r s t r u c t u r e such
s p e c i a l c o m p o n e n t s as piping s y s t e m s , con-
t a i n m e n t v e s s e l s , c o n t r o l rod a s s e m b l i e s ,
e l e c t r i c a l switches, etc.
d. D e t e r m i n a t i o n of the actual d y n a m i c p r o p e r -
t i e s of s t r u c t u r e s .
e. Design of s t r u c t u r e s , equipment, and compo-
n e n t s to s u c c e s s f u l l y withstand earthquake
forces.
 EARTHQUAKE RESEARCH PROBLEMS OF NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
Each of these m:~jor a r e a s will be d i s c u s s e d
in some detail, to indicate the specific r e s e a r c h
p r o j e c t s which a r e at this t i m e justified by p a s t
b a c k g r o u n d and future r e q u i r e m e n t s .
4. PREDICTION O F MAXIMUM E X P E C T E D
GROUND MOTION
The m a x i m u m earthquake ground motion to be
expected at a p a r t i c u l a r site will depend upon:
(a) the g e n e r a l s e i s m i c i t y of the region, which
will i n d i c a t e the p r o b a b i l i t y of e a r t h q u a k e s of a
given magnitude o c c u r r i n g within specified i n -
t e r v a l s of t i m e at v a r i o u s e p i c e n t r a l d i s t a n c e s ;
(b) local geological conditions, such as the
e x i s t e n c e of active faults in the vicinity; and (c)
local soil and foundation conditions in the i m -
m e d i a t e neighborhood of the i n s t a l l a t i o n .
C o n s i d e r i n g f i r s t i t e m (a), the b a s i c i n f o r m a -
tion on s e i s m i c i t y is d e r i v e d f r o m m a n y s o u r c e s ,
i n c l u d i n g t e l e s e i s m i c r e c o r d i n g s at d i s t a n t s e n -
sitive s e i s m o g r a p h stations, s t r o n g - m o t i o n ac o
c e l e r o g r a p h record!Lngs, studies of earthquake
damage, and post c a r d s u r v e y s . In the past, the
m o s t i m p o r t a n t i n f o r m a t i o n has been that ob-
tained f r o m t e l e s e i s m i c r e c o r d i n g s , u s u a l l y
made by s e i s m o l o g i s t s in connection with studies
of the i n t e r n a l c o n s t i t u t i o n of the earth. Net-
works of h i g h - m a g n i f i c a t i o n s e i s m o g r a p h s have
b e e n e s t a b l i s h e d throughout the world for this
p u r p o s e , and these networks a r e at p r e s e n t b e i n g
expanded by a large; p r o g r a m s p o n s o r e d by the
United States G o v e r n m e n t which involves the i n -
s t a l l a t i o n of severa]L hundred new s e i s m o g r a p h s
in v a r i o u s r e g i o n s of the globe not p r e v i o u s l y
covered. T h e s e i n s t r u m e n t s a r e adequate to de-
tect the o c c u r r e n c e of i n t e r m e d i a t e sized e a r t h -
quakes at any point in the earth, and to p e r m i t an
a p p r o x i m a t e c a l c u l a t i o n of location and size. The
e n g i n e e r m a y thus expect f r o m the s e i s m o l o g i s t
b a s i c data on the f r e q u e n c y of o c c u r r e n c e of
e a r t h q u a k e s of v a r i o u s s i z e s in m o s t p a r t s of the
world. The detailed c h a r a c t e r of the f o r c e s i n -
volved, and the ways in which such f o r c e s may
be modified by local conditions, m u s t be i n v e s t i -
gated by the e n g i n e e r s t h e m s e l v e s , since this
a s p e c t of the s u b j e c t i s of r e l a t i v e l y little i n t e -
r e s t to the s e i s m o l o g i s t .
Item (b), involving local d i s t r i b u t i o n of s e i s -
m i c i t y , touches on a p r o b l e m which r e q u i r e s
e x t e n s i v e additional study. The n u m b e r of s e i s -
m o g r a p h s a v a i l a b l e in the world has n e v e r been
l a r g e enough to p e r m i t detailed s t u d i e s of local
effects. It is known that ground motion may be
modified by f e a t u r e s of local geology, but no
311
g e n e r a l i z a t i o n s have yet e m e r g e d which a r e s a t -
i s f a c t o r y for p r e c i s e p r e d i c t i o n s of expected
ground motion in a location of complex local
geology. S e v e r a l types of i n s t r u m e n t a l p r o g r a m s
which would make i m p o r t a n t c o n t r i b u t i o n s to this
s u b j e c t are:
(1) Sets of portable, i n t e r m e d i a t e s e n s i t i v i t y ,
s h o r t - p e r i o d s e i s m o g r a p h s which could s i m u l -
t a n e o u s l y r e c o r d the s a m e earthquake at v a r i o u s
points in a region, should be i n s t a l l e d and o p e r -
ated for p e r i o d s of s e v e r a l months at many r e p -
r e s e n t a t i v e sites. By i n s t a l l i n g six such i n s t r u -
m e n t s in v a r i o u s geological e n v i r o n m e n t s in an
a r e a of some 100 s q u a r e m i l e s , and r e c o r d i n g a
n u m b e r of s m a l l , n e a r b y , n a t u r a l earthquakes,
a c o n s i d e r a b l e i n c r e a s e in our knowledge could
be quickly realized. Such s t u d i e s were s t a r t e d in
1956 in s o u t h e r n C a l i f o r n i a [4], but a r e no l o n g e r
b e i n g actively pursued. S i m i l a r studies have
b e e n made in J a p a n and R u s s i a , but i n no c o u n t r y
have they b e e n sufficiently complete to c o v e r
a r e a s of potential i n t e r e s t as s i t e s for n u c l e a r
i n s t a l l a t i o n s , nor has a c o r r e l a t i o n b e e n e s t a b -
lished with the ground motion of l a r g e e a r t h -
quakes.
(2) The m e a s u r e m e n t of m i c r o s e i s m s and
m i c r o t r e m o r s with high s e n s i t i v i t y s e i s m o g r a p h s
may yield c o m p a r a t i v e data of value. Studies of
this type have b e e n made in J a p a n [5]. Such
m i c r o t r e m o r m e a s u r e m e n t s can be made much
m o r e f r e q u e n t l y than earthquake m e a s u r e m e n t s ,
and if c o r r e l a t i o n s can be found between the r e l -
ative local b e h a v i o r of these v e r y s m a l l ground
m o t i o n s and the effects of the much l a r g e r
ground m o t i o n s caused by d a m a g i n g e a r t h q u a k e s ,
an i m p o r t a n t new tool will be a v a i l a b l e for en-
g i n e e r i n g studies.
(3) Most i m p o r t a n t for earthquake e n g i n e e r i n g
i s a rapid expansion of the n u m b e r of s t r o n g -
motion a c c e l e r o g r a p h s for the m e a s u r e m e n t of
d a m a g i n g earthquake ground motions. Without
these s t r o n g - m o t i o n a c c e l e r a t i o n m e a s u r e m e n t s ,
no s c i e n t i f i c study of earthquake damage o r
e a r t h q u a k e - r e s i s t a n t design is possible. When it
i s r e a l i z e d that in none of the r e c e n t d e s t r u c t i v e
e a r t h q u a k e s throughout the world, such as Mexi-
co (1957), Morocco (1960), Chile (1960), I r a n
(1962), Skopje (1963), and Alaska (1964), has
t h e r e been even one m e a s u r e m e n t of the s t r o n g
ground motion, it will be s e e n how o p p o r t u n i t i e s
for b a s i c data a r e being wasted. So far, ground
m o t i o n s n e a r the c e n t e r s of l a r g e e a r t h q u a k e s
have been r e c o r d e d only in the United States
(e.g. fig. 2). It is not known whether o r not the
ground m o t i o n s in other p a r t s of the world have
the s a m e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s as those in the United
 312 G.W. HOUSNER and D. E. HUDSON

Durotlon [leC)

020

;loor V V'V ''

Durotion {sec)

. ~ 0.J5
O.FO NORTH

::i- " - t /
Du ra ~'ion (sic) ,.

Fig. 2. Recorded accelerograph record of Arvin-Tehachapi, California, earthquake, 21 July 1952.

Earthquake recorded approximately 30 miles from center of fault. Magnitude, M = 7.7.
(Data from U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey.)

States. It i s u s u a l l y p r e s u m e d that they do but earthquakes. Such b l a s t s have been used to a

this is a point needing additional r e s e a r c h . Even
in the United States the s t r o n g ground m o t i o n s of
m o s t potentially d a m a g i n g earthquakes (magni-
tude 5.5 or g r e a t e r ) a r e not r e c o r d e d b e c a u s e no
i n s t r u m e n t happens to be in the e p i c e n t r a l area.
E v e r y n u c l e a r i n s t a l l a t i o n , or its site, in the
United States or e l s e w h e r e in the world, should
be i n s t r u m e n t e d with a s t r o n g - m o t i o n a c c e l e r o -
graph so that t h e r e will be a p r e c i s e knowledge
of the ground motion to which it has been sub-
jected.
(4) Additional s o u r c e s of g r o u n d - m o t i o n data
which should be m o r e fully exploited a r e q u a r r y
b l a s t s and u n d e r g r o u n d n u c l e a r detonations.
Since the location and t i m e of such b l a s t s a r e
a c c u r a t e l y known beforehand, i n s t r u m e n t s can be
located at o p t i m u m s i t e s for ground motion stu-
dies and can be operated in such a way as to ob-
t a i n m a x i m u m i n f o r m a t i o n f r o m these a r t i f i c i a l
m i n o r extent in the past, and such studies as
have been made show a useful c o r r e l a t i o n b e -
tween the damage caused by earthquakes and
b l a s t s [6, 7].
I t e m (c) involving local soil and foundation
conditions touches on one of the m o s t i m p o r t a n t
unknowns in the earthquake e n g i n e e r i n g field.
Studies of damage caused by e a r t h q u a k e s at
Niigata, Japan (1964), Anchorage, Alaska (1964)
and Chile (1960) have d e m o n s t r a t e d the i m p o r -
tance of soil and foundation conditions [8], but
q u a n t i t a t i v e a s s e s s m e n t of the p r o b l e m has been
made difficult by the lack of b a s i c data as to the
dynamic p r o p e r t i e s of soils. F u n d a m e n t a l work
on the d y n a m i c a s p e c t s of soil m e c h a n i c s needs
to be much expanded and special s t u d i e s r e l a t e d
to the earthquake damage p r o b l e m will need to
be initiated.
 I:ARTHQUAKE RESEARCH PROBLEMS OF NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
5. DESCRIPTION O ~ STRONG EARTHQUAKE
GROUND MOTIONS
The b a s i c data needed for s t u d i e s of the ef-
fects of e a r t h q u a k e s on s t r u c t u r e s a r e the a c c u -
r a t e r e c o r d s of the ground a c c e l e r a t i o n v e r s u s
t i m e for actual d e s t r u c t i v e earthquakes, m e a s -
u r e d on ground conditions s i m i l a r to those on
which e n g i n e e r i n g s t r u c t u r e s a r e to be locat-
ed [9]. It is i m p o r t a n t to note that the s t a n d a r d
s e i s m o g r a p h s used by s e i s m o l o g i s t s for t h e i r
s t u d i e s of earthquake p h e n o m e n a a r e not s u i t a b l e
for this purpose. The r e a s o n s for this a r e as
follows:
(a) Most s e i s m o l o g i s t s in the past have been
p r i m a r i l y interesteci in d i s t a n t e a r t h q u a k e s i n -
volving wave propag:ation paths through the c e n -
t r a l p a r t s of the e a r t h or along the c o n t i n e n t a l
s t r u c t u r e s . Sensitive i n s t r u m e n t s have thus been
developed which w i l l r e c o r d s m a l l shocks o r i g i n -
ating thousands of m i l e s away. L a r g e d e s t r u c t i v e
shocks in the n e a r vicinity of m o s t s t a n d a r d
s e i s m o g r a p h s will r e n d e r them i n o p e r a t i v e o r
will give o f f - s c a l e r e a d i n g s . The r e m e d y for this
situation is to design d u a l - s c a l e o r l o g a r i t h m i c
i n s t r u m e n t s , or tc s u p p l e m e n t the s e n s i t i v e
s e i s m o g r a p h s with s p e c i a l s t r o n g - m o t i o n s e i s -
m o g r a p h s of reduced s e n s i t i v i t y . At the p r e s e n t
time, few s e i s m o l o g i c a l l a b o r a t o r i e s in the
world a r e well equipped in this r e s p e c t .
(b) Most of the s t u d i e s hitherto c a r r i e d out by
s e i s m o l o g i s t s have r e q u i r e d only the m e a s u r e -
m e n t of the a r r i v a l t i m e s of s e i s m i c d i s t u r -
b a n c e s , f r o m which the v e l o c i t i e s of propagation
could be d e t e r m i n e d F o r this p u r p o s e it is not
r e q u i r e d that the s e i s m o g r a p h should r e c o r d
t r u e ground motion, and i n the i n t e r e s t s of i n -
c r e a s e d s e n s i t i v i t y such s e i s m o g r a p h s a r e
u s u a l l y designed in such a way that t r u e ground
a c c e l e r a t i o n cannot be a c c u r a t e l y d e t e r m i n e d
f r o m the r e c o r d s . The i n s t r u m e n t p e r i o d s a r e in
g e n e r a l too long, aJ~d the r e c o r d i n g speeds too
low, to p e r m i t the type of m e a s u r e m e n t needed
for e n g i n e e r i n g p u r p o s e s . The r e s p o n s e of a
s t r u c t u r e to an earthquake ground motion can be
d e t e r m i n e d only if the t r u e ground a c c e l e r a t i o n
is known to a r e l a t i v e l y high degree of accuracy.
A c c e l e r a t i o n s cannot be obtained f r o m velocity
o r d i s p l a c e m e n t re¢:ords with this r e q u i r e d a c -
c u r a c y , b e c a u s e of the e r r o r s a s s o c i a t e d with
any f e a s i b l e method of differentiating.
(c) S e i s m o l o g i s t s have u s u a l l y been p r i m a r i l y
i n t e r e s t e d in the earth as a whole, and m o s t
s e i s m o g r a p h s a r e located on b e d r o c k to e l i m -
inate o r r e d u c e the influence of local c r u s t a l
i r r e g u l a r i t i e s . The e n g i n e e r , on the other hand,
313
w i s h e s to know the conditions at the s i t e s at
which s t r u c t u r e s a r e to be erected. F o r this
r e a s o n the r e c o r d i n g i n s t r u m e n t s m u s t often be
placed in a l l u v i a l r e g i o n s which may be influ-
enced by local geology and soil conditions. Since
local conditions may v a r y rapidly o v e r a region,
a r e l a t i v e l y l a r g e n u m b e r of i n s t r u m e n t s would
have to be i n s t a l l e d in the r e g i o n s of p r i m a r y
i n t e r e s t if the effect of local geological condi-
tions a r e to be understood.
It will be evident f r o m the above r e m a r k s that
the i n s t r u m e n t a t i o n m a i n t a i n e d in the p r e s e n t
networks of s e i s m o g r a p h i c stations in the v a r -
ious c o u n t r i e s will not be adequate for the needs
of earthquake e n g i n e e r i n g . Although much useful
i n f o r m a t i o n as to the s e i s m i c i t y of v a r i o u s a r e a s
of the world can be obtained from such stations,
so that i m p o r t a n t studies of the p r o b a b i l i t i e s of
o c c u r r e n c e of earthquakes i n t i m e and space can
be made, the e n g i n e e r s t h e m s e l v e s m u s t expect
to e s t a b l i s h additional s t a t i o n s to r e c o r d the t r u e
ground motion of s t r o n g earthquakes.
A strong=motion a c c e l e r o g r a p h for e a r t h -
quake m e a s u r e m e n t s should have the following
p r o p e r t i e s [9]: The b a s i c t r a n s d u c e r e l e m e n t
should have a n a t u r a l period l e s s than 0.1 sec,
p r e f e r a b l y about 0.05 sec, so that it will s e r v e
as an a c c e l e r o m e t e r for all s t r u c t u r a l l y i m p o r -
tant ground periods. The i n s t r u m e n t should r e a d
a peak a c c e l e r a t i o n of about 1 g, with a r e c o r d
size such that a c c e l e r a t i o n s of 0.01 g can be a c -
c u r a t e l y m e a s u r e d . A r e c o r d i n g speed of at
l e a s t 1 c m / s e c is r e q u i r e d to give the n e c e s s a r y
detail in the r e c o r d . T h i s is a sufficiently high
speed so that continuous r e c o r d i n g i s i m p r a c t i -
cable, and thus a s t a r t i n g device actuated by the
earthquake i t s e l f is required. The r e c o r d i n g
s y s t e m should be a r r a n g e d so that after s t a r t i n g ,
a r e c o r d length of 2-3 m i n u t e s is obtained, a f t e r
which the m e c h a n i s m will shut down a u t o m a t i -
cally and r e s e t itself to repeat the sequence of
events. A sufficient supply of r e c o r d i n g m a t e r i a l
is n e c e s s a r y so that a n u m b e r of e a r t h q u a k e s
can be r e c o r d e d without s e r v i c i n g the i n s t r u -
ment.
The s t a r t i n g s y s t e m i s the m o s t c r i t i c a l p a r t
of a s t r o n g - m o t i o n a c c e l e r o g r a p h . If the s t a r t e r
is too i n s e n s i t i v e , s m a l l e a r t h q u a k e s may be
m i s s e d e n t i r e l y , and e x c e s s i v e t i m e delays in
s t a r t i n g may cause difficulties for l a r g e e a r t h -
quakes. If the s t a r t e r is too s e n s i t i v e , it may be
set off by e x t r a n e o u s n o n - s e i s m i c v i b r a t i o n s or
by a s e r i e s of s m a l l earthquakes, with the dan-
ger that the r e c o r d i n g paper supply is exhausted
before a s t r o n g earthquake o c c u r s . It i s evident
that this s t a r t e r p r o b l e m is the s a m e a s the
314 G.W. HOUSNER and D. E. HUDSON
p r o b l e m of d e s i g n i n g an e a r t h q u a k e - o p e r a t e d
w a r n i n g o r shut-down switch. Thus the a c c e l e r o -
graph design is closely r e l a t e d to the " s e i s m i c
scram" problem.
One of the m o s t p r e s s i n g p r o b l e m s is the ex-
t e n s i o n of the network of s t r o n g - m o t i o n a c c e l -
e r o g r a p h s throughout the highly s e i s m i c r e g i o n s
of the world. In only t w o r e l a t i v e l y s m a l l r e -
gions, C a l i f o r n i a and Japan, a r e t h e r e an a p p r e -
ciable n u m b e r of a c c e l e r o g r a p h s . By far the
l a r g e r p o r t i o n s of the e a r t h ' s m a j o r earthquake
zones a r e not provided with s u i t a b l e s t r o n g -
motion i n s t r u m e n t a t i o n and m a n y s i t e s of poten-
tial i n t e r e s t to the n u c l e a r power i n d u s t r y a r e
not covered.
6. CALCULATIONS O F STRUCTURAL
RESPONSE TO EARTHQUAKE FORCES
The earthquake ground a c c e l e r a t i o n is one of
the loading conditions for the design of n u c l e a r
power plants, and the m a x i m u m s t r e s s e s and
s t r a i n s produced in the v a r i o u s s t r u c t u r e s and
equipment by the ground motion m u s t be d e t e r -
m i n e d [10]. T h i s i s a r a t h e r complex p r o b l e m in
d y n a m i c s , one of whose difficulties a r i s e s f r o m
the fact that the earthquake ground motion is
v e r y i r r e g u l a r and cannot be d e s c r i b e d by any
s i m p l e a n a l y t i c a l e x p r e s s i o n . In addition, actual
m a c h i n e and building s t r u c t u r e s have complex
n o n u n i f o r m d i s t r i b u t i o n s of m a s s and stiffness.
A v i b r a t i o n a n a l y s i s of such a complex s y s t e m
r e q u i r e s e l a b o r a t e c a l c u l a t i o n s involving the
m o s t m o d e r n computing equipment. The a c c u -
r a c y of the r e s u l t s is much influenced by the u n -
c e r t a i n t i e s involved in specifying the p h y s i c a l
p r o p e r t i e s of the s y s t e m and in s i m p l i f y i n g an
actual s t r u c t u r e to the point w h e r e an a n a l y s i s i s
at all p r a c t i c a l . Additional r e s e a r c h m u s t be
done before p r e c i s e v i b r a t i o n a n a l y s e s can be
made of n u c l e a r power plant s y s t e m s without the
expenditure of e x c e s s i v e t i m e and effort.
F o r p u r p o s e s of design the d y n a m i c r e s p o n s e
of s t r u c t u r e s d u r i n g e a r t h q u a k e s i s u s u a l l y ap-
proached f r o m the point of view of the E a r t h -
quake R e s p o n s e S p e c t r u m [11-13]. Some of the
r e s u l t s which have been obtained f r o m a study of
the r e s p o n s e s p e c t r u m c u r v e s for past P a c i f i c
Coast e a r t h q u a k e s can be s u m m a r i z e d as fol-
lows:
(a) An approximate method which is o f t e n u s e d
in e a r t h q u a k e - r e s i s t a n t design is to r e p l a c e the
actual earthquake a c c e l e r a t i o n s by an " e q u i v a -
lent" set of static l a t e r a l loads. Since the actual
a c c e l e r a t i o n s of buildings may be c o n s i d e r a b l y
l a r g e r than the ground a c c e l e r a t i o n s , the p r o p e r
v a l u e s of these equivalent static loads c a n be de-
t e r m i n e d only on the b a s i s of a d y n a m i c a n a l y s i s .
The r e s p o n s e s p e c t r u m c u r v e s give d i r e c t l y the
c o r r e c t effective v a l u e s of these l a t e r a l loads
for s i m p l e s t r u c t u r e s .
(b) A study of the r e s p o n s e s p e c t r u m c u r v e s
have shown that a m a j o r c o n s i d e r a t i o n in l i m i t -
ing peak s t r u c t u r a l a c c e l e r a t i o n s is the energy
d i s s i p a t i o n within the s t r u c t u r e . Anything that
can be done to a p p r e c i a b l y i n c r e a s e the e n e r g y
a b s o r b e d by the s t r u c t u r e will i n c r e a s e e a r t h -
quake r e s i s t a n c e .
(c) It has b e e n found that many of the f e a t u r e s
of Pacific Coast e a r t h q u a k e s can be duplicated
by supposing that the earthquake ground motion
c o n s i s t s of a m a t h e m a t i c a l l y r a n d o m func-
tion [14-17]. This fact m a k e s it p o s s i b l e to apply
the techniques of s t a t i s t i c a l a n a l y s i s to the
earthquake p r o b l e m .
(d) The r e s p o n s e s p e c t r u m c u r v e s for d i f f e r -
ent e a r t h q u a k e s show many c o m m o n f e a t u r e s , to
the extent that it has now b e e n p o s s i b l e to p r e -
p a r e a set of " a v e r a g e s p e c t r u m c u r v e s " which
will give a good a p p r o x i m a t i o n for typical P a c i f i c
Coast e a r t h q u a k e s [18].
(e) The velocity r e s p o n s e s p e c t r u m c u r v e s
a r e d i r e c t l y r e l a t e d to the e n e r g y in the s t r u c -
t u r e , and can thus s e r v e as a s t a r t i n g point for
l i m i t design methods. Such methods may p r o v i d e
a r a t i o n a l s t r e n g t h c r i t e r i a for earthquake ex-
cited s t r u c t u r e s which may be s t r a i n e d into the
p l a s t i c range [19].
The application of r e s p o n s e s p e c t r u m t e c h -
niques to c o m p l i c a t e d s t r u c t u r e s involves c e r -
tain a p p r o x i m a t i o n s which need to be m o r e c o m -
pletely understood. F o r example, the way in
which v a r i o u s modes of v i b r a t i o n excited by an
earthquake may c o m b i n e in a s t r u c t u r e needs
f u r t h e r study. To attain the g r e a t e r a c c u r a c y
d e m a n d e d by n u c l e a r a p p l i c a t i o n s will r e q u i r e a
r e f i n e m e n t of the a n a l y t i c a l t e c h n i q u e s now used
in r e s p o n s e s p e c t r u m applications.
In addition to the above r e s p o n s e s p e c t r u m
studies, n u m e r o u s m o r e involved s t r u c t u r a l s i t -
u a t i o n s have also b e e n analyzed, including some
studies of n o n l i n e a r s t r u c t u r e s u n d e r yielding
conditions [20-24]. In o r d e r to u s e the r e s u l t s of
r e s p o n s e s p e c t r u m a n a l y s i s for the design of
complicated multi-degree-of-freedom struc-
t u r e s , studies have been made of the ways in
which the r e s p o n s e s of the v a r i o u s modes of vi-
b r a t i o n add up in the total r e s p o n s e [25, 26].
Many additional s t u d i e s of t h i s kind a r e needed,
p a r t i c u l a r l y for s y s t e m s loaded into the p l a s t i c
range, for which the v e r y c o m p l i c a t e d theory of
n o n l i n e a r m e c h a n i c s is r e q u i r e d .
 EARTHQUAKE RESEARCH PROBLEMS OF NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
The a v a i l a b i l i t y of m o d e r n h i g h - s p e e d c o m -
puting t e c h n i q u e s opens up new p o s s i b i l i t i e s for
d y n a m i c studies. Such s t u d i e s r e q u i r e , however,
the l a r g e s t types of digital and analog compu-
t e r s , and hence tend to be expensive. To fully
exploit such m o d e r n computing t e c h n i q u e s in the
field of s t r u c t u r a l d y n a m i c s as applied to the de-
sign of n u c l e a r power p l a n t s will call for a
g r e a t l y i n c r e a s e d support of this work, and a
g r e a t l y i n c r e a s e d n u m b e r of highly qualified i n -
vestigators.
7. DETERMINATION OF THE ACTUAL
DYNAMIC P R O P E R T I E S O F STRUCTURES
R e l a t i v e l y little :research has b e e n done on
the b e h a v i o r of actual f u l l - s i z e d s t r u c t u r e s s u b -
jected to d y n a m i c loads. It has b e e n difficult to
l e a r n much f r o m t e s t s of s m a l l m o d e l s b e c a u s e
of u n c e r t a i n t i e s as to the b e h a v i o r of such de-
t a i l s as joints and c o n n e c t i o n s , and b e c a u s e of
the i n h e r e n t i n h o m o g e n e i t i e s of m a n y c o m m o n
s t r u c t u r a l m a t e r i a l s such as r e i n f o r c e d con-
crete. It thus appears3 that for earthquake r e s i s -
tant d e s i g n p u r p o s e s , much m o r e work m u s t be
done involving d y n a m i c t e s t s at high load levels
of actual f u l l - s c a l e s t r u c t u r e s and of l a r g e mod-
els.
T h e r e is s t i l l much to be l e a r n e d on a funda-
m e n t a l level by labo~.~atory i n v e s t i g a t i o n s of i n -
dividual s t r u c t u r a l e l e m e n t s . F o r m a n y c o m m o n
s t r u c t u r a l e l e m e n t s the r e l a t i o n s between actual
b e h a v i o r and that p r e d i c t e d by s t a n d a r d design
t h e o r i e s have not been s a t i s f a c t o r i l y e s t a b l i s h e d .
The effects of even such s i m p l e d y n a m i c loads
as r e p e a t e d a l t e r n a t i n g loads, which can be ap-
plied in the l a b o r a t o r y with r e l a t i v e ease, have
not b e e n thoroughly studied.
Of p r i m a r y i m p o r t a n c e , however, a r e d y n a m -
ic t e s t s made on actual f u l l - s c a l e s t r u c t u r e s . In
one g e n e r a l c a t e g o r y of d y n a m i c test, the l i n e a r
d y n a m i c p r o p e r t i e s of the s t r u c t u r e a r e of
major interest. This implies relatively small
d i s p l a c e m e n t s , and hence no c o n s i d e r a t i o n of
s t r u c t u r a l f a i l u r e i s u s u a l l y involved. The m a j o r
p a r a m e t e r s d e s i r e d a r e the n a t u r a l f r e q u e n c i e s
of v i b r a t i o n of all s i g n i f i c a n t modes, the c o r r e -
sponding mode shapes, and the amount of e n e r g y
d i s s i p a t i o n or d a m p i n g a s s o c i a t e d with each
mode.
In the second c a t e g o r y of test, a r e s t u d i e s of
n o n l i n e a r b e h a v i o r , such as i n v e s t i g a t i o n s of
yield conditions, and the d e t e r m i n a t i o n of e n e r g y
d i s s i p a t i o n u n d e r such yielding. Included in this
category a r e s t u d i e s of c r i t e r i a of f a i l u r e , and of
315
f a i l u r e d e t a i l s involving e x c e s s i v e yielding,
f r a c t u r e , impact, and fatigue.
P e r h a p s the m o s t i m p o r t a n t type of s t r u c t u r a l
d y n a m i c t e s t is the steady state r e s o n a n c e test.
Ideally such a t e s t would be c a r r i e d out by ap-
plying s i n u s o i d a l f o r c e s of c o n s t a n t amplitude
and a d j u s t a b l e frequency to the s t r u c t u r e , d i s -
t r i b u t i n g t h e s e f o r c e s throughout the s t r u c t u r e in
such a way as to excite a pure n o r m a l mode. By
m e a s u r i n g steady state s y s t e m r e s p o n s e at v a r -
ious f r e q u e n c i e s , the r e s o n a n c e c u r v e s can be
defined, f r o m which the n a t u r a l f r e q u e n c i e s and
the d a m p i n g can be d e t e r m i n e d . R e s o n a n c e
c u r v e s m a y also indicate by t h e i r shapes the b a -
sic n a t u r e of the r e s t o r i n g force and damping
force m e c h a n i s m s , p a r t i c u l a r l y for n o n l i n e a r
s y s t e m s . R e s o n a n c e c u r v e s obtained for a s e r i e s
of exciting force m a g n i t u d e s will also give con-
s i d e r a b l e i n f o r m a t i o n about the n o n l i n e a r p r o p -
e r t i e s of the s t r u c t u r e .
B e c a u s e of the s p e c i a l i m p o r t a n c e of r e s o -
n a n c e t e s t i n g for a c c u r a t e i n v e s t i g a t i o n s of
s t r u c t u r a l r e s p o n s e , s p e c i a l efforts have been
made to produce a p r e c i s i o n v a r i a b l e frequency
s i n u s o i d a l force g e n e r a t o r for s t r u c t u r a l v i b r a -
tion tests. A p r o j e c t to develop such a v i b r a t i o n
g e n e r a t i o n s y s t e m has r e c e n t l y b e e n c o m p l e t -
ed [27]. One of the u n i t s of this s y s t e m i s shown
in fig. 3 where it is being used to excite a steel
b u i l d i n g f r a m e into v i b r a t i o n s in the p l a s t i c
range. This force g e n e r a t i o n s y s t e m can e x e r t a
total i n e r t i a force of 20000 lbs with a p r e c i s e
frequency control. With such a s y s t e m it is p o s -
sible to excite actual f u l l - s c a l e s t r u c t u r e s into
r e l a t i v e l y l a r g e v i b r a t o r y motions. A novel
f e a t u r e of this force g e n e r a t i o n equipment is that
it c o n s i s t s of four m e c h a n i c a l r o t a t i n g - m a s s
o s c i l l a t o r s each of 5000 lb capacity, and each
with an e l e c t r o n i c - a m p l i d y n e speed c o n t r o l and
s y n c h r o n i z a t i o n s y s t e m . This m u l t i p l e unit fea-
t u r e m a k e s it p o s s i b l e to excite v a r i o u s modes
of v i b r a t i o n , such as t o r s i o n a l modes, and to
d i s t r i b u t e the exciting f o r c e s throughout the
s t r u c t u r e in an efficient way. This v i b r a t i o n gen-
e r a t i o n s y s t e m i s now in a complete f o r m and is
a v a i l a b l e for test p r o g r a m s . Much i n f o r m a t i o n
on d y n a m i c p r o p e r t i e s of s t r u c t u r e s of d i r e c t
u s e to the n u c l e a r power i n d u s t r y could be ob-
tained by such t e s t s , and it is to be hoped that
s u p p o r t for such i n v e s t i g a t i o n s will be f o r t h c o m -
ing. C o n s i d e r i n g the p r e s e n t a l m o s t complete
a b s e n c e of a c c u r a t e r e s o n a n c e t e s t data on
s t r u c t u r e s , the a m o u n t of useful work that could
be a c c o m p l i s h e d by this new s y s t e m is a l m o s t
unlimited.
It has o c c a s i o n a l l y been p o s s i b l e to test
316 G.W. HOUSNER and D. E. HUI~ON

Fig. 3. A unit of the force g e n e r a t o r developed at the California Institute of Technology

being u s e d to t e s t a model s t r u c t u r e into the n o n l i n e a r range of v i b r a t i o n s .

Fig. 4. Shaking table at the Building R e s e a r c h Institute, Tokyo, Japan, developed

for t e s t i n g a l a r g e model of the graphite block c o r e of a n u c l e a r r e a c t o r .
 EARTHQUAKE RESEARCH PROBLEMS OF NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
s t r u c t u r e s u n d e r t r a n s i e n t conditions i m p o s e d by
ground m o t i o n s caused by b l a s t s and e a r t h -
quakes. L a r g e q u a r r y b l a s t s a r e s o m e t i m e s lo-
cated sufficiently close to buildings so that sig-
nificant s t r u c t u r a l s t r e s s l e v e l s a r e attained,
and s i m u l t a n e o u s m e a s u r e m e n t s of ground a c -
c e l e r a t i o n and building r e s p o n s e will make it
p o s s i b l e to c a l c u l a t e some s t r u c t u r a l p a r a m e t e r s
u n d e r actual t r a n s i e n t d y n a m i c loads. The p o s -
s i b i l i t i e s of such b l a s t motion studies have not
b e e n fully exploited for s t r u c t u r a l tests, and
c o n s i d e r a b l e additional i n f o r m a t i o n could be ob-
tained in this way by a b e t t e r c o o r d i n a t i o n and
p l a n n i n g of b l a s t t e s t s that a r e being o r g a n i z e d
p r i m a r i l y for other p u r p o s e s . The p o s s i b i l i t y of
s p e c i a l b l a s t t e s t s p r i m a r i l y for s t r u c t u r a l
d y n a m i c t e s t s should also not be overlooked, as
this may be one of the b e s t ways of p r o d u c i n g
r e a l i s t i c t r a n s i e n t dynamic f o r c e s for l a r g e test
structures.
Mention should also be made of l a r g e shaking
table tests. Although such shaking tables a r e
u s u a l l y used for model testing, some of them a r e
of a size suitable for s m a l l s t r u c t u r e s or for
f u l l - s c a l e structural: components. One shaking
table in Japan, for example, can apply an excit-
ing d y n a m i c force of 56 tons to a load of 22 tons
(fig. 4). Such l a r g e m a c h i n e s have so far not
b e e n u s e d in the United States, but the p o s s i b i l i -
t i e s of this type of t e s t i n g should be kept in mind.
A n u m b e r of m u l t i - s t o r y buildings in Los An-
geles and San F r a n c i s c o have been i n s t r u m e n t e d
by the U.S. Coast arid Geodetic Survey with r e -
c o r d i n g s t r o n g - m o t i o n a c c e l e r o g r a p h s in both
b a s e m e n t and upper s t o r y locations. F r o m s i -
m u l t a n e o u s m e a s u r e m e n t s of ground motion and
b u i l d i n g r e s p o n s e d u r i n g s t r o n g earthquakes,
c o n s i d e r a b l e i n f o r m a t i o n on the dynamic c h a r a c -
t e r i s t i c s of s t r u c t u r e s can be obtained. An i n -
c r e a s e d a v a i l a b i l i t y of an i m p r o v e d s t r o n g -
motion accelerograp:h, as advocated above for
earthquake ground motion studies, would p e r m i t
the building i n s t r u m e n t a t i o n p r o g r a m to be ex-
panded. It would be v e r y d e s i r a b l e , for example,
to i n s t r u m e n t some e x i s t i n g n u c l e a r i n s t a l l a t i o n s
in this way, so that i:E a s t r o n g earthquake should
o c c u r in the vicinity~, a d i r e c t r e c o r d of the b e -
h a v i o r of some of the s p e c i a l s t r u c t u r e s involved
in n u c l e a r power plaints would be available. In
this s a m e connection, the i n s t a l l a t i o n in s t r u c -
t u r e s of d e v i c e s for m e a s u r i n g r e l a t i v e d i s p l a c e -
m e n t s d u r i n g s t r o n g e a r t h q u a k e s has i n t e r e s t i n g
p o s s i b i l i t i e s . Such art idea was s u c c e s s f u l l y used
in a 4 3 - s t o r y building in Mexico City, and gave a
v e r y u s e f u l r e c o r d d u r i n g the 1957 earthquake
there. This p r i n c i p l e has not b e e n applied in any
317
s i g n i f i c a n t degree in the United States.
Another type of d y n a m i c t e s t i n g which has
given useful r e s u l t s is the m e a s u r e m e n t of the
p e r i o d of the s m a l l v i b r a t i o n s set up in s t r u c -
t u r e s by wind, traffic, i n s t a l l e d m a c h i n e r y , o r
m i c r o s e i s m i c activity. E x i s t i n g c o m m e r c i a l l y
available s e i s m o g r a p h s a r e not well adapted to
this purpose, but some s p e c i a l t e s t s at the Calif-
o r n i a Institute of Technology have shown that it
should be p o s s i b l e to modify s t a n d a r d i n s t r u -
m e n t s to make them suitable for such tests. A
c o m p a r i s o n of the f u n d a m e n t a l n a t u r a l period of
v i b r a t i o n of a s t r u c t u r e as m e a s u r e d d u r i n g a
w i n d - e x c i t e d v i b r a t i o n test with t h e o r e t i c a l c a l -
culations will r e v e a l something of the extent to
which the basic dynamic b e h a v i o r of the s t r u c -
t u r e is d e s c r i b e d by the s i m p l i f i e d m o d e l s r e -
q u i r e d by a m a t h e m a t i c a l a n a l y s i s .
It has been proposed that v i b r a t i o n m e a s u r e -
m e n t s of building p e r i o d s before and after a
s t r o n g earthquake might r e v e a l significant s t r u c -
t u r a l changes, should they occur. It would thus
be highly d e s i r a b l e to obtain period r e a d i n g s on
e x i s t i n g n u c l e a r power plant i n s t a l l a t i o n s so that
a b a s i s of c o m p a r i s o n would be a v a i l a b l e if a
s t r o n g earthquake should o c c u r [28].
8. SUMMARY OF SOME SPECIFIC RESEARCH
PROJECTS IN EARTHQUAKE ENGINEERING
FOR NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
The foregoing g e n e r a l c o n s i d e r a t i o n s on r e -
s e a r c h in earthquake e n g i n e e r i n g have, of n e c e s -
sity, been put in r a t h e r g e n e r a l t e r m s . The fol-
lowing section s u m m a r i z e s f r o m the above back-
ground i n f o r m a t i o n a n u m b e r of m o r e specific
r e s e a r c h p r o j e c t s closely r e l a t e d to a s p e c t s of
earthquake e n g i n e e r i n g that may be expected to
be of d i r e c t i n t e r e s t to the n u c l e a r power i n d u s -
t r y in the n e a r future. T h e s e r e s e a r c h p r o j e c t s
a r e of a f u n d a m e n t a l type, a i m e d at developing
the b a s i c i n f o r m a t i o n u n d e r l y i n g the field. This
does not p r e c l u d e ad hoc r e s e a r c h p r o j e c t s
a i m e d at solving v e r y specific p r a c t i c a l p r o b -
l e m s . The following specific i t e m s will indicate
the scope of a suggested United States p r o g r a m
of r e s e a r c h in earthquake e n g i n e e r i n g over the
next five y e a r s .
(1) A set of six i n t e r m e d i a t e m a g n i f i c a t i o n
s h o r t - p e r i o d s e i s m o g r a p h s should be available
for t e m p o r a r y field i n s t a l l a t i o n for 3-6 months
at a site, and should be used for studies of de-
tailed local s e i s m i c i t y and the effects of local
geology and soil conditions on earthquake ground
m o t i o n s at s i t e s of potential i n t e r e s t to the nu-
c l e a r power industry.
 318 G. W. HOUSNER and D. E. HUDSON
(2) An i m p r o v e d s t r o n g - m o t i o n a c c e l e r o g r a p h
suitable for m e a s u r e m e n t s of ground motion and
b u i l d i n g r e s p o n s e caused by s t r o n g e a r t h q u a k e s
should be developed, and a r r a n g e m e n t s for
c o m m e r c i a l a v a i l a b i l i t y should be made. With
this i n s t r u m e n t , two p r o g r a m s of m a j o r i m p o r -
tance should be c a r r i e d forward: (a) additional
a c c e l e r o g r a p h s for r e c o r d i n g ground motion
d u r i n g s t r o n g e a r t h q u a k e s should be i n s t a l l e d at
e x i s t i n g n u c l e a r i n s t a l l a t i o n s , and at s i t e s in
s e i s m i c r e g i o n s of potential i n t e r e s t to the nu-
c l e a r power i n d u s t r y ; (b) a c c e l e r o g r a p h s should
be located at s t r a t e g i c points in buildings and
special s t r u c t u r e s to r e c o r d s t r u c t u r a l r e s p o n s e
to s t r o n g earthquakes.
(3) A continuing p r o g r a m should be e s t a b -
lished to exploit the p o s s i b i l i t i e s of q u a r r y b l a s t s
and n u c l e a r bomb t e s t s for ground motion s t u -
dies and for s t r u c t u r a l d y n a m i c tests. Contacts
should be m a i n t a i n e d with c o m m e r c i a l q u a r r y
o p e r a t o r s and with the Atomic E n e r g y C o m m i s -
sion to keep t r a c k of planned t e s t s and p r o v i s i o n s
should be made for available p e r s o n n e l , i n s t r u -
mentation, and a n a l y s i s of r e s u l t s .
(4) Basic studies in soil d y n a m i c s should be
expanded, and the p r o p e r t i e s of typical s o i l s u n -
d e r dynamic conditions s i m i l a r to those e n c o u n -
t e r e d in s t r o n g e a r t h q u a k e s should be d e t e r -
mined. Such q u e s t i o n s as consolidation and
liquefaction of soils u n d e r o s c i l l a t o r y f o r c e s r e -
q u i r e much m o r e extensive investigation, both
t h e o r e t i c a l l y and e x p e r i m e n t a l l y .
(5) A catalog should be p r e p a r e d , giving for
all r e c o r d e d s t r o n g - m o t i o n e a r t h q u a k e s , foreign
as well as U.S., the r e c o r d e d a c c e l e r o g r a m s , the
calculated velocity and d i s p l a c e m e n t t i m e r e c -
ords, and the r e s p o n s e s p e c t r u m c u r v e s . Much
of this i n f o r m a t i o n is s c a t t e r e d throughout an
extensive l i t e r a t u r e and some of the n e c e s s a r y
a n a l y s i s has not been made. Such a catalog
should be o r g a n i z e d on a continuing b a s i s so that
it can be kept up to date. F o r some of the appli-
cations of i m p o r t a n c e in n u c l e a r power plants,
such as the s e i s m i c b e h a v i o r of fluids in tanks,
it i s r e q u i r e d that the earthquake r e s p o n s e s p e c -
t r u m c a l c u l a t i o n s be extended to longer p e r i o d s
than has been u s u a l in the past. Such e x t e n s i o n s
of r e s p o n s e s p e c t r u m data should be i n c o r p o r a t -
ed in the above catalog.
(6) The p r o g r a m of s i n u s o i d a l r e s o n a n c e vi-
b r a t i o n t e s t i n g of f u l l - s c a l e s t r u c t u r e s should be
much expanded. Such t e s t s should be extended to
yield conditions and to the point of failure. Some
s p e c i a l t e s t s t r u c t u r e s will be needed for this
p u r p o s e in view of the damage which may be i n -
volved. Studies of the p o s s i b i l i t i e s of l a r g e s c a l e
m o d e l s for such n o n l i n e a r and f a i l u r e s i t u a t i o n s
should be p u r s u e d .
(7) E x p e r i m e n t a l and t h e o r e t i c a l studies
should be made of the d y n a m i c c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of
c o m m o n s t r u c t u r a l e l e m e n t s and components.
Studies should also be made of the d y n a m i c c h a r -
a c t e r i s t i c s of equipment s p e c i a l to n u c l e a r r e a c -
t o r power g e n e r a t o r s , such as c o n t r o l rods,
cooling s y s t e m s , etc.
(8) In o r d e r to d i s c o v e r valid s i m p l i f i c a t i o n s
suitable for d e s i g n of e a r t h q u a k e - r e s i s t a n t
s t r u c t u r e of all kinds, a p r o g r a m of c o m p a r i s o n
of a c c u r a t e detailed c a l c u l a t i o n s of s t r u c t u r a l
dynamic b e h a v i o r made with m o d e r n high speed
c o m p u t e r techniques with v a r i o u s a p p r o x i m a t e
solutions is needed. Components such a s piping
s y s t e m s , c o n t a i n m e n t v e s s e l s , c o n t r o l rod a s -
s e m b l i e s , etc. will all r e q u i r e study f r o m this
point of view if the r e s u l t s of r e s e a r c h a r e to be
made available in a useful way to design e n g i -
neers.
(9) The p r o b l e m s and i m p l i c a t i o n s of " s e i s m i c
s c r a m " should be studied to evaluate the condi-
t i o n s u n d e r which such a s y s t e m might be advan-
tageous.
The foregoing d i s c u s s i o n should not be taken
to imply that it is not p o s s i b l e at p r e s e n t to de-
sign n u c l e a r power stations, or other s t r u c t u r e s ,
to be safe a g a i n s t earthquakes. Safe d e s i g n s can
be made, but they r e s u l t in m o r e cost than would
be the c a s e if m o r e p r e c i s e i n f o r m a t i o n on
e a r t h q u a k e s and s t r u c t u r a l d y n a m i c s w e r e a v a i l -
able. P a s t s t u d i e s of d e s t r u c t i v e e a r t h q u a k e s and
of e a r t h q u a k e - r e s i s t a n t design w e r e made with
the design of o r d i n a r y b u i l d i n g s in mind, With
the advent of the n u c l e a r power g e n e r a t o r it b e -
c o m e s e c o n o m i c a l l y d e s i r a b l e to have a much
m o r e a c c u r a t e knowledge of e a r t h q u a k e s and
t h e i r effects than had been c o n s i d e r e d n e c e s s a r y
in the past. This r e q u i r e s that additional r e -
s e a r c h be done to b r i n g the state of knowledge to
the d e s i r e d level, and it i s hoped that the above
d i s c u s s i o n will point the way towards i n c r e a s e d
p r o g r e s s in this i m p o r t a n t field.
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 EARTHQUAKE RESEARCH PROBLEMS OF NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
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* This 415-page handbook of earthquake engineering as
applied to nuclear r e a c t o r s contains the following
chapters: 1. General earthquake considerations; 2.
Earthquake geography and regionalization; 3. Basic
r e a c t o r types and potential damages due to e a r t h -
quakes; 4. General s t r u c t u r a l design considerations;
5. S e i s m i c - r e s p o n s e calculations for simple types of
s t r u c t u r e s ; 6, DynamJ:c p r e s s u r e on fluid containers;
7. Reactor h a z a r d s and t h e i r dependence on e a r t h -
quakes; 8. P r o t e c t i o n s y s t e m s ; Appendix A. Seismic
considerations pertinent to the stationary medium pow-
e r plant no. 1; Appendix B. Seismic considerations
pertinent to the experimental boiling water r e a c t o r ;
Appendix C. Earthquake e x p e r i e n c e s in utilities and
industrial plants; Appendix D. Earthquake experience
in existing r e a c t o r plants; Appendix E. Matrix format
for analysis of t r a n s i e n t r e s p o n s e of linear undamped
s y s t e m s ; Appendix F. Dynamic analysis of fluids in
containers subjected to acceleration; Appendix G. M i s -
cellaneous derivations; Appendix H. Seismic c o n s i d e r -
ations pertinent to the ONRL proposed gas cooled r e -
actor no. 2. Available f r o m the Office of Technical
Services, Department of C o m m e r c e , Washington, D.C.,
USA. P r i c e : $ 5.00.
319
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