Analytical solutions for the seismic response of underground structures under SH wave propagation

A theoretical approach is presented to study the antiplane seismic response of underground structures subjected to the incidence of plane waves. The structure is assumed to be a circular inclusion embedded in a homogenous, isotropic and linear visco-elastic halfspace and its mathematical formulation is approached through the theory of multiple scattering and diffraction. The inclusion may consist either of a cavity, with or without a ring-shaped boundary, or it may be filled in with a linear-elastic material, without loss of generality. The seismic response of the inclusion and its influence on surface ground motions are analyzed in both frequency and time domains. The dependence of the transfer function amplitudes on several parameters, such as the angle of incident SH waves, the frequency content of the excitation, the impedance contrast between the inclusion and the surrounding medium and the position along the ground surface, is underlined. Considering the lack of analytical solutions for quantifying the modification of ground motions induced by subterranean inhomogeneities, the results of this study can be used, on one side, as benchmark for both geophysical investigations and numerical dynamic soil-structure interaction studies, and; on the other side, to support the formulation of simplified approaches and/or formulas for the seismic design and assessment of underground structures.