LIQUEFACTION

• Liquefaction is a phenomenon in which the

strength and stiffness of a soil is reduced by
earthquake shaking or other rapid loading.
Liquefaction and related phenomena have
been responsible for tremendous amounts of
damage in historical earthquakes around the
world.
• Liquefaction occurs in saturated soils, that is, soils
in which the space between individual particles is
completely filled with water. This water exerts a
pressure on the soil particles that influences how
tightly the particles themselves are pressed
together. Prior to an earthquake, the water
pressure is relatively low. However, earthquake
shaking can cause the water pressure to increase
to the point where the soil particles can readily
move with respect to each other.
 JAPAN
• The scale of Japan's March 11 earthquake and
tsunami wasn't the only thing that surprised
geologists.
• The 9.0 earthquake in Japan — the fourth
most powerful quake ever recorded — also
caused an unusually severe and widespread
shift in soil through liquefaction, a new study
suggests.
 JAPAN
• The duration of the Japanese earthquake,
about five minutes, could be the key to the
severity of the liquefaction and may force
researchers to reconsider the extent of
liquefaction damage possible.
• "With such a long-lasting earthquake, we saw
how structures that might have been okay
after 30 seconds just continued to sink and tilt
as the shaking continued for several more
minutes
 JAPAN
• Japan's liquefaction occurred over hundreds
of miles, surprising even experienced
engineers who are accustomed to seeing
disaster sites, including from the recent
earthquakes in Chile and New Zealand.
• The study raises questions about whether
existing building codes in other vulnerable
locations can enable structures to withstand
massive liquefaction, including in areas of
Oregon, Washington and California.
 Indonesia
• A 7.5 magnitude earthquake shook Donggala
and Palu in the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia
on September 28, 2018, Causing destruction
that killed more than 1700 people. Not long,
the public was shocked to see on social media
pictures and videos from the disaster location
showing soil flowing like a river, dragging
along and wiping out houses and trees.
 Indonesia
• Footage has emerged from the stricken city of
Palu showing people running to find solid
ground as structures were swept away and
destroyed by waves of undulating earth.
Images show a section of the city being erased
by surging soil.