Evaluation of liquefaction potential of soils in Düzce City Center

Abstract

Soil liquefaction is one of the ground deformations occurred during an earthquake which may cause serious damages such as settlement and tilting of structures due to loss of bearing capacity of foundations. Düzce and its surrounding settle on a plain which consists of silty and sandy layers with shallow groundwater level. Besides, the North Anatolian Fault Zone is a major seismic source which is capable of producing large magnitude earthquakes. All these data point out that the ground deformations like liquefaction and lateral spreading may occur during a probable large earthquake around Düzce and its close vicinity. In this study, the geotechnical data of 40 boreholes drilled to determine the local ground conditions and the groundwater level in Düzce were considered. Based on the field studies, it was aimed to evaluate the liquefaction potential considering the fact that the groundwater level is shallow as well as the subsurface soil is composed of loose alluvium. Liquefaction Potential Index (LPI) and Liquefaction Severity Index (LSI) methods were taken into account and the liquefaction potential of Düzce province was determined and mapped with respect to various earthquake scenarios in GIS environment. These maps are compared on the basis of different scenarios. Accordingly, it is concluded that the liquefaction potential is high-very high in the south and south-eastern sections of the study area where the construction of new residential buildings progressively continues. © 2019 Jeoloji Muhendisligi Dergisi. All rights reserved.