A Review of Hazard Mitigation Strategies for Underground Structures Subjected to Fault Rupture

Ghavami, Sadegh; Kaushal, Vinayak

doi:10.48303/jsee.2025.2056730.1143

A Review of Hazard Mitigation Strategies for Underground Structures Subjected to Fault Rupture

Articles in Press

Document Type : Review Article

Authors

Sadegh Ghavami ¹

Vinayak Kaushal ²

¹ Faculty of Civil Engineering, Sahand University of Technology, Tabriz, Iran.

² Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, Texas, United States.

10.48303/jsee.2025.2056730.1143

Abstract

Some of the consequences of earthquakes are permanent ground deformations caused by fault movement and propagation of fault rupture to the ground surface. Structural seismic design codes recommend avoiding construction near active faults and establishing a setback zone from the fault lines to prevent the effects of surface fault rupture on structures. Avoiding construction across or near active faults is impossible for long structures, such as tunnels and pipelines. Therefore, appropriate measures should be taken to mitigate the fault rupture hazard. This study reviews hazard mitigation strategies for the interaction between fault and subsurface structures, which are classified into structural (flexible joints and reinforcement) and geotechnical methods (isolation layers, sliding elements, and rupture deviation). The effectiveness of these approaches is influenced by the type of fault, as well as the geometry and location of the subsurface structure. The solutions investigated and their conditions can be a guide for practical engineering.

Keywords

Fault Rupture

Underground Space

Hazard Mitigation

Ground Deformations

Subjects