The Earthquake Engineering Online Archive

Dynamic response of Long Valley Dam in the Mammoth Lake earthquake series of May 25-27, 1980

Lai, Shyh-Shiun; Seed, H. Bolton

UCB/EERC-85/12, Earthquake Engineering Research Center, University of California, Berkeley, 1985-11, 71 pages (480.2/L35/1985)

A comprehensive set of data on the seismic performance of the dam was provided by the California Strong Motion Instrumentation Program during the earthquake series. Two- and three-dimensional dynamic analysis procedures were used to check the applicability of the equivalent-linear complex-response method to predict the seismic response of the dam, which has a complicated three-dimensional configuration. The suitability of a new shear modulus attenuation curve for the Long Valley embankment materials was evaluated based on a further three-dimensional response analysis carried out to determine the dynamic response of the embankment. In this analysis, the new shear modulus attenuation curve was used with the values of (K subscript 2) max used in the previous analysis. The dynamic properties of the embankment materials which provide the best agreement between the computed and recorded motions in the various analyses were determined and the results are illustrated in a table. The resulting values are compared with values determined by laboratory tests on the soil before the earthquakes. Major conclusions drawn from the investigation are presented.

Available online: http://nisee.berkeley.edu/documents/EERC/EERC-85-12.pdf (3 MB)