GEOTECHNICAL ISSUE AND SITE RESPONSE IN CENTRAL U.S

This chapter highlights the results of recent studies dealing with key seismic geotechnical issues in the Central United States, including (1) the significance of using the conditional mean spectrum (CMS) for seismic design at the periphery of the New Madrid Seismic Zone (NMSZ); (2) site response of deep soil deposits in the Mississippi Embayment; and (3) unique aspects of liquefaction in the Central United States, particularly in the NMSZ. Use of the CMS framework permits the development of ground motions that are consistent with the seismic sources in the area, while maintaining the probabilistic sense of a probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA). Because the liquefaction features are unique in the NMSZ, site-specific evaluation, including site response analysis, is needed for evaluating liquefaction potential.