Geostatistical analysis of settlements induced by liquefaction: case study river Lis Alluviums, Portugal

Abstract

In the present work the result of the application of geostatistical methods to soil settlement data is presented. The settlements are induced by liquefaction as a result of an earthquake of magnitude 5.5. In the present paper the ArcGIS Geostatistical Analyst software was used, where a number of Kriging methods are available. Geostatistical analysis was performed on two phases: (i) modelling the semivariogram to analyse the surface properties and; (ii) application of a Kriging method. The best adjustment was obtained with a Gaussian model with a first order function trend removal. The settlement values were obtained from the analysis and treatment of results of SPT tests carried out on soils corresponding to alluvial soils in the urban centre of Leiria, Portugal. The results show a significant area where are expected large settlements that can generate significant damages in the building stock and infrastructures.