Overview

An earthquake is one of the principal natural hazards from which process plants world-wide are at risk. Some account is therefore necessary of the seismic design of plants and the assessment of seismic hazard to plants.

Accounts of earthquakes are given in Seismicity of the Earth and Associated Phenomena by Gutenberg and Richter (1954), Elementary Seismology by Richter (1958), Introduction to Seismology by Bath (1979), Earthquakes and the Urban Environment by Berlin (1980), Earthquakes by Eiby (1980), An Introduction to the Theory of Seismology by Bullen and Bolt (1985) and Earthquakes by Bolt (1988). Treatments of earthquake engineering, most of which give some coverage of seismology, include Dynamics of Bases and Foundations by Barkan (1962), Earthquake Engineering by Wiegel (1970), Fundamentals of Earthquake Engineering by Newmark and Rosenbleuth (1971), Earthquake Resistant Design by Dowrick (1977, 1987), Ground Motion and Engineering Seismology by Cakmak (1987) and Manual of Seismic Design by Stratta (1987). UK conditions are dealt with in Earthquake Engineering in Britain by the Institution of Civil Engineers (1985) and by Lilwall (1976) and Alderson (1982 SRD R246, 1985).

It is proper to recognize also the large amount of work done on seismicity and seismic engineering in Japan.

Earthquake engineering is a specialist discipline. The account given here is limited to an elementary introduction.

Selected references on earthquakes, earthquake-resistant design and earthquake hazard assessment are given in Table A15.1