LIQUEFACTION ASSESSMENT USING A SYNTHETIC CPT DERIVED FROM CORRELATION WITH SHEAR WAVE VELOCITY

The assessment of liquefaction potential is critical in regions subject to seismic activity, as it can cause significant damage to buildings and infrastructure. However, the reliability of liquefaction potential evaluations is highly dependent on the assessment methods employed and the number of representative investigations conducted. This issue is particularly pertinent when assessing linear infrastructure, such as levees, which are often constructed on sediments prone to liquefaction. This study introduces an innovative approach for evaluating liquefaction potential using the synthetic Cone Penetration Test (CPT) data, derived from correlations with shear wave velocity (vs). The proposed methodology involves establishing a CPT–vs correlation based on an extensive dataset, with careful consideration of the effects of averaging layer thicknesses over which the results are averaged. This correlation forms the foundation for deriving CPT data from measured shear wave velocities, which is subsequently utilized to calculate the liquefaction factor of safety and the probability of liquefaction occurrence. The methodology is validated using data from a test site adjacent to a levee in the Krnjica settlement in Croatia, which experienced liquefaction during the 2020 Petrinja earthquake. The findings suggest that integrating shear wave velocity spatial data to generate synthetic CPT data provides a relatively reliable tool for estimating liquefaction potential. The paper also offers recommendations for enhancing the methodology to improve its applicability and accuracy. Keywords: soil liquefaction, correlation, shear wave velocity, cone penetration test, Krnjica levee