Peak ground acceleration analysis using past earthquake data

Abstract

Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA) is one of the important parameters in the design of seismic resistant structures. In order to predict the value of PGA for a particular place, the past seismic history of that place in terms of data sets is required. The seismic data analysis of regions or nations becomes mandatory due to the frequent occurrence of earthquakes worldwide. This paper presents a study to predict peak ground acceleration of Maharashtra, India by using Excel and MATLAB tools. The available parameters used for the prediction are PGA, epicentral distance, depth and moment magnitude from the year 1912 to 2009. Both the tools have good fit in the prediction of PGA of Maharashtra (R2 >0.9); however Excel may be preferred because of its simplicity and flexibility in handling the data sets.