Love wave-induced liquefraction in a saturated sand layer

The paper is concerned with the plane strain problem of Love wave propagation through a water-saturated sand layer overlying an elastic half-space. Dynamic loads, induced by the wave passage, generate irreversible strains in the soil matrix, giving rise to the development of excess pore water pressures and subsequent reduction of the soil effective stresses, which in an extreme case can lead to the soil liquefaction. The process of pore pressure generation is analysed within the framework of compaction theory of saturated granular media. Results of numerical calculations, carried out by means of the finite element method, illustrate the evolution of pore pressures and the development of liquefaction in the subsoil, as well as the changes in the free surface displacements.