Colloquium: “Human Caused Earthquakes: How Bad Can They Be?” — January 13, 2022 at 4 PM
Dr. Patricia Clayton
Associate Professor
Department of Engineering
Wake Forest University
Winston-Salem, NC
Thursday, January 13, 2022, 4 PM
George P. Williams, Jr. Lecture Hall, (Olin 101)
Video Link will be available if needed
To obtain the video conference link, contact wfuphys@wfu.edu
A reception will be held outside Olin Building Entrance* at 3:30 PM prior to the colloquium. All interested persons are cordially invited to attend.
*Due to Covid restrictions, the university requires all food served and consumed outside. Inclement weather arrangements provided if needed.
ABSTRACT
The rate of seismicity in parts of the Central U.S has increased dramatically in the past decade—increasing from an average historical rate of three earthquakes of greater than magnitude 3 per year, to approximately 12 per year since 2008. Numerous studies have linked the increase in seismicity to wastewater injection and other activities associated with oil and gas production, hence they are referred to as human-induced earthquakes. Damage from these events, particularly larger magnitude events such as the 2011 Magnitude 5.7 Prague, OK and 2016 Magnitude 5.8 Pawnee, OK earthquakes, have resulted in millions of dollars of insurance claims and class action lawsuits against oil and gas companies. This presentation will discuss research investigating the vulnerability of infrastructure to induced earthquakes, including an overview of the geophysics associated with human-induced earthquakes and the mechanics-based approach to determining their potential to cause damage.
Reference Information:
- USGS website on human-induced earthquakes: https://www.usgs.gov/programs/earthquake-hazards/induced-earthquakes
- Paper on the computational models used to predict the dynamic behavior and assess damage of bridges subjected to human-induced earthquakes.
Professional Website: https://engineering.wfu.edu/people/faculty/patricia-clayton/
