Assessment of soil liquefaction potential using the standard penetration test at Port Sudan

Abstract

Liquefaction is one of the most critical ground deformations in saturated or partially saturated silty and sandy soils. This deformation may cause severe destruction, such as settlement and building tilting. A standard penetration test (SPT) is commonly used to estimate liquefaction potential. This study integrates SPT, unit weight, and fine content data measurements from 24 boreholes in Port Sudan to evaluate and identify the liquefaction potential and factor of safety (F.S.) in earthquake scenarios. The liquefaction parameters were derived according to the simplified procedure in this scope. The result showed that the subsurface soil up to 15 meters is saturated with grain sizes varying from medium to fine sand, silt, and clay. Based on calculated parameters and fine content, the area falls within the high risk of liquefaction by a 7.5 (Mw) earthquake. The F.S. is mainly less than one in the upper 15 m. The liquefaction potential index is assessed using a peak horizontal ground acceleration of 0.15 g for an earthquake scenario of magnitude 7.5. The proposed approach proved to be a rapid and reliable method for investigating the liquefaction of sandy soil under earthquakes.