Investigation of Sediment Thickness and Site Effects in the Guye Seismic Source Zone, Tangshan, Using the HVSR Method

Investigation of Sediment Thickness and Site Effects in the Guye Seismic Source Zone, Tangshan, Using the HVSR Method | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Investigation of Sediment Thickness and Site Effects in the Guye Seismic Source Zone, Tangshan, Using the HVSR Method Yicheng Xu, Runyan Wang, Jichao Huang, Yongge Wan, Xiaoshan Wang, and 3 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9197064/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 7 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Sediment thickness is an important reference for evaluating the site effects of seismic waves and a critical indicator for assessing seismic disaster losses. Based on the Horizontal-to-Vertical Spectral Ratio method (HVSR), this study calculates sediment thickness and evaluates site effects using nearly one year of ambient noise data recorded by a dense seismic array in the Guye seismic source zone. The results show that the sediment thickness in the study area ranges from 0 to 450 m, with a significant difference between the eastern and western parts. The site amplification factor varies from 1.0 to 14.0. The site vulnerability index exhibits a spatial pattern of high values in the west and low values in the east. The western zone with thick sediments has a high risk level of 60–110, indicating a high seismic risk region for building damage. This study further reveals that the 2020 M s 5.1 Guye earthquake occurred in the thin-sediment zone in the northern Tangshan Fault zone. Stress diffused along the fault after the 1976 event and concentrated in the thin-sediment area to drive this earthquake. The pronounced site effects in this region further intensify the ground motion intensity. The synergistic coupling between the strong seismic source input from fault activity and site effects gives rise to anomalous ground motion, thus forming an anomalous seismic damage zone. The results of this study can provide a scientific basis for regional seismic hazard risk assessment, engineering seismic fortification, and earthquake prevention and disaster mitigation. HVSR method sediment thickness site effects Guye earthquake Tangshan Fault Zone Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviews received at journal 11 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 11 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 30 Mar, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 30 Mar, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 24 Mar, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 24 Mar, 2026 First submitted to journal 23 Mar, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9197064","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":614863899,"identity":"c857ab4b-e974-4450-8890-fd473d9a7d33","order_by":0,"name":"Yicheng Xu","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Institute of Disaster Prevention","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Yicheng","middleName":"","lastName":"Xu","suffix":""},{"id":614863902,"identity":"059a7301-ee41-46d8-a432-b2f49ecbd6ac","order_by":1,"name":"Runyan Wang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Institute of Disaster 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Based on the Horizontal-to-Vertical Spectral Ratio method (HVSR), this study calculates sediment thickness and evaluates site effects using nearly one year of ambient noise data recorded by a dense seismic array in the Guye seismic source zone. The results show that the sediment thickness in the study area ranges from 0 to 450 m, with a significant difference between the eastern and western parts. The site amplification factor varies from 1.0 to 14.0. The site vulnerability index exhibits a spatial pattern of high values in the west and low values in the east. The western zone with thick sediments has a high risk level of 60\u0026ndash;110, indicating a high seismic risk region for building damage. This study further reveals that the 2020 \u003cem\u003eM\u003c/em\u003es 5.1 Guye earthquake occurred in the thin-sediment zone in the northern Tangshan Fault zone. Stress diffused along the fault after the 1976 event and concentrated in the thin-sediment area to drive this earthquake. The pronounced site effects in this region further intensify the ground motion intensity. The synergistic coupling between the strong seismic source input from fault activity and site effects gives rise to anomalous ground motion, thus forming an anomalous seismic damage zone. The results of this study can provide a scientific basis for regional seismic hazard risk assessment, engineering seismic fortification, and earthquake prevention and disaster mitigation.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Investigation of Sediment Thickness and Site Effects in the Guye Seismic Source Zone, Tangshan, Using the HVSR Method","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-04-01 23:18:20","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9197064/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-04-11T06:05:32+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"262786119666762321795808751962060842934","date":"2026-04-11T06:01:52+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"319770372422083672155654407737861614354","date":"2026-03-30T21:27:07+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2026-03-30T21:24:26+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-03-24T04:57:16+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2026-03-24T04:57:05+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Journal of Seismology","date":"2026-03-23T07:34:05+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"journal-of-seismology","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"jose","sideBox":"Learn more about [Journal of Seismology](http://link.springer.com/journal/10950)","snPcode":"10950","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/10950/3","title":"Journal of Seismology","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"755dca5d-b83f-4e6a-92e8-9c2bbbd36302","owner":[],"postedDate":"April 1st, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"under-review","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-04-01T23:18:21+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-04-01 23:18:20","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-9197064","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-9197064","identity":"rs-9197064","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}