Impact of Geothermal Micro-seismic Events on the Serviceability and Comfort of Urban Structures

Abstract This study investigates the impact of low-magnitude-geothermally-induced seismic events on residential buildings, focusing on vibrational behaviour and serviceability in urban environments. Traditional building vulnerability assess ments are resource-intensive, prompting the need for more efficient approaches. The research adopts a hybrid model combining finite element (FEM) and lumped parameter models (LPM) to analyze building responses to seismic activity. Using seismic data from events in Insheim, Germany, the study examines how floor size, stiffness, and damping affect building vibrations. Findings show that the floor dimensions significantly affect vibration magnitudes, especially at eigen-frequencies.Additionally, increased stiffness amplifies vibrations for the considered building models, while higher damping reduces them. Most structures complied with serviceability standards, though a few exceeded comfort thresholds. The research also introduces taxonomic fragility functions that assess the likelihood of exceeding defined vibration limits, thereby providing an efficient tool for engineers to determine building resilience to micro-seismic events.