Mitigation of ground vibrations by circular arrays of rigid blocks

Pile driving and other activities in the built environment cause ground vibration at low frequencies. This may result in annoyance to people as well as damage to civil structures. It is known that masses added on the ground surface can have an impact on the vibration levels in the surrounding environment. Hence, employing a semi-analytical model for rigid blocks on the surface of a layered ground, this paper investigates whether circular arrays of such blocks can be used as a means of vibration mitigation. The frequency range 0–80 Hz is considered, since this is relevant to whole-body vibrations of humans as well as the fundamental modes of resonance in building elements, e.g., floors and walls. Two different soil profiles are analysed: a soft dry sand layer over a till half-space and a soft wet clay layer over a lime half-space. Further, three configurations of the block arrays are taken into consideration, and for the first soil profile also the height of the blocks is varied to test its influence on the insertion loss in a zone 20–40 m away from the source. The aim is to quantify the overall insertion loss that can be expected using the proposed methodology. Further, the variation in insertion loss caused by changes in the block array configuration is examined.