Application of Geophysical Prospecting Methods for Soil Structure Characterization of the Cathedral of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

== Abstract ==

Hispaniola is in the edge of interaction between the North American and Caribbean 
plates. In this zone, the occurrence of earthquakes greater than 5.0, Mw is frequent, 
characterizing  it as  a seismically active  zone. These earthquakes cause considerable material 
damage  and  can  provoke  loss  of  human  lives.  The  Cathedral  of  Santo  Domingo,  Primate  of 
the  Americas,  is  in  the  Colonial  City  of  Santo  Domingo.  It  is  the  most  important  colonial 
building  in  Dominican  Republic,  was  built  between  1521-1541,  and  is  a  masonry  building 
made  with  stone  ashlars  and  covered  with  stone  ribbed  vault.  However,  it  is  essential  to 
know  about  the  possible  seismic  behavior  that  the  ground  could  have  in  case  of  a  relevant 
earthquake to try to avoid  possible  damage  to  this  heritage.  For  this  reason,  the  aim  of  this 
research  is  to  apply geophysical prospecting methods for the seismic site characterization of 
the Cathedral of Santo Domingo.  For  this  study,  the  geophysical  methods applied  were: 
MASW  (Multichannel Analysis  of  Surface  Wave),  H/V  Spectral  Ratio  and  Georadar.  The 
characterization  of  site conditions was determined with the values of the average shear wave 
velocity for the top 30 m of  soil  (Vs30)  obtained  with  the  MASW  method.  As  a  main  result 
it  was  found  that  the  site  seismic  class  determined  with  the  MASW  method  was  type  C-
very  dense  soil  and  soft  rock  (360-760  m/s),  according  to  the  NEHRP  classification.  In 
addition,  the  Georadar  tests  allowed  confirming  that  there  are  no  unknown  caverns  in  the 
basement of the Cathedral in the first 5 m, thus it is accepted as valid the seismic 
classification of the soil obtained by the MASW method.

== Full document ==
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