Abstract Summary
In this paper, a meshless method for the simulation of dynamic soil-structure interaction prob-lems is verified in a three-dimensional context. The proposed meshless method considers a set of collocation points at the ground surface portions where the structure’s foundations will be located, whilst the virtual sources are placed in the soil in a hemisphere configuration, sur-rounding those foundations. The method is based on three steps: incident wave field evaluation, incident wave field virtualization and structure response determination. In the first stage, the free field response due to the incident wave field to be considered is evaluated at the collocation points. In this framework, without the structure, a set of virtual forces that equivalently repre-sent the free field response induced by that incident wave field is calculated. Finally, this set of virtual sources is applied to a structure-soil model to determine the response of the structure. The evaluation of the incident wave field at the first stage can be carried out by a simulation model of the incident wave field or by measurements on the real site, if possible. The proposed meshless method is verified in the context of the problem of a rectangular foundation embedded in a homogeneous half-space subjected to both non-moving and moving harmonic forces. Tips for the effective usage of the proposed method are outlined and the application of the method for the assessment of ground vibration in new buildings to be constructed close to operative railway lines is also discussed.
