Comparison of new earthquake maps

Comparison of the normative effects of new earthquake maps in Germany and in the neighboring countries

Initial position

The new national application document DIN EN 1998-1/NA-2020 for DIN EN 1998-1 is available in yellow print.
The main changes compared to DIN EN 1998-1/NA-2011 are the new earthquake maps.
The new earthquake maps developed by the GFZ and the University of Weimar are now continuous and, in contrast to DIN 4149 and the national application document DIN EN 1998-1/NA-2011 from 2011, no longer show earthquake zones. A visual comparison of the old and new maps shows a clear expansion of the areas affected by earthquakes. Another major difference is that buildings in areas of the current Zone 0, which does not require verification, according to DIN 4149 now require verification. In addition, there are sometimes significantly higher earthquake effects.
This can result in an increase in planning and construction costs, which affect both the existing building and the new building.

Objective

As part of this research project, the response spectra according to DIN 4149 and DIN EN 1998-1/NA-2020 are compared. This is necessary because the action in the new earthquake maps is given in the form of spectral accelerations and no longer with maximum ground accelerations. In addition, the new version defines soil factors that are dependent on the impact level, so that a simple and direct comparison of “old” and “new” is not possible. Furthermore, the extension of the earthquake areas and the spectral accelerations to be applied are evaluated in the new application document. The result is an assessment of the consequences for construction practice through the introduction of the new maps in the German earthquake zones.

Based on this, the seismic impacts in German earthquake areas are compared with the impact levels in the neighboring countries of the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, France and Italy. In addition, Portugal, Italy and Greece are also included. For each of the countries mentioned, the current normative documents for the definition of the response spectra are evaluated. Then the earthquake impacts in the border areas between Germany and the neighboring countries are compared and the response spectra are compared with regard to the spectral shape and the amplification factors. The report concludes with a summary assessment of the test results.