Definition of Liquefaction

Liquefaction occurs when vibrations or water pressure within a mass of

soil cause the soil particles to lose contact with one another. As a result,
the soil behaves like a liquid, has an inability to support weight and can
flow down very gentle slopes. This condition is usually temporary and is
most often caused by an earthquake vibrating water-saturated fill or
unconsolidated soil

Conditions that Cause Liquefaction

Liquefaction most often occurs when three conditions are met:

1. loose, granular sediment or fill

2. saturation by groundwater
3. strong shaking

Liquefaction Susceptibility Mapping

An understanding of the conditions that cause liquefaction enables geologists to
produce maps of liquefaction susceptibility. This has been done for the San
Francisco Bay area and other locations where earthquakes might trigger
liquefaction. A sample from one of these maps is shown on this page.

Soil liquefaction, also called earthquake liquefaction, ground

failure or loss of strength that causes otherwise solid soil to
behave temporarily as a viscous liquid. The phenomenon occurs
in water-saturated unconsolidated soils affected by
seismic S waves (secondary waves), which cause ground
vibrations during earthquakes. Although earthquake shock is the
best known cause of liquefaction, certain construction practices,
including blasting and soil compaction and vibroflotation (which
uses a vibrating probe to change the grain structure of the
surrounding soil), produce this phenomenon intentionally. Poorly
drained fine-grained soils such as sandy, silty, and gravelly soils
are the most susceptible to liquefaction.
Granular soils are made up of a mix of soil and pore spaces.
When earthquake shock occurs in waterlogged soils, the water-
filled pore spaces collapse, which decreases the overall volume of
the soil. This process increases the water pressure between
individual soil grains, and the grains can then move freely in the
watery matrix. This substantially lowers the soil’s resistance
to shear stress and causes the mass of soil to take on the
characteristics of a liquid. In its liquefied state, soil deforms easily,
and heavy objects such as structures can be damaged from the
sudden loss of support from below.

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