A Study of the Newmark Sliding Block Displacement Functions

Hwang & Chen analyse displacement functions for earthquake-induced sliding using updated abscissa scaling N/(A+). They show that previous models underestimated displacement due to using peak acceleration A instead of triggering-direction acceleration A+. The paper redefines displacement function geometry, derives expressions for characteristic slippage, validates using Taiwanese and Chi–Chi earthquake records, and proposes improved empirical attenuation relationships.