Numerical modelling of drop load tests

Assessment of the attenuation of induced vibrations in the ground plays an important role in evaluating comfort and structural safety. Analytical and empirical wave attenuation relationships of increasing complexity and detail are presented in the paper, as well as a numerical model that accurately reproduces wave attenuation for a well-documented site, namely the one of the Tower of Pisa, Italy. A new source model is calibrated on near-field data and used as input for the dynamic coupled consolidation finite element analysis to achieve a satisfactory simulation. The accuracy of simpler analytical and empirical approaches is then comprehensively assessed through comparison with the validated numerical model and the field data obtained from geophones at various distances from the impact source.