A study of the reduction of ground vibrations by an active generator

•The idea of using an additional generator to prevent ground vibrations is proposed.•Four different locations of a generator are analysed.•Different soil parameters and layers locations are investigated.•The vibration reduction efficiency in a four-story building is presented.•An additional generator applied to a ground surface can be an effective solution.

This paper presents the concept of using an additional generator to prevent ground vibrations. A linear, transversally isotropic three dimensional half-space with the hysteretic damping model, acted upon by a harmonic vertical excitation is assumed. Equations of motion for the transversally isotropic ground model with the absorbing boundary conditions are presented and numerically integrated using FlexPDE software, based on the finite element method. The efficiency of the solution is analysed in terms of reducing the vertical and horizontal components of ground surface vibrations. Results in the form of a dimensionless amplitude reduction factor are presented for four different locations of a generator. The influence of the soil parameters and layers locations on the additional generator's efficiency is investigated. The vibration reduction efficiency in a four-story building is also presented.