Updated predictive equations for broadband (0.01-10 s) horizontal response spectra and peak ground motions, based on a global dataset of digital acceleration records

Presented herein is an updated model for empirical prediction of 5%-damped elastic response spectra in the period range 0-10 s, peak ground acceleration and velocity, based on a global dataset of digital acceleration records. The predictive model features saturation of the shaking parameters with both magnitude M-W and distance R-RUP, magnitude-dependent distance attenuation, alternative parameterisations of the amplification effects due to local site conditions (based either on ground types or V-S,V-30) and corrective terms for style-of-faulting. The calibration dataset comprises more than 1,880 x 2 orthogonal horizontal accelerometer records with R-RUP < 150 km from 98 global earthquakes with 4.5 <= M-W <= 7.9. The processing technique applied to the acceleration data optimises the reliability of the predictions at long periods, as required by displacement-based design techniques. Developed independently of the recent NGA-West2 and RESORCE-based models, the new predictive tool effectively contributes to capturing the epistemic uncertainties associated with the prediction of seismic shaking levels for engineering applications.