Effects of the earth fissure on the seismic response characteristics of a nearby metro station

Earth fissures with several kilometers will inevitably approach or cross the metro line, significantly threatening the safety of the underground structure in the earth fissure site. However, the influence of the earth fissure site's amplification effect on the metro station's dynamic response is still unclear. A representative earth fissure in Xi'an was taken as an example to establish a numerical model of a metro station in the earth fissure site. The dynamic response characteristics of the metro stations at different distances from the earth fissure under various seismic waves were calculated. The results show that the existence of the earth fissure significantly amplifies the dynamic response of the nearby underground structures. The responses of the axial force, shear force, bending moment, normal stress, horizontal displacement, inter-story drift, and relative slip of the metro station were all amplified within a specific influence range. The amplification effect increases with the seismic wave intensity. The amplification effect caused by the earth fissure has relatively weak impacts on the axial shear, shear force, bending movement, normal stress, and horizontal movement; slightly larger impacts on the inter-story drift and acceleration; and a significant impact on the relative slip. The influence ranges of the axial force and normal stress are approximately 20 m. The influence ranges of the acceleration and inter-story drift can reach 30 m. Therefore, the seismic fortification level of the underground structure in the earth fissure site needs to be improved.