The effects of construction vibration on stone cultural relics: a case study from the Qingdao Museum

The potential impact of vibration from nearby construction on four ancient stone statues in the Qingdao Museum was studied. Simulated but full-scale drilling, excavation and impact breaking were conducted to gather ground motion data which were used to prepare incremental dynamic time histories. The four stone statues were modeled numerically and the models were used to estimate the statues’ maximum tensile stress, maximum strain and maximum shear stress in response to the time histories. The most vulnerable parts of the statue are thus identified, and vibration limits were proposed.