Ground-Motion Model for Hard-Rock Sites by Correction of Surface Recordings (Part 1): Comparison of Site-Response Estimates at KiK-Net Sites

Site-specific seismic hazard assessment involves the prior knowledge of (1) the input ground motion at the local bedrock and (2) the site response. In this article and its companion, we address the deconvolution approach to obtain a reference ground-motion model, which consists of removing site effects from surface ground-motion recordings. Laurendeau et al. (2018) applied this approach on the KiK-net network with site response from 1D SH-wave (1DSH) simulations, calculated using the VS profiles available for most sites. Indeed, this approach presents several limitations with 1DSH site response if it is considered to be applied to other networks, especially in the European context. First, the approach requires identification of sites with dominant 1D effects. Second, it needs the presence of accurately measured VS profiles. In this context, we propose to derive deconvolved ground-motion models using site response from generalized inversion techniques () for two main reasons. The first reason is that the GIT delivers empirical site response for all types of sites, conditioned by the presence of sufficient amount of data, and the second is that it reduces the need for VS profiles. We focus on the estimation of site effects from different approaches and present a methodology to obtain reliable site terms from GIT based on the experience from previous studies. We also introduce and detail the difference between absolute and relative site response, which mainly depends on the chosen reference. We estimate and compare site response for the KiK-net stations with different methods, that is, empirical and theoretical 1DSH. We also conclude a list of 1D sites based on comparisons between theoretical and empirical estimates of site response. The results obtained in this article will be the primary input for the deconvolution approach applied in the companion article.