Damage and Failure of Oil Storage Tanks due to the 1999 Kocaeli Earthquake in turkey and Chi-Chi Earthquake in Taiwan

摘要

Kocaeli earthquake in Turkey occurred from a part of North Anatolian Fault. Oil storage tanks at TUPRAS Refinery closed to the fault suffered severe damage, that is, great fires and sinking of floating roofs of oil storage tanks broke out, caused by liquid sloshing which was generated by long-period strong ground motions. Fires continued for one week until liquid in tanks were burnt. In the ChiChi earthquake in Taiwan, damage such as buckling of floating roofs, rupturing of shell plates, buckling of shell-to-roof joints, and deformation of equipment of tanks, was also caused by liquid sloshing, although the tank sites were located far from the epicenter and the peak ground accelerations were about 100 gal. Most severe damage was rupture of the lowest course shell plate, where the lower end of the guide pole was supported. This tank lost its content which then spilled into inside dike, and contaminated the soil.