Abstract In order to identify potential seismogenic faults in the central part of Taiyuan basin, we carry out shallow seismic exploration of Tianzhuang fault. The results show that: 1) Tianzhuang fault can be divided into three sections, in which the north branch faults are the main faults. 2) Except for the western end of the fault and the turning section of the middle-eastern segment, the other sections are similar to the “Y” structure. 3) The fracture bandwidth of the eastern segment is the largest and the smallest. The active ages and slip rates of the faults are determined by borehole profiles and chronological methods. The active ages of the middle part of the fault are late Late Pleistocene, the minimum buried depth of the upper fault point is 39.3 m, the maximum fault distance since late Pleistocene is 2.9 m, and the maximum slip rate is 0.041 5 mm/a. The active ages of the western and eastern segments are middle Pleistocene, and the minimum buried depth of the upper fault point at the turning point of the middle-eastern segment is 37.4 m. Since the late Pleistocene, the maximum fault distance is 2.7 m and the maximum slip rate is 0.046 1 mm/a. Based on the fracture length of bedrock revealed by shallow earthquake, seismic moment method is used to analyze the seismic risk probability of Tianzhuang fault, and the maximum potential magnitude and seismogenic probability of the fault are determined.