Influence of tectonic structures on the Hope Slide, British Columbia, Canada

The Hope Slide, which occurred on January 9, 1965, involved an estimated 47-Mm³ of meta-volcanics and intrusive rocks. Previous workers reported the presence of tectonic structures (faults and shear zones) along the failure surface at the Hope Slide. These tectonic features were investigated in detail to assess their effects on rock-mass quality and the related implications for slope stability. This paper integrates basic field and laboratory concepts from structural and engineering geology. Subdividing the failure area into structural domains allowed distinct discontinuity sets to be associated with specific tectonic structures. The Geological Strength Index (GSI) was used to estimate the rock-mass damage related to the tectonic structures. Low GSI values were seen to outline tectonic damage zones. Point-load tests were used to characterise the compressive strength of rocks adjacent to the tectonic structures. Strength anisotropy, tentatively attributed to damage caused by a large shear zone, was observed in greenstone samples. Seepage zones along the failure surface were observed preferentially along shallow discontinuities that dipped downslope and in rock masses of good quality (GSI > 40). An alternative morphology of the slope failure is proposed by distinguishing between the extent of the surficial damage due to the rock-slope failure and the zone of failed material (depletion zone). For the first time, a kinematic mechanism for the Hope Slide is proposed, based on a preliminary 3-dimensional block model. A pre-1965 DEM was produced from estimates of material lost and gained as reported by previous workers. The pre-1965 DEM revealed that the tectonic structures recognised during fieldwork bounded the material that failed in the 1965 event.     

Slope stability evaluation using Back Propagation Neural Networks

The Yudonghe landslide, located in western Hubei Province of China, consists of eastern and western subunits as well as a main landslide mass with upper and lower slip surfaces. As an important landslide close to Shuibuya Dam on the Qing River, its stability is crucial, as the slide might reactivate because of a change in ground-water level caused by filling of the Shuibuya Reservoir. Existing weakness zones, growth of ruptures, the downslope attitude of geologic strata, and water infiltration, which reduced the strength of rocks and soils, have been found to be the most important factors contributing to the Yudonghe landslide. With regard to the landslide processes, it can be noted that the original large-scale slide activity was due to erosion by the Qing River, the second sliding resulted from the fall of blocks from the head scarp, and the final activity was the growth of the eastern and western secondary slides. A base failure was the main type of slope movement, however, it was obvious that more than one sliding event occurred, as inferred from striations and fractures detected by microstructure analysis of soils along the failure surfaces. Slope instability was evaluated by the method of Back Propagation Neural Networks (BPNN), in which a four-layer BPNN model with five input nodes, two hidden layers, and two output nodes was constructed using a training data set of landslide samples throughout the Qing River area. The predicted results of this analysis showed that the factor of safety was 1.10, which indicates that the Yudonghe landslide is currently in a marginally stable condition.     

三峡库区巴东县城附近主要滑坡边界轨迹分形分维特征与滑坡稳定性关系

为了探索复杂滑坡轨迹结构演化及其稳定性定量分析计算的新途径，本文利用分形分维理论，分析三峡库区巴东县城附近滑坡边界轨迹的几何分形结构，并采用盒维数法分别求得巴东县城附近11个滑坡边界轨迹的分维值，计算结果表明：每个滑坡的轨迹结构具有其特征性的分维值，轨迹结构越复杂，结构层次越清楚，分维值越高；其中，榨房坪滑坡和黄腊石滑坡的分维值最高，分别为1.50和1.483，西壤口和谭家湾滑坡的分维值最低，分别为0.925和0.732；而黄土坡和赵树岭滑坡的分维值介于二者之间，分别为1.111和1.091。结合典型滑坡边界轨迹结构演化与滑坡稳定性关系的定性分析及前期滑坡稳定性定量计算和模拟分析，初步揭示：滑坡边界轨迹结构与稳定性是密切相关的，滑坡边界轨迹宏观扩展增值越明显，轨迹结构越复杂，分维值越高，其稳定性条件也越差，因此，分数维可作为衡量滑坡轨迹结构复杂性和稳定性的重要标志；滑坡边界轨迹宏观扩展变形存在一个极限，超过这个极限滑坡的局部失稳就转化为整体滑动；而滑坡边界轨迹则记录了滑坡变形扩展现象和信息，因此，相对应地滑坡轨迹分形结构的分维值也应存在一个极值，在极值点滑坡体处于临滑状态；滑坡边界轨迹结构的极限分维值大致为1.4～1.5，此时滑坡接近于整体极限失稳状态，而分维值在1.1～1.3之间则表示滑坡处于整体稳定，局部存在潜在失稳状态，分维值小于1则表示滑坡处于相对稳定状态。     

Analysis of rock structure stability in coal mines

In this paper, the theory of limit point instability is used to analyse the stability of rock structures in coal mines. A general method of analysing stability of rock structures is put forward and a uniform instability condition of rock structures is set up. Some instability phenomena, such as rock bursts in circular roadways, pillars and long walls, and the outburst of coal and gas from circular roadways, are discussed analytically. At a later stage, the critical point of rock structure instability is determined. The influence of relative parameters (such as the mechanical properties of rock, coal, and the geometric sizes) on the stability of the rock structures is carefully analysed. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Left upstream slope design for the Çatalan Dam, Adana, Turkey and its behaviour under actual earthquake loading

An investigation and remediation of instability along upstream cut slopes for an earthfill dam in differentially weathered rock in southern Turkey is described. The major instability problem was a 45-m high and 200-m long previously cut slope next to the main axis of the dam, above the diversion tunnels and water outlet structures. The slope was first designed and excavated in 1986 based on the temporary berm approach. Rising water level in the reservoir would change the shear strength parameters and the pore-water pressure in the slope; thus, probable deep failure would damage the entrance of the diversion tunnels and water outlet structures, as well as the earthfill embankment of the dam. In June 1996, the slope face was re-excavated and protected against wave erosion by placement of a layer of rock riprap over a layer of bedding and a filter material. A strong earthquake (M_S = 6.2) occurred during a period of rapid drawdown in 27 June 1998. The slope remained stable, although numerous tension cracks developed in Quaternary terrace deposits near the reservoir area.     

An adaptive finite element model for wellbore breakout simulation

A finite element formulation is proposed and implemented for analysing the stability of excavated wells using the DiMaggio-Sandler constitutive elastoplastic model with a typical carbonate reservoir configuration. The quality of the finite element approximation is ensured by applying smooth curved elements adapted to the wellbore geometry, and h − p adaptive finite element meshes in the plastic zone. General purpose procedures are defined to transfer the elastoplastic deformation history to newly created integration points. A breakout damage criterion is proposed based on the second invariant of the deviatoric plastic deformation tensor. This damage criterion is used to apply a mesh movement algorithm to represent material collapse. The automatic successive application of the breakout damage criterion results in elliptical realistically looking geometries obtained in experiments reported in the literature.     

Stability analysis of tunnels driven in jointed rocks by means of a homogenized limit analysis approach

Conceived as a potential alternative to the classical design methods employed for analyzing the stability of underground structures driven in jointed rocks, the homogenization approach stems from the heuristic idea that, from a macroscopic point of view, a rock mass cut by a network of joints may be perceived as a homogenized continuum. The strength properties of the latter can be theoretically obtained from the failure conditions of its individual constituents: rock matrix and joint interfaces. At the material level, the limit analysis reasoning is used in the context of homogenization to formulate the homogenized strength criterion of a jointed rock mass in the particular situation of a single set of parallel joints. As it could be expected, the obtained closed‐form expressions show the strength anisotropy induced by joint preferential orientation. The support functions (π functions) associated with the homogenized strength criterion are also determined in both plane strain and three‐dimensional cases. This criterion is then applied to the investigation of stability analysis of a tunnel excavated in a jointed rock mass. Upper bounds estimated of the stability factor are derived from the implementation of the kinematic approach directly on the homogenized underground structure. Finally, the approach is applied to analyze and discuss the collapse of the Pinheiros subway station (São Paulo, Brazil). Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical and analytical observations on long and infinite slopes

Interest in the mechanics of landslides has led to renewed evaluation of the infinite slope equations, and the need for a more general framework for estimating the factor of safety of long and infinite slopes involving non‐homogeneous soil profiles. The paper describes finite element methods that demonstrate the potential for predicting failure in long slope profiles where the critical mechanism is not necessarily at the base of the soil layer. The influence of slope angle is also examined in long slopes, leading to some counter‐intuitive conclusions about the impact of slope steepness on the factor of safety. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Temporal stability of soil moisture in an oasis of northwestern China

Temporal stability of soil moisture has been widely used in hydrological monitoring since it emerged. However, the spatial analysis of temporal stability at the landscape scale is often limited because of insufficient sampling numbers. This work made an effort to investigate the spatial variations of temporal stability of soil moisture in an oasis landscape. The specific objectives of the study were to explore the spatial patterns of temporal stability and to determine the controlling factors of temporal stability in the desert oasis. A time series of soil moisture measurements were gathered on 23 occasions at 118 locations over 3 years in a rectangular transect of approximately 100 km². The nonparametric Spearman's rank correlation coefficient, standard deviation of relative difference (SDRD), and mean absolute bias error (MABE) were used to quantify the temporal stability of soil moisture. Results showed that the temporal stability of soil moisture was depth dependent and season dependent. The spatial pattern of soil moisture in a deep soil layer and between two same seasons generally had a high temporal stability. SDRD and MABE were spatially autocorrelated and exhibited strong spatial structures in the geographic space. The concept of temporal stability can be extended to describe the time‐stable areas of soil moisture with geostatistics. There were great differences between SDRD and MABE in describing the temporal stability of soil moisture and in identifying the controlling factors of temporal stability. In this case, MABE was a better alternative to estimate the areal mean soil moisture using representative locations than SDRD. Land use type, soil moisture condition, and soil particle composition were the dominant controls of temporal stability in the oasis. These insights could help to better understand the essence of temporal stability of soil moisture in arid regions.