Experimental Study on the Relationship between the Velocity of Surface Movements and Tilting Rate in Pre-Failure Stage of Rainfall-Induced Landslides.

Jiren Xie,Chao Huang,Jingli Tian,Taro Uchimura,Zain Maqsood

doi:10.3390/s21185988

Abstract

With the development of deformation measuring technology at slope surfaces, prediction methods for rainfall-induced landslides based on the surface movements and tilting of slopes in the pre-failure stage have been recognized as a promising technique for risk reduction of slope failure triggered by rainfall. However, the correlation and possible mechanism for these prediction methods were rarely discussed. In this study, the comparison between the prediction methods of slope failure based on the time history of surface displacements and tilting in the acceleration stage was carried out by conducting a series of laboratory tests and field tests under rainfall, in which the movements and tilting behaviors at the slope surface were measured. The results show that the predicted failure time of tested slopes obtained by different prediction methods is consistent, and the correlation between these landslide prediction methods were also detected. A proportional relationship between the velocity of surface displacements and tilting rate was observed, and a possible mechanism for the sliding behavior was discussed based on this linear relationship as well. In addition, an expression for the linear relationship between the rate of the surface tilting and displacement was also established in this study, and the results could have significance for the understanding of the sliding behavior in the failure process in rainfall-induced landslides.

Highlights

Rainfall-induced landsides often lead to serious damage on environment, infrastructures, and human lives
The slope failure was triggered applying artificial rainfall with constant with tiltInsensors were used in this field test,byand a slight different rainfall intensity of rainfall intensity of mm/h, and the slope slid along the pre-designed slip surface
The slope failure in Field Test 1 was caused by applying artificial rainfall with the rainfall intensity of 21 mm/h

Summary

Introduction

Rainfall-induced landsides often lead to serious damage on environment, infrastructures, and human lives. Traditional methods for landslide damage reduction, such as retaining walls and piles, improve the factor of safety by mechanical reinforcement measures. These methods are costly and not suitable for a large number of slopes with potential risks of failure. Early warning methods of rainfall-induced landslides with low cost and negligible environmental impact have been proposed and recognized as promising approaches for the risk reduction of landslide disasters These methods are used to detect the pre-failure behavior of landslides triggered by rainfall and evacuate the residents living in the landslide prone in a timely manner [6,7,8,9,10]. Centrifuge and mechanics-based models were used to study and assess rainfall-induced instabilities in different slopes [11,12], and climate change increasing the amount of antecedent rainfall significantly affects the rainfall-induced landslide vulnerability of the area [13]

Methods

Results

Conclusion