IDENTIFYING THE MAIN FEATURES OF LANDSLIDE MOVEMENT AND DEVELOPING THE BASIC MECHANISMS

Abstract

The results of studies of the mechanisms and main features of the movement of fast and extended clayey and other landslides are presented. Landslides are said to cause about 1,000 deaths and $4 billion losses of property each year. However, at least 90% of all landslide losses could have been avoided if the problem had been recognized in advance. At present, as a result of a preliminary statistical analysis, results have been obtained that generally explain the occurrence of the onset of landslides. On their basis, three mechanisms were explained that cause the movement of the geomass of landslides: under the influence of gravitational forces, fluidization and lubrication of the landslide bed along the base of the main guides. However, additional research has found that those gravitational forces do not ensure the movement of significant geomasses over long distances. The third mechanism we have identified is the participation of nanoparticles of the lower layer of the moving landslide as natural nano-bearings. Halloysite nanoparticles have been studied, which are nanotubes (having a length of 0,5...2 μm and an outer diameter of about 200 nm, with a lumen diameter of 10...15 nm), in which sheets of aluminosilicate are coiled into a spiral. Typically, the shells of such hallusite pipes include 15...20 layers. In addition, halloysites, depending on the conditions of crystallization and geological structure, may have another morphology (such as, for example, spheroidal or disk), which also plays the role of nano-bearings that contribute to the movement of the landslide geomass.