Abstract
This paper presents the failure analysis of layered clayey slopes with emphasis on the combined effect of the clay’s weakening behavior and the seismic loading using the particle finite element method (PFEM). Diverse failure mechanisms have been disclosed via the PFEM modelling when the strain-weakening behavior of clay is concerned. In contrast to a single layered slope exhibiting either a shallow or a deep failure mode, a layered slope may undergo both failure modes with a time interval in between. Seismic loadings also enlarge the scale of slope failure in clays with weakening behavior. The failure of a real layered slope (i.e. the 1988 Saint-Adelphe landslide, Canada) triggered by the Saguenay earthquake is also studied in this paper. The simulation results reveal that the choice of the strain-softening value controls the slip surface of the landslide and the amplification effect is important in the triggering of the landslide.
Highlights
Stability analysis of slopes in earthquakes has long been recognized as a challenging problem in geotechnical engineering
This paper presents the failure analysis of layered clayey slopes with emphasis on the combined effect of the clay’s weakening behavior and the seismic loading using the particle finite element method (PFEM)
The study of layered clayey slopes has attracted great attention from researchers, but most studies were conducted under the assumption of limited deformation
Summary
Stability analysis of slopes in earthquakes has long been recognized as a challenging problem in geotechnical engineering. Despite numerous contributions to slope stability in earthquakes, most efforts were devoted to investigating the failure process [13] which is, to a large extent, owing to the limitation of the traditional FEM. The CEL method has been adopted to investigate the large deformation behavior of clayey slopes under seismic loading with the weakening of clays being concerned [12]. A two-layer slopes with and without strain softening are studied using static analysis to determine the corresponding FOS. Dynamic analysis of these slopes with the reduced strength is carried out using the PFEM to predict the complete failure and post-failure evolutions. The objectives of this study are four-fold which are: (i) presenting the failure pattern captured by static and dynamic analyses; (ii) investigating the role of strainweakening in failure patterns; (iii) studying the effects of seismic loading acting on slope failures; and (iv) reconstructing a real clayey landslide controlled by seismicweakening effects
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