Slope seismic stability analysis on kinematical element method and its application

Abstract

In this paper, kinematical element method (KEM) is extended to the solution of seismic slope stability with the pseudo-static approach. Analytical expressions are derived to calculate the factor of safety of slopes subjected to seismic loading and pore-water pressure. KEM is adopted to assess seismic stability of slope and some examples show that the results obtained from KEM, limit equilibrium method (LEM), variational method and strength reduction method (SRM) are generally in good agreement. And then the seismic slope stability charts are developed on the basis of KEM and pseudo-static approach, providing a rapid and reliable way to calculate the factor of safety and the location of critical slip surface without iteration. Based on the above seismic slope stability charts, a new back analysis method is presented. KEM and pseudo-static approach are applied to study the effect of blasting on the stability of open pit slope, and the approach to determine the relationship between critical explosive weight and distance is presented.