Mass Failure Research Articles

Modelling the 1929 Grand Banks slump and landslide tsunami

Abstract On 18 November 1929, an M w 7.2 earthquake occurred south of Newfoundland, displacing >100 km 3 of sediment volume that evolved into a turbidity current. The resulting tsunami was recorded across the Atlantic and caused fatalities in Newfoundland. This tsunami is attributed to sediment mass failure because no seafloor displacement due to the earthquake has been observed. No major headscarp, single evacuation area nor large mass transport deposit has been observed and it is still unclear how the tsunami was generated. There have been few previous attempts to model the tsunami and none of these match the observations. Recently acquired seismic reflection data suggest that rotational slumping of a thick sediment mass may have occurred, causing seafloor displacements up to 100 m in height. We used this new information to construct a tsunamigenic slump source and also carried out simulations assuming a translational landslide. The slump source produced sufficiently large waves to explain the high tsunami run-ups observed in Newfoundland and the translational landslide was needed to explain the long waves observed in the far field. However, more analysis is needed to derive a coherent model that more closely combines geological and geophysical observations with landslide and tsunami modelling.

Bottom currents, submarine mass failures and halokinesis at the toe of the Sigsbee Escarpment (Gulf of Mexico): Contrasting regimes during lowstand and highstand conditions?

In this study we explore the role of sediment supply, halokinesis and deep ocean circulation in promoting margin instability. The analysis was carried out on multibeam and high-resolution seismic data that allowed the imaging of mass failure deposits and current-driven depositional features along a portion of the lower continental slope and upper continental rise of the Sigsbee Escarpment (Gulf of Mexico). Different styles of deposition have been recognised during sea level lowstand (LST) and highstand (HST) conditions, due to alternating bottom current activity and salt tectonics. Lowstands are characterized by a reduced intensity of the Loop Current, as underlined by the lack of current-driven erosional features. On the contrary, highstands show a strengthened Loop Current that generates a fast bottom current circulation, as suggested by the presence of extensive furrow fields on the modern sea floor and on the Marine Isotope Stage 5e palaeo-sea floor horizon. Increased sediment load combined with changes in the intensity of deep water circulation are also responsible for the instability of the Sigsbee Escarpment, triggering mass failure phenomena with distinct morphology, size, location and timing of emplacement. Type 1 mass transport complexes (MTCs) form on the upper continental rise during sea level fall, and are genetically linked to the growth of deep water sediment drifts. Type 2 MTCs develop during sea level lowstands and originate along the slope of the Sigsbee Escarpment, triggered by oversteepening generated by halokinesis. Type 3 MTCs form during sea level rise to highstand conditions and mostly consist of debris flow deposits, generated in the lower portions of the Sigsbee Escarpment and then accumulated in the upper continental rise.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ELECTRIC POWER INDUSTRY AFTER THE OCTOBER REVOLUTION OF 1917: ORIGINS, PROSPECTS AND PROBLEMS

Purpose of the study . During the period of the fall of technical and technological stability of the Russian electric power industry, the issues related to the study of the historical experience of the origin, construction and development of such large industrial complexes are actualized. The present study aims to analyze the history of the development of the Russian electric power industry after the October Revolution of 1917, to reveal the influence of the revolution on the electric power industry, to investigate the postwar period of the formation of the Unified Energy System and to assess the current state of the electric power industry in the absence of large-scale projects and programs for updating and modernizing production facilities, propose mechanisms to improve technical and technological stability of electricity of the Russian Federation. Materials and methods . In 1920, after the October Revolution of 1917, the first plan related to the development of economic activities of the national economy was adopted, which was called the State Plan for the Electrification of Russia. This document contained the main mechanisms and requirements for the formation and establishment of a new branch for the economy. Based on the use of data from the Government of the Russian Federation, Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation, Joint-stock company “United Energy System of Russia”, as well as electric power companies, the post-revolutionary period of the electric power industry development, the current state and the existing potential of the Russian electric power industry are analyzed. Using the economic-statistical, comparative and logical methods, the main results of the study were presented. Results. Analyzed indices of the electric power industry in the period 1920–1935 indicate a breakthrough in the development of the Russian energy sector, this period was marked by the implementation of the plans ahead of schedule. In the post-war period, from 1950–1985, there was an increase in the construction of production capacities, The development of the electric power industry after the October Revolution of 1917: origins, prospects and problems at the same time, both heat and hydro and nuclear power plants were built, thereby increasing the installed capacity by more than 10 times in thirty years. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, there has been a halt in the pace of development of the Russian electric power industry, and now the deprecation of the fixed assets increase, the degradation of energy equipment, the aging of power generation technologies, the fall in investment attractiveness and the efficiency of management of generating capacities, which can lead to mass failure equipment and emergency consequences. The conclusion . Based on the results of the study, we have the following conclusions in the need to search for new mechanisms to improve the sustainability of the electricity industry in the absence of financial resources. In the author's opinion, it is advisable to implement them on three interrelated mechanisms: revising production capacities, eliminating potentially worn-out fixed assets; the formation of common programs for the development of the electric power industry within the framework of the General Electricity Market of the Eurasian Economic Union; the construction of power plants in the border areas, due to which several national states will provide electric power.

Landslides and dam damage resulting from the Jiuzhaigou earthquake (8 August 2017), Sichuan, China.

At 21.19 on 8 August 2017, an Ms 7.0 earthquake struck the Jiuzhaigou scenic spot in northwestern Sichuan Province, China. The Jiuzhaigou earthquake is a strike-slip earthquake with a focal depth of 20 km at 33.20° N and 103.82° E, and was caused by two concealed faults. According to emergency investigations and remote sensing interpretations, the Jiuzhaigou earthquake triggered 1780 landslides, damaged one dam (Nuorilang Waterfall) and broke one dam (Huohua Lake). The landslides mainly occurred in the Rize Valley and Shuzheng Valley and in Jiuzhai Paradise. The landslides involved hanging wall and back-slope effects, and the slope angle, slope aspect, seismic faults and valley trend were obviously related to the occurrence of the landslides. Specifically, most of the landslides were shallow landslides, rockfalls and rock avalanches and were small in scale. The failure modes of landslides mainly include wedge rock mass failure, residual deposit failure, relaxed rock mass failure and weathered rock mass failure. The initial low stability of the dam coupled with the topographic effect, back-slope effect and excess pore water pressure led to damage to the Nuorilang Waterfall dam.

Tsunami detection by high-frequency radar in British Columbia: performance assessment of the time-correlation algorithm for synthetic and real events

The authors recently proposed a new method for detecting tsunamis using high-frequency (HF) radar observations, referred to as “time-correlation algorithm” (TCA; Grilli et al. Pure Appl Geophys 173(12):3895–3934, 2016a, 174(1): 3003–3028, 2017). Unlike standard algorithms that detect surface current patterns, the TCA is based on analyzing space-time correlations of radar signal time series in pairs of radar cells, which does not require inverting radial surface currents. This was done by calculating a contrast function, which quantifies the change in pattern of the mean correlation between pairs of neighboring cells upon tsunami arrival, with respect to a reference correlation computed in the recent past. In earlier work, the TCA was successfully validated based on realistic numerical simulations of both the radar signal and tsunami wave trains. Here, this algorithm is adapted to apply to actual data from a HF radar installed in Tofino, BC, for three test cases: (1) a simulated far-field tsunami generated in the Semidi Subduction Zone in the Aleutian Arc; (2) a simulated near-field tsunami from a submarine mass failure on the continental slope off of Tofino; and (3) an event believed to be a meteotsunami, which occurred on October 14th, 2016, off of the Pacific West Coast and was measured by the radar. In the first two cases, the synthetic tsunami signal is superimposed onto the radar signal by way of a current memory term; in the third case, the tsunami signature is present within the radar data. In light of these test cases, we develop a detection methodology based on the TCA, using a correlation contrast function, and show that in all three cases the algorithm is able to trigger a timely early warning.

Study of the Rock Mass Failure Process and Mechanisms During the Transformation from Open-Pit to Underground Mining Based on Microseismic Monitoring

To quantitatively understand the failure process and failure mechanism of a rock mass during the transformation from open-pit mining to underground mining, the Shirengou Iron Mine was selected as an engineering project case study. The study area was determined using the rock mass basic quality classification method and the kinematic analysis method. Based on the analysis of the variations in apparent stress and apparent volume over time, the rock mass failure process was analyzed. According to the recent research on the temporal and spatial change of microseismic events in location, energy, apparent stress, and displacement, the migration characteristics of rock mass damage were studied. A hybrid moment tensor inversion method was used to determine the rock mass fracture source mechanisms, the fracture orientations, and fracture scales. The fracture area can be divided into three zones: Zone A, Zone B, and Zone C. A statistical analysis of the orientation information of the fracture planes orientations was carried out, and four dominant fracture planes were obtained. Finally, the slip tendency analysis method was employed, and the unstable fracture planes were obtained. The results show: (1) The microseismic monitoring and hybrid moment tensor analysis can effectively analyze the failure process and failure mechanism of rock mass, (2) during the transformation from open-pit to underground mining, the failure type of rock mass is mainly shear failure and the tensile failure is mostly concentrated in the roof of goafs, and (3) the rock mass of the pit bottom and the upper of goaf No. 18 have the possibility of further damage.

Overhanging rock slope by design: An integrated approach using rock mass strength characterisation, large-scale numerical modelling and limit equilibrium methods

Overhanging rock slopes (steeper than 90°) are typically avoided in rock engineering design, particularly where the scale of the slope exceeds the scale of fracturing present in the rock mass. This paper highlights an integrated approach of designing overhanging rock slopes where the relative dimensions of the slope exceed the scale of fracturing and the rock mass failure needs to be considered rather than kinematic release of individual blocks. The key to the method is a simplified limit equilibrium (LE) tool that was used for the support design and analysis of a multi-faceted overhanging rock slope. The overhanging slopes required complex geometries with constantly changing orientations. The overhanging rock varied in height from 30 m to 66 m. Geomechanical modelling combined with discrete fracture network (DFN) representation of the rock mass was used to validate the rock mass strength assumptions and the failure mechanism assumed in the LE model. The advantage of the simplified LE method is that buttress and support design iterations (along with sensitivity analysis of design parameters) can be completed for various cross-sections along the proposed overhanging rock sections in an efficient manner, compared to the more time-intensive, sophisticated methods that were used for the initial validation. The method described presents the development of this design tool and assumptions made for a specific overhanging rock slope design. Other locations will have different geological conditions that can control the potential behaviour of rock slopes, however, the approach presented can be applied as a general guiding design principle for overhanging rock cut slope.

The Russian state and society interaction in the legal sphere: Historical and legal analysis

The article deals with the interaction of the Russian state and society in the legal sphere during the periods of stability, legal reforms and revolutionary transformations on the basis of specific historical and legal examples. In research on the history of state and law, on the one hand, these problems are constantly affected in various aspects, but on the other hand - there are no theoretical generalizations on the basis of historical and legal material, the problem of interaction of the state and society in the legal sphere not only acquires relevance but also requires learning from the point of view of experience. It is concluded that the most intensive interaction between the state and society was during the periods of legal reforms. It also shows the pros and cons of the results of such interaction during each of three periods. Such forms of interaction between the state and society in the legal sphere, as granting of legal status to the custom, institute of «popular initiative» in legislative process, creation of official and scientific special commissions for studying the real legal situation, studying of the public response to the new regulatory acts or their implementation, law enforcement monitoring, mass failure to follow the rule of law, recourse to international adjudication by Russian citizens, have been considered.

Nonlocal Criteria for Brittle and Quasi-Brittle Fracture of Geomaterials and Rocks

Nonlocal criteria are used for prediction materials and rock mass failure near stress concentrations (pores, faults, openings, excavations). A common property of nonlocal fracture criteria is the introduction of the intrinsic material length characterizing its microstructure, which allows one to describe the size effect in conditions of stress concentration. At the same time the scope of their application is limited to cases of brittle or quasi-brittle fracture with a small fracture process zone. To expand the scope of the criteria for cases of fracture with a developed fracture process zone, it is proposed to abandon the hypothesis of the size of this zone as a material constant, associated only with the material structure. New fracture criteria are proposed, which are the development of the average stress criterion, and point stress criterion, and which contain a complex parameter that characterizes the size of the fracture process zone and accounts not only for the material structure, but also plastic properties of the material, geometry of the sample, and its loading conditions. Expressions are obtained for the critical pressure in the problem of the formation of tensile cracks under compression in the samples of geomaterials with a circular hole. The calculation results are in good agreement with the experimental data on the fracture of drilled gypsum plates.

Numerical simulation of landslide dam breaching due to overtopping

The breach of landslide dam often causes significant disaster in the inundated area; the prediction of breach hydrograph is in high demand for the dam breach risk evaluation. In this study, according to the model tests and Tangjiashan landslide dam breach case, the surface erosion accompanied by intermittent mass failure is known as the key breaching mechanism for landslide dam due to overtopping failure. The downstream slope angle would gradually decrease during the dam-breaching process, whereas a planar wedge failure occurs when the breach slopes at the dam crest and downstream breach channel fail. Based on the breach mechanism, a numerical model for landslide dam breach due to overtopping is developed to simulate the coupling process of water and soil. The model focuses on the breach morphology evolution during the breaching for the sake of the improvement of breach hydrograph prediction. Furthermore, the model can handle one- and two-sided breach, as well as incomplete and base erosion at the vertical direction. The case study of Tangjiashan landslide dam-breaching feedback analysis testifies the rationality of the present model with the relative errors less than 10% for peak discharge, final breach widths, and time to peak. The sensitivity analysis indicates that the final breach depth and soil erodibility affect the breach flow prediction of the landslide dam significantly, whereas the one- or two-sided breach mode is less sensitive.

A laboratory study of channel sidewall expansion in upland concentrated flows

Gully erosion contributes large amounts of sediment within watersheds around the world. Gully widening constitutes about 80% of total soil loss, especially in the presence of a plow pan which manifests a less or non-erodible soil layer. Current knowledge on sidewall toe scour (scour arcs) and tension crack processes in gully widening is limited. Thus, simulated channel sidewall expansion tests, where the channel bed was fixed to represent a non-erodible layer, were designed to investigate how inflow rate, slope gradient and initial channel width affect channel widening processes. Soil boxes (2.0 m-long, 0.3 m-wide and 0.5 m-deep) with two slope gradients (15° and 20°), four inflow rates (1.0, 2.0, 3.0 and 4.0 L min−1) and two initial channel widths (4 and 8 cm) were subjected to clear-water overland flow. Photogrammetry was used to detect tension crack and width variations of channels. The results show that sediment delivery and channel width increase with the increase of inflow rate, bed slope and the decrease of initial channel width. Exponential equations were used to predict the channel width time series. Time lag occurred between sediment peak and soil block failure. Toe scour, crack development, sidewall failure and block detachment and transport, in sequence, were the four main processes of channel widening. Basal scour arc length, tension crack length and width decreased with initial channel width and increased with time, flow discharge and bed slope. Basal scour arcs were divided into three patterns according to different shapes in comparison to the failure arcs. Sediment delivery equations based on the disaggregation of concentrated flow entrainment and mass failure were also fitted. This study provides new insight on improving gully erosion measurements and prediction technology.

A spatially focused clustering methodology for mining seismicity

Mining seismicity is routinely observed to cluster in space and time due to the spatially distinct rock mass failure processes associated with the temporally dependent process of mining. Assessment of clustered seismicity is important to develop an understanding of and to quantify seismic hazard that is associated with mining.This article presents a density-based clustering method that is applicable to the assessment of 3D spatial distributions of short-term seismicity. The methodology presented in this article is developed from existing approaches that address the general limitations of density-based clustering algorithms.Synthetically generated seismicity allows for the assessment of the methodology with respect to external and internal performance measures. The clustering of a dataset with known attributes allows for confidence to be developed in the capability of the clustering method. Additionally, this internal performance evaluation can represent the relative accuracy of outcomes without prior information concerning dataset attributes.The clustering method is applied to two case studies of mining seismicity. These cases illustrate the general applicability of the clustering method along with the value of evaluating internal performance measures when optimising the selection of parameters and understanding the sensitivity of clustering outcomes to these choices.

Magnitude and frequency relations: are there geological constraints to the rockfall size?

There exists a transition between rockfalls, large rock mass failures, and rock avalanches. The magnitude and frequency relations (M/F) of the slope failure are increasingly used to assess the hazard level. The management of the rockfall risk requires the knowledge of the frequency of the events but also defining the worst case scenario, which is the one associated to the maximum expected (credible) rockfall event. The analysis of the volume distribution of the historical rockfall events in the slopes of the Sola d’Andorra during the last 50 years shows that they can be fitted to a power law. We argue that the extrapolation of the F-M relations far beyond the historical data is not appropriate in this case. Neither geomorphological evidences of past events nor the size of the potentially unstable rock masses identified in the slope support the occurrence of the large rockfall/rock avalanche volumes predicted by the power law. We have observed that the stability of the slope at the Sola is controlled by the presence of two sets of unfavorably dipping joints (F3, F5) that act as basal sliding planes of the detachable rock masses. The area of the basal sliding planes outcropping at the rockfall scars was measured with a terrestrial laser scanner. The distribution of the areas of the basal planes may be also fitted to a power law that shows a truncation for values bigger than 50 m2 and a maximum exposed surface of 200 m2. The analysis of the geological structure of the rock mass at the Sola d’Andorra makes us conclude that the size of the failures is controlled by the fracture pattern and that the maximum size of the failure is constrained. Two sets of steeply dipping faults (F1 and F7) interrupt the other joint sets and prevent the formation of continuous failure surfaces (F3 and F5). We conclude that due to the structural control, large slope failures in Andorra are not randomly distributed thus confirming the findings in other mountain ranges.

Failure mechanism and kinematics of the deadly June 24th 2017 Xinmo landslide, Maoxian, Sichuan, China

At 5:38 am on the 24th June, 2017, a catastrophic rock avalanche destroyed the whole village of Xinmo, in Maoxian County, Sichuan Province, China. About 4.3 million m3 of rock detached from the crest of the mountain, gained momentum along a steep hillslope, entrained a large amount of pre-existing deposits, and hit the village at a velocity of 250 km/h. The impact produced a seismic shaking of ML = 2.3 magnitude. The sliding mass dammed the Songping gully with an accumulation body of 13 million m3. The avalanche buried 64 houses; 10 people were killed and 73 were reported missing. The event raised great concerns both in China and worldwide. Extensive field investigation, satellite remote sensing, UAV aerial photography, and seismic analysis allowed to identify the main kinematic features, the dynamic process, and the triggering mechanism of the event. With the aid of ground-based synthetic aperture radar monitoring, the hazard deriving from potential further instabilities in the source area has been assessed. The preliminary results suggest that the landslide was triggered by the failure of a rock mass, which had been already weakened by the Ms 7.5 Diexi earthquake in 1933. Several major earthquakes since then, and the long-term effect of gravity and rainfall, contributed to the mass failure. The high elevation, slope angle, and vegetation cover in the source area hinder geological field investigation and make hazard assessment difficult. Nonetheless, monitoring and prevention of similar collapses in mountainous areas must be carried out to protect human lives and infrastructures. To this aim, the integrated use of modern high-precision observation technologies is strongly encouraged.

Assessment of rock slope stability by slope mass rating (SMR): A case study for the gas flare site in Assalouyeh, South of Iran

Slope mass rating (SMR) is commonly used for the geomechanical classification of rock masses in an attempt to evaluate the stability of slopes. SMR is calculated from the RMR89-basic (basic rock mass rating) and from the characteristic features of discontinuities, and may be applied to slope stability analysis as well as to slope support recommendations. This study attempts to utilize the SMR classification system for slope stability analysis and to investigate the engineering geological conditions of the slopes and the slope stability analysis of the Gas Flare site in phases 6, 7 and 8 of the South Pars Gas Complex in Assalouyeh, south of Iran. After studying a total of twelve slopes, the results of the SMR classification system indicated that three slope failure modes, namely, wedge, plane and mass failure were possible along the slopes. In addition, the stability analyses conducted by a number of computer programs indicated that three of the slopes were stable, three of the slopes were unstable and the remaining six slopes were categorized as \'needs attention\' classes.

Failure behavior around a circular opening in a rock mass with non-persistent joints: A parallel-bond stress corrosion approach

The stability of underground excavations is influenced by discontinuities interspaced in surrounding rock masses as well as the stress condition. In this work, a numerical study was undertaken on the failure behavior around a circular opening in a rock mass having non-persistent open joints using PFC software package. A parallel-bond stress corrosion (PSC) approach was incorporated to drive the failure of rock mass around the circular opening, such that the whole progressive failure process after excavation was reproduced. Based on the determined micro parameters for intact material and joint segments, the failure process around the circular opening agrees very well with that obtained through laboratory experiment. A subsequent parametric study was then carried out to look into the influence of lateral pressure coefficient, joint dip angle and joint persistency on the failure pattern and crack evolution of the rock mass around the circular opening. Three failure patterns identified are step path failure, planar failure and rotation failure depending on the lateral pressure coefficient. Moreover, the increment of joint dip angle and joint persistency aggravates the rock mass failure around the opening. This study offers guideline on stability estimation of underground excavations.

The role of deep-water sedimentary processes in shaping a continental margin: The Northwest Atlantic

The tectonic history of a margin dictates its general shape; however, its geomorphology is generally transformed by deep-sea sedimentary processes. The objective of this study is to show the influences of turbidity currents, contour currents and sediment mass failures on the geomorphology of the deep-water northwestern Atlantic margin (NWAM) between Blake Ridge and Hudson Trough, spanning about 32° of latitude and the shelf edge to the abyssal plain. This assessment is based on new multibeam echosounder data, global bathymetric models and sub-surface geophysical information.The deep-water NWAM is divided into four broad geomorphologic classifications based on their bathymetric shape: graded, above-grade, stepped and out-of-grade. These shapes were created as a function of the balance between sediment accumulation and removal that in turn were related to sedimentary processes and slope-accommodation. This descriptive method of classifying continental margins, while being non-interpretative, is more informative than the conventional continental shelf, slope and rise classification, and better facilitates interpretation concerning dominant sedimentary processes.Areas of the margin dominated by turbidity currents and slope by-pass developed graded slopes. If sediments did not by-pass the slope due to accommodation then an above grade or stepped slope resulted. Geostrophic currents created sedimentary bodies of a variety of forms and positions along the NWAM. Detached drifts form linear, above-grade slopes along their crests from the shelf edge to the deep basin. Plastered drifts formed stepped slope profiles. Sediment mass failure has had a variety of consequences on the margin morphology; large mass-failures created out-of-grade profiles, whereas smaller mass failures tended to remain on the slope and formed above-grade profiles at trough-mouth fans, or nearly graded profiles, such as offshore Cape Fear.

A novel in-seam borehole hydraulic flushing gas extraction technology in the heading face: Enhanced permeability mechanism, gas flow characteristics, and application

The heading face in soft and low-permeability coal seams is one of the most high-risk areas for Chinese coal and gas miners because of the number of outburst-related accidents. To prevent and control these disasters, the in-seam borehole gas extraction technology is widely used because of its low construction cost. Unfortunately, few studies consider its gas extraction efficiency.Thus, a new in-seam borehole hydraulic flushing (ISBHF) gas extraction technology is proposed in this paper, where the hydraulic flushing technology is used to enhance the gas extraction of in-seam boreholes. Based on the engineering background in the Xinjing coal mine, a detailed study of this new technology is conducted. First, we model the permeability-increasing mechanism of this technology and the gas flow characteristics of the hydraulic flushing boreholes using a finite-element method. During this process, the strain-softening behavior of the coal mass and the effect of the coal mass failure on the permeability evolution are considered. Second, a reasonable gas extraction scheme is designed, which considers the divergent characteristics of boreholes in the heading face and the interactions among multiple boreholes in the gas extraction process. Finally, the gas extraction scheme is implemented at the S5 intake airflow roadway to verify the simulation results and to evaluate the efficiency of this technology.The field test results are consistent with the simulation results, which validates our model. Moreover, using this new technology, the number of gas extraction boreholes in the heading face decreased by 50%. Conversely, the gas extraction-based concentration and flow increased 10- and 6-fold, respectively, which results in a 65% decrease in gas extraction time and a 100% increase in monthly excavation length of the coal mine roadway. These results indicate that this new technology is a promising method to achieve efficient gas extraction and rapid excavation in the heading face of soft and low-permeability coal seams.

Experimental investigation on cohesionless sandy bank failure resulting from water level rising

In the last decade, sediment replenishment forming cohesionless sandy banks below dams has become an increasingly common practice in Japan to compensate for sediment deficits downstream. The erosion process of the placed cohesionless sediment is a combination of lateral toe-erosion and the following mass failure. To explore cohesionless bank failure mechanisms, a series of experiments was done in a soil tank using a compacted sandy soil mass exposed to an increasing water level. Two types of uniform sand (D50 = 0.40mm and 0.17mm) and two bank heights (50cm and 25cm) were used under the condition of a constant bank slope of 75°. The three dimensional (3D) geometry of the bank after failure was measured using a handheld 3D scanner. The motion of bank failure was captured using the particle image velocimetry (PIV) technique, and the matric suction was measured by tensiometers. The compacted sandy soil was eroded by loss of matric suction accompanying the rise in water level which subsequently caused rotational slide and cantilever toppling failure due to destabilization of the bank. The effect of erosion protection resulting from the slumped blocks after these failures is discussed in the light of different failure mechanisms. Tensile strength is analyzed by inverse calculation of cantilever toppling failure events. The tensile strength had non-linear relation with degree of saturation and showed a peak. The findings of the study show that it is important to incorporate the non-linear relation of tensile strength into stability analysis of cantilever toppling failure and prediction of tension crack depth within unsaturated cohesionless banks.

Debris flow initiation by runoff in a recently burned basin: Is grain‐by‐grain sediment bulking or en masse failure to blame?

AbstractPostwildfire debris flows are frequently triggered by runoff following high‐intensity rainfall, but the physical mechanisms by which water‐dominated flows transition to debris flows are poorly understood relative to debris flow initiation from shallow landslides. In this study, we combined a numerical model with high‐resolution hydrologic and geomorphic data sets to test two different hypotheses for debris flow initiation during a rainfall event that produced numerous debris flows within a recently burned drainage basin. Based on simulations, large volumes of sediment eroded from the hillslopes were redeposited within the channel network throughout the storm, leading to the initiation of numerous debris flows as a result of the mass failure of sediment dams that built up within the channel. More generally, results provide a quantitative framework for assessing the potential of runoff‐generated debris flows based on sediment supply and hydrologic conditions.