Soil Slope Instability Research Articles

Investigation on the Instability Mechanism of Expansive Soil Slope With Weak Interlayer Based on Strain Softening

ABSTRACTExpansive soils are widespread in the world and coincide with areas of high human activity. The main cause of deep instability of expansive soil slopes is due to their softening caused by excavation and seepage. By developing a comprehensive numerical model based on the theory of unsaturated soil, this study examines the characteristics of stress and displacement distribution of expansive soil slopes through hydraulic‐mechanical coupled numerical simulation. This study analyzes the evolution patterns of slopes with excavation unloading and seepage of water storage to reveal the mechanisms of deep‐seated instability of expansive soil slopes. The findings demonstrate that: The instability of expansive soil slopes begins at the foot of the slope and propagates along the interlayer, affecting the entire slope. Excavation leads to the softening of the expansive soil interlayer and the transfer of shear stress. During water storage, the weakening of the soil strength results in slope instability along the weak interlayer slip. Softening of the expansive soil interlayer facilitates the redistribution of shear forces in the slope and alters the distribution law of the plastic zone in the deep layer. Overly slowing down the slope leads to significant excavation unloading, which is detrimental to the slope's stability.

Three-Dimensional Spectral Element Method Implementation for Evaluating Rooted Soil Behavior in Slope Stability Analysis

Bioengineering techniques are being increasingly adopted as a sustainable solution to soil slope instability. Despite their recognized benefits, however, the mechanistic contribution of vegetation to slope stability remains inadequately understood due to the intricate nature of soil–root interactions and the complexity of root architectures. Most existing research predominantly offers qualitative assessments of vegetation effectiveness. This study aims to numerically substantiate the role of vegetation as a bioengineering technique for soil slope stabilization. Various plant species used commonly for soil stabilization were identified, and undisturbed soil samples were collected to quantify the shear strength parameters of the soils from both barren and vegetated slopes, along with root tensile strengths. A comprehensive topographic survey was conducted to capture the precise topography of the study area. Utilizing these primary data, in this work we develop 3D models for five representative plants within each species category and employ the Spectral Element Method (SEM), an advanced higher-order formulation of the finite element method (FEM), within the 3D domain to evaluate the factor of safety for the soil slopes. The SEM offers superior accuracy and stability in numerical computations. The results obtained through the SEM were corroborated through the FEM modeling and were found to be consistent with other established methodologies. This innovative approach of 3D SEM aims to quantitatively assess the impact of vegetation on soil slope stability and provide a more rigorous understanding of bioengineering applications in geotechnical engineering.

Field study on vegetation eco-protection technology for red sandstone fill slope against water damage

The construction of fill slopes becomes a critical aspect when there is a need to change the terrain or create new terrain. However, due to the poor engineering properties of the fill material, especially when red sandstone with notable disintegration properties is used, the risk of slippage or collapse may occur. This material is prone to erosion and disintegration under the action of natural factors such as heavy rainfall, leading to severe soil erosion and slope instability. In addition, the construction of fill slopes inevitably causes the destruction of native vegetation, exacerbating environmental problems. To address these problems, an novel ecological approach for preventing water damage to red sandstone fill slopes was developed using the vegetation–high-performance turf reinforcement mat –anchor–drainage pipe–synergistic slope protection system. Three test red sandstone slopes with different protection methods (unprotected, three-dimensional (3D) protection mesh, and vegetation ecological protection system slopes) were constructed, and the feasibility and reliability of ecological protection against water damage to red sandstone fill slopes were analysed via the field test method. The results showed that the vegetation ecological protection system can effectively inhibit soil erosion and increase the survival rate of vegetation roots. Moreover, the the high-performance turf reinforcement mat provides a strong protective complex through interactions with vegetation roots, anchors, and drains, which significantly enhances slope stability. Under heavy rainfall conditions, the vegetation ecological protection system can effectively limit slope erosion due to water scour, thus maintaining the structural integrity of the slope.

Plaxis 2D Modelling of an Anchor Sheet Pile for Soil Slope Strengthening at Segamat, Johor

In soil engineering, the soil slope is one of the important issues in geotechnical and environmental engineering that can fail due to settlement behaviour. Due to soil slope instability, roads near the Segamat River’s slopes have seen severe settlement. Therefore, this study was carried out to determine how the geometry of the soil slope and the properties of the soil affect soil stability and deformation. Because of the varying slope geometries along the river, this study used two alternative slope geometries in its modelling. A comparison was made between the existing slope and the slope stabilised with sheet piling by using Plaxis 2D. Other parameters that affect slope stability are also being investigated, such as anchor length and anchor installation angle. The anchor sheet pile's presence is intended to improve the slope's stability. As a result of this analysis using PLAXIS 2D software, the optimal anchor length depends on the passive pressure of the soil behind the sheet pile. According to the results, installing an anchor with a 60° angle is more stable because the safety factor obtained is 3.26 which is greater than that of a 45° angle which is 1.33. It shows the anchor is the best support of the sheet pile for the soil slope stability.

Experimental and numerical investigation on failure mechanism of expansive soil subgrade slope

AbstractShallow landslides of expensive soil slopes occur from time to time, and most engineering geological problems are directly or indirectly caused by soil structure cracks. The existence of tensile cracks can significantly affect the hydro-mechanical properties of soils. In this paper, the mechanism of expansive soil landslide formation is explored, and swelling pressures, and drying and wetting cycles are introduced into the discrete element method (DEM), and the landslide process of expansive soils is studied by the numerical simulation mothed. The relationship between the crack development and the instability of expansive soil slopes was investigated. The results show that under the condition of seasonal dry and wet alternation, the cracks of the expansive soil slope gradually develop, the rainwater infiltrates rapidly, the mechanical properties gradually deteriorate, and under the effect of such adverse cycle, the soil gradually softens and the stability decreases. Under the influence of human activities, vehicle loads and other factors, the slope body slides. These findings are helpful for the design and construction of expansive soil slopes and foundations.

Exploring the stability of unsaturated soil slope under rainfall infiltration conditions: A study based on multivariate interrelated random fields using R-vine copula

Estimating the instability of soil slopes due to rainfall in highly heterogeneous materials poses a considerable challenge. In this study, a general framework for coupled hydro-mechanical modeling of rainfall-induced instability in unsaturated slopes with multivariate random fields is developed. The R-vine copula is introduced to simulate the intricate non-Gaussian dependencies between soil parameters. UMAP is utilized for visualizing these dependencies. The study compares the fitting performances of R-vine and Gaussian copulas using LOWESS Regression. Subsequently, deterministic model computations are conducted in Abaqus, along with batch random field model analysis based on the R-vine copula. The instability probability of soil slopes under rainfall infiltration conditions is evaluated through direct Monte Carlo simulations, and statistically investigate the relationships between groundwater level, sliding volume, plastic zone volume, and safety factor. The findings indicate that: 1) The R-vine copula model proficiently captures the non-Gaussian dependencies in soil data, demonstrating superior fitting performance over the Gaussian copula; 2) deterministic simulations might overestimate the safety factor at certain instances; 3) as rainfall progresses, a growing negative correlation is observed between groundwater levels and slope instability; 4) continuous rainfall leads to a re-equilibration of the sliding mass, heightening the influence of the sliding volume on stability.

Upper-bound optimized solution of unsaturated soil slope stability under steady and unsteady flows

The increasing frequency of extreme weather events is leading to a rise in unsaturated soil slope instability near the earth's surface year by year. Establishing the method for analyzing slope stability under complicated hydrological conditions is imperative. This study proposes an approach that combines finite element (FE) seepage analysis with upper-bound limit analysis to evaluate the stability of unsaturated soil slopes. Two kinematically failure mechanisms are constructed based on the spatial discretization technique via point by point including the rotational and rotational-translational combinational failure modes, which can adapt to the complex pore water pressure distribution and varying soil unit weight. Additionally, a novel optimized solution scheme that integrates dichotomy and meta-heuristic optimization approaches is adopted to determine the factor of safety (FoS) and critical slip surface of slopes. The effectiveness and practicality of this method are validated by comparing with the published examples of slope stability evaluation under horizontal and inclined water table. Moreover, the variation of failure mode during the rainfall infiltration is illustrated by a case study of the slope under heavy rainfall. The methodological framework presented in this study can provide a basis for evaluating the stability of saturated–unsaturated soil slopes with 2D seepage conditions.

Response of the Anchoring Performance at Betula platyphylla’s Root–Soil Interface to Cyclic Loading

In dealing with issues such as soil erosion and slope instability, plant roots enhance the shear strength of the soil mass through their anchoring effect. However, in nature, cyclic loads such as flash floods and blizzards indirectly impose fatigue effects on plant root systems. To explore the impact of cyclic loads on the anchoring capacity of plant roots, this paper selects the roots of Betula platyphylla as the research object and uses a monotonic load and cyclic load as two loading modes. Under different loading amplitudes (25%, 50%, and 75%), root diameters and burial depths (50 mm, 100 mm, and 150 mm), and soil moisture contents (11.85%, 13.85%, and 15.85%), the effects of each factor on the anchoring capacity of the roots under cyclic loading are analyzed. The results showed that the root–soil interface exhibited two failure modes under different cyclic load amplitudes, and the cyclic load significantly reduced the maximum friction of the root–soil interface. As the cyclic load amplitude increased (from 25% to 75%), the hysteretic curve envelope area increased, and the growth rate of cumulative residual slip changed from decreasing to decreasing and then increasing. A good correlation was found between cumulative residual slip and the number of loading cycles, and the three characteristic slips were correlated with loading amplitude but not significantly with diameter. The increase in soil moisture content, root embedment depth, and diameter led to an increase in the ratio of the two maximum friction forces. It was shown that a certain degree of plasticity exists at the root–soil interface to resist environmental stresses in nature. At high fatigue stress levels, the root–soil interface is more nonlinear, and as the load amplitude increases, more energy is dissipated, and bond damage between the root–soil interface becomes more pronounced. The root–soil interface gradually degraded under long-term cyclic loading, whereas the increase in root depth and soil water content could resist the negative effect of cyclic loading on anchorage capacity, and the resistance effect became more and more obvious with the increase in diameter.

Research on the improvement of rainfall infiltration behavior of expansive soil slope by the protection of polymer waterproof coating

The repetitive expansion and contraction cracks, as well as the strength attenuation induced by the precipitation-evaporation cycles, are important factors influencing the instability of expansive soil slopes. In this study, a polymer waterproof coating was proposed to protect the expansive soil slope against slope instability caused by precipitation penetration. The bonding performance of expansive soil blocks (with different soil densities) and polymer waterproof coatings (with different coating thicknesses) were analyzed by performing a laboratory pull-out test. The impacts of different protection methods and protection layer coverage on rainwater infiltration behavior were studied using three groups of slope model tests and numerical simulation approaches. The results showed that the bond strength between the expansive soil test block and the coating increased with the increase in soil compaction density, and the test block strength was an important factor affecting the bond performance. The influence of density of test block on bond strength was greater than that of coating thickness. The calculation formula of bond strength was obtained by fitting the test results. Compared to the unprotected slope, the fluctuation of soil moisture content and rainwater infiltration rate in the slope protected by polymer coating was found to be the least. Protective layer of polymer coating proved to have the most significant role in blocking rainwater infiltration, followed by polymer coating + three-dimensional vegetation net protective layer. When the coverage rate of the protective layer exceeds more than 90%, the effect of blocking rainwater infiltration was remarkable. Simultaneously, the variation range of slope water content, rainwater infiltration depth, and infiltration rate decreased significantly. This research result provides a new solution for expansive soil slope protection and rainwater infiltration control.

Soil Slope Instability Mechanism and Treatment Measures under Rainfall—A Case Study of a Slope in Yunda Road

The unique geological conditions in Yunnan make it likely for landslides to occur there. For the purpose of exploring the soil slope instability mechanism, this paper takes a slope in Yunda Road, Chenggong, Kunming, as case study and establishes a slope model utilizing FLAC 3D coupled with Geo-studio software. The displacement, strain and deformation rate of the slope under the condition of rainfall are simulated, and the influence of rainfall and rainfall duration on rainfall infiltration is analyzed. The results indicated the following: (1) The effective stress on and shear strength of slope soil at the foot of the slope gradually decreased under rainfall, resulting in the loosening of the slope soil and slip at the foot of the slope. This affected the stability of the upper slope which, in turn, reduced the stability of the whole slope; (2) When the duration of rainfall reached 72 h, the slope stability coefficient Fs = 0.88, indicating a failure state. The increments of principal stress and shear stress at the foot of the slope were the largest, and the strain speed was the fastest, with the maximum values of principal stress and shear stress reaching 0.412 and 0.579, respectively; (3) The maximum total displacement was 2.177 m at the foot of the slope, the maximum vertical Z-axis displacement was 1.673 m in the negative direction of the Z-axis, and the soil at the foot of the slope was 0.6 m in the positive direction of the Z-axis. Our simulation results were consistent with the actual failure of the slope. After analyzing the slope mechanism and adopting targeted treatment measures, the slope was subjected to four rainfall cycles without any sign of landslips, indicating that the effect of our interventions was favorable.

Research Progress on Stability Analysis Methods of Granite Residual Soil Slope

Based on the instability and failure of granite residual soil slope, this paper will introduce the stability of granite residual soil slope from theoretical research, indoor and outdoor simulation tests, and numerical analysis. Based on the review of previous work and the latest research results, the stability analysis of granite residual soil slope is discussed, and the main influencing factors of granite residual soil slope instability are summarized. The main factors are: its own disintegration property; The degree of microcracks in its internal structure.

Research on the damaging mechanisms of expansive soil in subgrade

Fractures are considered the most characteristic property of expansive soils distinguishing it from other soils. The cause of many problems in engineering geology is directly or indirectly attributed to the existence of fractures, which makes the soil poor in mechanical properties and damages the overall structure. To this end, based on the detailed information obtained from on-site geological and engineering investigations, we studied the formation mechanisms of an expansive soil trench landslide under a roadbed and the resulting damages in the Ningming area of Guangxi, China. The landslide inversion was carried out with discrete element numerical simulation, and the relationship between fracture development and expansive soil slope instability was explored. The consistent results of field investigation and discrete element numerical simulation show that under alternating seasonal dry-wet stimulation, fractures appear at the surface of the expansive soil slope, which is then more conducive to rainwater infiltration. Under this cycle, the soil gradually softens, and its stability reduces. Additionally, the influence of human activities, such as traffic loading at the trailing edge, assisted in the formation of the landslide. The results of this study provide valuable references for the prevention of subgrade landslide and expansive soil-related damages in other expansive soil areas.

Analysis of influence of air-entry values to unsaturated soil properties

Soil slope instability is a grave concern in regions with high annual precipitation, especially in tropical countries. The impact of soil instability on the economies of these countries is severe since it usually causes fatalities and property loss. The research and development of the systems to reduce the impact of soil slope failures by predicting slope failure, monitoring the slope, and early failure warning has made it possible to implement safety measures. Despite the considerable effort to implement these measures, the factors contributing to soil slope instability are complex and have not been explored extensively. The air-entry value (AEV), which is the matric suction, is a critical factor in predicting the risk of slope instability. This paper will analyze the interaction of the basic soil properties and the soil hydraulic properties, also known as AEV. The researchers collected natural undisturbed soil samples from several locations to determine their AEVs which obtained by plate pressure extractor apparatus. The basic soil properties, namely the natural moisture content, particle size distribution and bulk density were determined in the laboratory, and the values were used to determine the correlation between the basic soil properties and the soil AEV. The results show that the soil with higher coefficient of curvature and percentage of sand have lower air-entry values, which mean they could experience disastrous slope failure during heavy rainfalls. This strong correlation underscores the significance of soil hydraulic properties as the critical factor in soil slope instability.

Erosion Failure of Slope in a Dump with Ground Fissure under Heavy Rain

The dump, with the compact rock platform and high and steep loose slope that is formed during coal mining, is the most serious area of soil erosion in a surface coal mine. Ground fissures are a typical geological hazard in coal mining areas. However, the effect of ground fissures on soil erosion remains unclear. Rainfall experiments were conducted to determine the varying characteristics of wetting front, runoff and sediment production, and soil denudation rate, as well as the effects of ground fissures on these factors in a platform-slope system of a dump. Ground fissures could significantly enhance wetting front and soil erosion. Rill erosion was formed as the rainfall and runoff flushed the soil, which eventually developed into erosion gullies. Erosion failure modes with platform-slope systems in the dump could be divided into the surface erosion stage, fissure deformation stage, rill erosion stage, fissure collapse-rapid increase stage, and stable stage. Runoff power and flow shear stress had the greater influence on soil denudation rate, which indicated that erosion energy of concentrated flow had important influence on soil erosion. Moreover, shallow mudflow induced by rainfall was one of the forms of soil slope instability; it occurred in a short time with great soil erosion. Soil erosion in the dump with ground fissures was mainly shallow mudflow and rill erosion, resulting from the combined effect of hydraulic erosion and gravity erosion.

Instability of High Liquid Limit Soil Slope for the Expressway Induced by Rainfall

The instability of high liquid limit soil slope is a common engineering problem in highway construction. This study focused on the slope at section K79 + 880 of the Guang-Le Expressway in Guangdong Province, China. In order to reduce the landslide and learn the mechanism of the high liquid limited soil slope, the effects of different rainfall intensities and rainfall time on the high liquid limit soil slope were studied by in-site monitoring and numerical simulation. According to the characteristics of the slope deformation and the monitoring data, the slope landslide is divided into three grades. Numerical simulation results show that the influence of rainfall intensity on the safety factor of high liquid limit soil slope is greater than that of rainfall time. At the slope top, the cumulative changes of Mises stress in Group B and Group C were −2.19 kPa and −2.91 kPa, respectively, and the cumulative decreases were −7.22% and −9.60%, respectively. At the slope bottom, the cumulative changes of Mises stress in Group B and Group C were −2.05 kPa and −4.32 kPa, respectively, and the cumulative decreases were −4.50% and −9.48%, respectively. With the increase of rainfall for 24 h, the safety factor of Group C decreased by an average of 0.0408, and with the increase of rainfall time, the safety factor increased, and the safety factor of 96 h of rainfall in Group C was 0.1249 lower than that of 24 h of rainfall. The greater the rainfall intensity, the greater the change of matrix suction at the top of the slope, and the more prone the top of the slope to shallow landslides. For the high liquid limit soil slope, slope instability phenomena such as surface flow collapse occur easily and have little impact on the deep sliding surface. The dimensionless displacement coefficient K is proposed to quantify the landslide displacement under different rainfall. A general method is proposed to measure the cumulative displacement of the K79 + 880 slope where the sensor is not placed.

Scenario analysis of high and steep cutting slopes protection in the loess hilly region: A case study of the Yangjuangou catchment in Yan’an, China

Soil erosion and slope instability restrict the cutting slopes, especially the high and steep slopes of a construction site. It is difficult for present research of observation experiments and investigation to deal with these problems under climate change. Focusing on gully land consolidation in the loess plateau of China, this paper put forward a technical procedure to explore the optimal combination scheme of slope-cutting and vegetation-planting in future climate change. The technical procedure includes scenarios design, model calculation, and scheme optimization. This paper selected a back catchment in Yangjuangou catchment of Yan’an City as a case study and designed 54 combined scenarios consisting of 6 slopes, 3 types of vegetation (including bare land), and 3 climate scenarios. The soil erosion and slope stability under different scenarios were quantified using FLAC/Slope software and Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) model. This paper innovatively designed elasticity indicators to trade off the increase of the flat land area formed by land consolidation and the resulting reduction in slope stability and increase in soil erosion. It is found that the slope of 53° with Caragana microphylla could be the optimal combination scheme considering flat land creating and the safety of slopes. The technical procedure and the resulting parameters could support gully land consolidation in related areas and be referenced by other construction projects.

Mechanical and microscopic properties of soil according to the rate of increase in pore water pressure

Increases in pore water pressure affect the effective stress state of loess soil, resulting in deformation and even soil erosion. However, it is still unclear how the mechanical behaviours and microstructures of soil are influenced by the rate of increase in pore water pressure (RIPWP). To better understand the mechanical failure process and properties of soil under different RIPWPs, a series of constant-shear drained (CSD) triaxial tests were carried out on Q2 loess (silt loam, a loose aeolian deposit) in the South Jingyang Platform of China. Further, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) tests were conducted on the samples before and after the triaxial tests to observe the microscopic characteristics of the soil, and reveal the microscopic mechanism of liquefaction failure in soil under CSD triaxial tests. The results showed that the failure process was divided into two stages of 1) stable creep and 2) sharply unstable deformation. In the second stage, rapid-slow strain development was observed at relatively low RIPWPs. With increases in RIPWP, the critical pore pressure ratio u/σc increased within the range of 0.48–0.66. Microscopic analysis of the samples after shearing found clay particles filling the pores and obvious aggregation structures. In addition, macropores and mesopores were transformed into micropores. With increases in RIPWP, the orientations of particles and pores increased and the abundance and fractal dimension of pores decreased. In conclusion, the microscopic mechanism of soil instability under CSD triaxial testing was as follows. Increases in pore water pressure led to the dispersion of fine particles, weakening of cementation, and the rotation and recombination of coarse particles within the soil. In addition, the clay particles rolled, slipped and filled into pore throats, resulting in the blockage of seepage channels and, correspondingly, rapid increases in local pore water pressure. Finally, the loess liquefied due to a sudden collapse of its structure under the effect of long-term high pore water pressure. These results can provide a theoretical guidance for soil management and slope instability prevention.

The Effect of Shear Rate on the Shear Strength of Saturated Coal-Measure Soil

Coal-measure soil is easy to soften with water and has very poor stability. When encountering heavy rainfall, it loses strength and saturation failure occurs in a short period of time, which can easily cause instability and damage of coal-measure soil slopes, which is a great threat The traffic safety of the road. The shear strength of saturated coal-measure soil is affected by many factors. Since coal-measure soil is difficult to form samples after encountering water, the SLB-1A saturated soil triaxial tester is used to apply back pressure according to the principle of combining head saturation and back pressure saturation. Saturate. The UU test of 0.2mm/min, 0.4mm/min, 0.8mm/min, 1mm/min was applied to the sample with the confining pressure of 100kpa, 200kpa, 400kpa and 500kpa to study the resistance of the confining pressure and loading rate to the saturated coal measure soil. The effect of shear strength. Under the same shear rate, the shear strength increases with the increase of confining pressure. Under the same confining pressure and different shear rates, the shear strength changes very little and does not show regularity, because the coal-measure soil has poor structure.

Algorithm Implementation of Equivalent Expansive Force in Strength Reduction FEM and Its Application in the Stability of Expansive Soil Slope

Loss of matric suction during rain has an important effect on the instability of expansive soil slope. A new device was designed for testing the expansive force in order to propose and determine the equivalent expansive force corresponding to the matric suction. First, the internal relation between the matric suction and the corresponding equivalent expansive force of unsaturated expansive soil was analyzed. Then, numerical algorithm implementation of the equivalent expansive force was discussed, and the equivalent expansive force was introduced into the strength reduction finite element method (FEM). Finally, the equivalent effects of the matric suction and the equivalent expansive force were compared and analyzed by evaluating the stability of an unsaturated expansive soil slope. The results show that the new testing device significantly improves the accuracy of the expansive force test and shortens the testing time. The relation between the matric suction and the equivalent expansive force with the change in initial water content is obvious. The equivalent expansive force can reflect the macro contribution of matric suction to unsaturated expansive soil, and the developed strength reduction FEM based on the equivalent expansive force can be used to evaluate the rainfall-induced instability of an expansive soil slope caused by the decrease in matric suction resulting from the rainfall infiltration.

Experimental analysis of the feasibility of deep slide monitoring with low-cost piezoelectric diaphragms-based EMI technique

Slope instability, especially the soil slope instability, is a common occurrence in mountainous areas. It poses a huge threat to people’s lives and properties under the slope body. Effective slope monitoring techniques can provide detailed information and precursor about the real-time deformation, which is of great importance to provide early warning to the public. In this paper, a novel electromechanical impedance (EMI)-based slope deep slide monitoring bar (DSMB) was proposed. The main purpose was to investigate the application of the EMI technique for deep slide detection. In this study, a small soil slope specimen with a DSMB embedded inside it was fabricated in laboratory. To verify the practicality of the low-cost piezoelectric diaphragms (commonly known as buzzers), four conventional lead zirconate titanate (PZT) patches and four buzzers were bonded onto the front surface and back surface of the bar at specific positions, respectively. The slope specimen was then subjected to a horizontal thrust to initiate an interlayer slide along the slip surface. The whole process was monitored with a precision impedance analyzer by measuring the admittance of these transducers at specific sliding displacement. In order to reduce the error and increase the reliability, the experiment was repeated three times under the same conditions. It was concluded that the conventional PZT patches and buzzers have similar sensitivities to interlayer slide damage. The results indicate that both the severity and sliding location could be identified via the two metrics including root mean square deviation (RMSD) and correlation coefficient deviation (CCD). The experimental results verify the feasibility and practicality of using novel and low-cost piezoelectric diaphragm-based EMI technique to detect the deep slide in soil slope.