Earth Slope Stability Analysis

CECE 4131 Geotechnical Engineering II

JAYARAM D K
STABILITY OF SLOPES
INTRODUCTION:
Earth embankments are commonly required for Railways, Roadways, Earth
Dams, Levees and River training works. The stability of those embankments or
slopes, should be thoroughly analyzed, since their failure my lead to loss of
human life, as well as economic loss.

I. The failure of a mass soil located beneath a slope is called slide. It involves the
movement of soil mass either downward or outward from the position.
Types of slopes: 1) Infinite slope 2) Finite slope
1) Infinite slope:
If a slopes represents the boundary surface of a semi-infinite soil mass, and the
soil properties for all depth below the surface are constant, it is called infinite
slope.
2) Finite slope:
If the slope is of limited extent of it s boundary, it is called finite slope
 FAILURE OF SLOPE
Modes of slope failure: An exposed ground surface that stands at an angle with the
horizontal is called unrestrained slope.
The slope can be natural or man-made.

It can fails in various modes

The failures are classified in to five major categories:

1. Fall 2. Topple 3. Slide 4. Spread 5. Flow

Fall: this is the detachment of Soil and or Rock fragments that fall down a slope,
and large amount of soil mass has slide down a slop.
Topple: this is a forward rotation of Soil/Rock mass about an axis below the centre
of gravity of mass being displaced.
Slide: It is the downward movement of soil mass occurring on a surface of rupture
Spread: this is a form of slide by rotation. It occurs by sudden movement of water
bearing seams of sand silts overlain by clays or loaded by fills.
Flow: this is a downward movement of soil mass similar to a viscous fluid
 II. CAUSES OF MASS MOVEMENTS

Seismic forces, Weaken the soil layer from the continuous exposure of
groundwater or Chemical waste leachate, High Groundwater water level,
Excavation for the construction,
 III. Types of Slope Movements
 FACTOR OF SAFETY
The task of the engineer charged with analysing slope is to determine the factor of safety. It is
defined as
Factor of safety with respect to strength (Fs =f / d );
(f = Average shear strength of the soil /
d = Ave. Shear Stress developed along the potential failure surface)

Shear strength of soil consists of Two components: Cohesion and Friction, it can be writen as f
= c + tan ( = normal stress on the potential failure surface)
METHODS OF FINITE SLOPE ANALYSIS
1. Culmanns method of planar failure surface - Suitable for very steep slope
2. The Swedish (Slip circle) Circle method
3. The Friction circle methods
4. Bishops method

Culmanns method : Planar failure surface:

Culmann (1866) considered, a simple failure mechanism of a slope of homogeneous soil with plane
failure surface passing through the toe of the slope.
Let AB be any probable slip plane.
The wedge ADB is in equilibrium under the action of three forces
(1) Weight of the wedge W = (AB)*h* ; = (L)*h*
(2) The cohesive force C along the surface AB, resisting motion Cm*L
(3) The reaction R, inclined at an angle (m) to the normal
IV. INFINITE SLOPE STABILITY ANALYSIS

Free Body Diagram of a Representative Slice of Infinite Slope with Cohesionless Soil
 STABILITY OF INFINITE SLOPES

Considering the problem of slope stability, of an infinite slope shown in fig. 15.7
To get the strength of the soil mass f= c + tan
Assume Porewater pressure is zero
To Evaluate the factor of safety against a possible slope failure along a plane AB
located at a depth H, below the ground surface
The slope failure can occur by the movement of soil above the plane AB from right
to left.
Fs = c/(H cos2tan) + (tan/ tan)
For COHESSIONLESS (granular) soils, c=0, and Fs becomes equal to (tan/
tan), this indicates that in an infinte slope in sand.
Factor of safety,Fs is independent, and the slope is stable as long as <
For soil possesses Cohesion and friction, the depth of the plane along which
critical equilibirium occurs may be determined by substituting Fs=1, and H=Hcr.
Hcr = (c/ )*(1/ cos2(tan - tan)
TYPES OF STABILITY ANALYSIS PROCEDURE
The slope stability Analysis is divided in to two major classes, namely
1.Mass procedure, 2. Method of Slices
Mass Procedure:
The mass of the soil above the surface of sliding is taken as unit.
The soils that forms the slope is assumed to be homogeneous
This procedure is not considered for the case in most natural slopes

Methods of Slices:
The soil above the surface of sliding is divided into a number of vertical parallel slices.
The stability of each slice is calculated separately
This method the soil and porewater pressure can be taken into consideration
The variation of the normal stress along the potential failure surface also taken into account.
Landslide Overview Map of the Conterminous United States
 Case Studies

Earth flow in Cincinnati, Ohio-This

slide shows material being Debris flows that blocked
removed by highway crew along Interstate-70 during Labor Day
the Columbia Parkway, Cincinnati, weekend, 1994
Ohio.
 Government Hill School in
Anchorage
27 March1964 Alaska Earthquake -
1964

This building hangs over the head scarp of a

landslide in decomposed bedrock that was
triggered by the 1995 Kobe earthquake.
Several homes were buried and over 30
people killed by the landslide.

http://cee.engr.ucdavis.edu/faculty/boulanger/geo_photo_album/
Earthquake%20hazards/Landslides/EQ%20landslides%20-
In 1970, an earthquake induced rock and snow avalanche
on Mt. Huascaran, Peru.
 Cross-Sections Before and
After the 1971 Earthquake

San Fernando EQ 1971

Magnitude: 6.7
Deaths: 48
Injuries: 2000
Damage: $511 million
Crest dropped from 142
ft to 112 ft

http://quake.usgs.gov/prepare/factsheets/LADamStory/
 Limit of landslides triggered by
the Northridge Earthquake
and area of greatest landslide
concentration (shaded)

Failure rates correlated with: (1) shaking severity; (2) slope steepness;
(3) strength and engineering properties of geologic materials; (4) water
saturation; (5) existing landslide areas; and (6) vegetative cover.

17 January 1994
Northridge Earthquake
(M = 6.7)
U.S. Hwy 95 Clearwater County
Bonners Ferry Project
Landslide

http://www.landslidetechnolo
gy.com/landslides/bonnersfe
rry.htm