Introduction of Slope Stability

Analysis
By :
Aswin Lim Ph.D.

Geotechnical Division – Civil Engineering Department

Faculty of Engineering
Parahyangan Catholic University
2020
Introduction
• Geotechnical Engineers are concerned with
the following 3 types of slopes :
1. Natural slopes
2. Slopes created by excavation or cutting into
natural soils.
3. Slopes constructed of soil, such as
embankments for highway or earth dams.
Introduction
• The possibility of slope failure :
1. Gravity force
2. Water (Seepage effect)
3. External force
What is Landslide ?
“a rapid displacement of a mass of rock,
residual soil, or sediments adjoining a slope,
in which the center of gravity of the moving
mass advances in a downward and outward
direction.” - Karl Terzaghi (1950).
Mass Movement
• Mass movement (or mass
wasting): general down-slope
movement of all material by
gravity (including landslides).

Different categories:
•Rotational vs. translational
•Slide vs. flow
•Fall vs. topple
•Creep vs. slump
Rotational Slide
Translational Slide
Block Slide
Debris Flow
Rock Fall
Topple
Creep
Slump
Types of slope failure
Types of slope failure
Stability of Natural Slopes
• A full list of the methods available for assessing
the stability of natural slopes :
1. Visual inspection of the slope.
2. Geological appraisal of the slope and
surrounding area.
3. Inspection of aerial photos.
4. Inspection of existing slopes in similar
materials to the slope in question.
5. Slip circle analysis and other forms of analytical
analysis.
What is Factor of Safety ?
• Factor of Safety (FS) is a number for describing the
stability of a slope. When forces acting on a mass of
soil are exactly balanced:
Calculated  forces  0 Measured

Driving forces = Resisting forces

Resisting forces
Factor of safety (FS) = =1
Driving forces

When Driving forces > Resisting forces  FS < 1 ( unstable)

When Driving forces < Resisting forces  FS > 1 (stable)
A very basic approach : Block diagram
How about real life ? Complex !!
How about rotational Failure ?
 Introduction - Past landslides
1. Rossberg Landslide near Goldau, Switzerland, 1806
– Large, extremely rapid rock fall/rock slide (about 20 to 40
million cubic meters) came loose from the Rossberg
Mountain at 70 m/sec

– Buried the town of Goldau killing 457 people

– Portion went into Lauerzer sea, creating a 20 meter high

wave over lakeside villages

– Subsequent studies showed that the rapid snowmelt

coinciding with heavy rainfall in 1806 were the primary
cause of the failure

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 Rossberg Landslid (Goldau, Switzerland, 1806)

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 Introduction - Past landslides
2. Bindon Landslide, Southeast coast England, 1839
– Occurred on Christmas Day
– Extensive studies focused on the relationship between
climate and groundwater in causing instability
– 1839 was known as the wettest summer, autumn & winter
on record
– Crude calculations were done using the weight of the soil
and the hydrostatic pressures
– Large volume of land moved towards the sea
– “The most dramatic landslide ever to occur in Great Britain”

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 Introduction - Past landslides
3. Elm Landslide, Switzerland, 1881
– Large rapid rockfall/rock slide
covered the town of Elm
– Killing 115 people
– Material surged across the valley and
up the other side
– Kinematic behavior of mass
movements

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 Introduction - Past landslides
4. Slope instability along French Canals, 1846

– Relatively new on clay slopes

– Recognized as deep-seated rotational type slides

– Cause of failure was simply inadequate shear strength

– Failure occurred long after construction

– Suggested drains and grass cover to increase stability

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 Introduction - Past landslides
5. Gansu Landslide, China 1925

– National Geographic magazine in 1925 quoted as “The Day

the Mountains Moves”

– Movements were as far as 2 kilometers

– Approximately 250,000 people died

– Natural block-dam formed killed more people when it broke

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 Introduction - Past landslides
6. Po Shan Road Landslide, Hong Kong, 1972

– Occurred in the mid-levels of Hong Kong

– Killed 76 people

– Produced a series in-depth studies on the relationship

between climate and infiltration into unsaturated soils near
ground surface

– Establishment of Geotechnical Engineering Office (GEO) in

Hong Kong in 1977 for continuing control and active
management of instable slopes.

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 Po Shan Road Landslide

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 Introduction - Past landslides
7. Vaiont Landslide, Italy 1964
– Filling of reservoir caused rising of groundwater and wetting
the slipping layered rock mass.

– Rock block slide suddenly into the newly filled Vaiont

Reservoir, flushing lake water up and over the dam.

– The wall of water was over 200 feet high and moved
Movements at 25m/sec as it swept into nearby villages,
wiping out everything in its path

– Caused 2600 deaths

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 Vaiont Landslide (Italy, 1964)

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 Introduction - Past landslides
8. Panama Canal Landslide, 1986

– Large landslide occurred on the Cucaracha reach of the

canal in Oct 1986
– Closed the canal for 12 hours and impeded traffic until Dec
1986
– Led to renewed appreciation of the important effect of
landslides on the canal
– The Panama Canal Commission has since then established a
landslide control program to stabilize, continuous
measurements and inspections of slopes and treat landslides
as a hazard.

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 Panama Canal Landslide (1986)

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 Introduction - Past landslides
9. La Conchita Landslide, CA, USA
– A slump was formed in 1995

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 La Conchita Landslide (CA, USA 2005)
• La Conchita Landslide

– Caused by rainstorms in January 2005

– The heavy rainfall soaked the slopes above La Conchita and

added mass to the unstable slumps formed in 1995 and
lubricating the sediment grains.

– Catastrophic failure, a total of about 400,000 tons of earth

moved during this event

– Destroyed 13 homes and killed 10 people.

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 La Conchita Landslide (CA,
USA, 2005)

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 Introduction - Past landslides
10. Philippines landslide 2006

– Occurred at Southern Leyte, Philippine, 17 Feb, 2006

– Caused by 10-day heavy rainfalls and a minor earthquake of

Mag 2.6

– Official death toll of 1126 people.

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 2006 Philippines landslide

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 Landslide
• Definition
– The movement of a mass of rock, debris or earth down a
slope
– Mass movements take place in many different materials and
have widely varying shapes

• Classification
– Mass movements can be defined in terms of
• Material involved
– Rock, debris or earth
» Debris: assembly of fragments of soft rocks or hard soil
• The type of movement taking place (kinematics)
– Falls, topples, slides, spreads or flows (next lecture)

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 Typical Configuration

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 Landslide Velocity Classes

Class 1: Movements are not noticeable without instruments; construction

possible with precautions
Class 7: Movements are catastrophe of major violence; buildings destroyed by
impact of displaced materials; many deaths; escape unlikely.
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