(360 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING ia acQUAaH Torica ‘SLOPE STABILITY 4.0 Introduction ‘A slope is an exposed ground surface that stands at an angle (fi) with the horizontal. Slopes are required in the construction of highway and railway embankments, earth dams, levees and canals. These are constructed by sloping the lateral faces of the soil, because slopes are ‘generally less expensive than constructing walls. Slopes can be natural or man-made, so the term slope as used in here refers to any natural or man-made earth mass, whose surface forms an angle with the horizontal Natural forces (wind, rain, earthquake, etc.) change the natural topography, often creating Unstable slopes. Failure of natural slopes (landslides) and man-made slopes have resulted in ‘much death and destruction. Slope stability analysis consists of determining and comparing the shear stress developed along the potential rupture surface withthe shear strength of the soil. 4.1 Definitions of Key Terms Sip plane ot failure plane or slp surface or failure surface isthe surface of sliding, “Sliding mass is the mass of soll within the slip plane and the ground surface, ‘slope angle (or simply slope) isthe angle of inclination ofa slope to the horizontal. The slope ‘angle is usually referred to as a ratio, for example, 2:1 (horizontal: vertical) 4.2. Typesof Slope Slopes can be categorized into two groups + atural slope + Man-made slope lis and mountains, river banks, etc. are common examples of natural slopes and fills, such {as embankments, earth dams, levees; or cuts, such as highway and railway cuts, canal banks, foundations excavations and trenches are all examples of man-made slopes. 43 Typesof Slope Movements cean be classified into six diferent types 6 Slope instability (navewa cau 360 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING LECTURE NOTES 2022 Falls Simple detachment of rock mass rom is parent body. Rapidly moving mass of materi {rock or sol) that travels mosty through the ar with itl or no interaction between moving unit and another. typically occurs for rock faces and usually does nt provide warning. The process is only gravity governed. Topples- This sa forward rotation of soiland/or rock mass about an ans below the center of TTh eravity of mass being displaced Figure 1 Falls Figure 2 Topples Flows - Occurs when internal and external conditions force a soil to behave asa viscous fluid and flow down, spreading in all directions. The failure plane here does not have a specific shape. It can take place in soil with high water content ori dry soils: However, this type of failure is common in the QUICK CLAYS. Occurs in dry and wet sols. Creep its the very slow movement of slope material that occur over along period of time + Its identified by bent post or trees gure 4 Creep Fue 3: lows Lateral spreads~ Lateral spreads usually occu on very gentle slopes or essentially flat terrain, ‘especially where a stronger uppet layer of rock or soll undergoes extension and moves above an underying sotter, weaker ayerE380 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING Wea AcQUAAs LecTunE ons 2o2p003 weaker layer Figure S:Lateral spreads Slides - Wovements occur along planar failure surfaces that may run more-or less parallel to the slope, Movement is controlled by discontinuities or weak bedded planes. Side is the most ‘common mode of slope failure, and there are different types of slides. These are: ‘© Translational (planar) Rotational (curved) * Compound { curved) Complex - Complex movement is by a combination of one or more ofthe other principal types. fof movement. Many slope movements are complex, although one type of movement ‘generally dominates over the others at certain areas or ata particular time. ‘Slope stability (allure is affected by the following factors, + Strength of soil and rock. + Type of sll and stratification, Discontinuities and planes of weakness. ‘Groundwater table and seepage through the slope + External loading, ‘+ Slope Geometry 4.4 Types of Slope Failure Fallure of slopes generally occur along the surfaces known as failure surfaces. The main types of surfaces are: {0} Translational Side ~ This type occurs inthe case of infinite slopes and here the f surface is parallel to the slope sucace, Failure of a slope along a weak zone of sol. When there isa hard stratum ata relatively shallow depth, When the sol along, the slope has similar properties upto a certain depth and soil below this layer is strong or hard stratum, the week topsoil will form a parallel sip surface when falled. Common. in coarse grained soil aCE360 FOUNDATION ENGWeEnNG Figure 6: Wedge Failure (€) Rotational slide This failure occurs by obtained in slip surface is curved. F Shao nanih cohesive soi. The shapes circular in homogeneous sos, whe case of non-homogeneous soils its non-circular rotation along a slip surface and the shape thus ‘ile surface moves outwards and downwards. it Rotational failure may occurin three different ways 1. Base failure li. Toe failure Wi Face failure or slope failure Bese si - Occurs by an arc engulfing the whole slope. The flue surace passes below the ag soft Sil layer resting on ast layer of sll is prone to base side (te. when the sot blow the toe is relatively weak and sof) Toe side The failure surface passes though the toe of the slope This occurs when the slope Issteep and homogeneous Slope side The failure surface passes tough the face ofthe slope. This type occurs when the slope angle large and the silat the te portion i strong, i a-o (£360 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING ia ACQUAA LecTune NOTES 202272023 {Faure TBaseSide | Th-Toe Side ope Side ‘When there is hard stratum at some depth that intersects with the failure plane (4) Compound Failure ~ This sa combination of translational slide and rotational slide. In this case, the slip surface is curved at two ends like rotational stip surface and flat at central portion like in translational failure “The slip surface becomes flat whenever there is a hard soll layer at a considerable depth from toe. t AKER aye, Slope that extends over 2 long distance and the conditions remain identical along some surface or surfaces for quite some distance is termed as Infinite slope. slope that connect land at ane elevation to land that isnot far away but is at different tlevation is termed as Finite slope. 45 Causes of slope failure slope tures are caused in general by natural forces, human mismanagement and activities “Generally, slope failure occurs mainly fortwo reasons and these are: Increase in shear force “This is caused by increase in loading on soll mass therefore decreasing the capacity of the binding together between the particles of the sil. What causes such include pplied tothe soil mass (eg inearthquakes) +The sudden dynamic fr 1 increase i the slope of the som: {Cateznal load applied on the slope (eg, constructing, building)(£360 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING WeAAcQuAaH £CTUKE NOTES 2022/2023 ‘© Increase in unit weight ofthe soil by rain The decrease in the shear strength of the soil This is caused when the bond between the soil particles are laosened and ths is caused by ‘Increase in pore water pressure © Weathering ‘+ Erosion or loss of cementing materials, + Increase in water within the soi Some of the main factors that provoke failure are Grovity- Gravity acts as a force that pulls everything downward. The weight of the materials comprising the slope, including soil, rocks, and vegetation, exerts a downward force due to gravity. The steeper the slope, the greater the gravitational force acting on the materials ‘Seepage -Long periods of rainfall saturate, soften, and erode soils. Water enters into existing ‘racks and may weaken underlying soil layers, leading to failure, (for example, mudslides) orthquoke - Earthquakes induce dynamic forces especially dynamic shear forces that reduce the shear strength and stiffness of the sol Erosion - Water and wind continuously erode slopes. Erosion changes the geometry of the slopes, resulting ina slope failure ora landslide, Rivers and streams continuously scour their banks undermining their natural or man-made slopes. Geological features ~ Some ofthe extreme or dificult unidentified geological characteristics, like 3 thin seam under a thick stiff clay deposi, can cause the failure of slopes. Construction activites - Such activities near the toe of an existing slope can cause failure because lateral resistance is removed. Slope failures due to construction activities is divided into two cases: Extavated slopes and Fill slopes External Loading: Loads placed on the crest of a slope add to gravitational load and may cause slope Falure. Rapid Drowdown — SlOPE failure in case of the reservoirs may be subjected to rapid dravedown. In such cases, the later water force is subsequently eliminated and thus the excess ff the pore water pressure does not get sufficient time to dissipate. Hence, the slope failure may occur under the un-draned condition,—_— 30 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING ia ACQUAAH 19242023 Micwyrengns 4.6 Slope Stability Analysis Assessing a slopes stability i a challenging yt important aspect of cil engineering, In is simple form, int equibrium methods are used and stability is determined by the equilibrium st sheat stress and shear strength the forces that resst the movement are greater than those driving the movement the slope is considered stable. A factor of safety (F's calculated by dividing the resistance by the driving forces. factor of safety greater than 1.00 suggests that the slope is stable General Assumptions: 1, The failure can be represented as a two dimensional problem. 2. The sliding mass moves 3 aig body and the deformations of the sing mass has no significant effects on the analysis. 3. The properties of soil mass are isotropic and shear resistance along fare surface remains same independent of the orientation ofthe failure surface, 4, The analysis is based on limit equilibrium method. 4.7 Methodology of Slope Stability Analysis Slope stability anaysisis a method to expresses the relationship between resisting forces and driving forces. Resisting forces are the forces which oppose the movement ofthe sol mass ‘such forces include the strength of material, The driving forces are the forces which move earth materials downslope. Faire occurs when the driving forces (component of the gravity) overcomes the resistance derived from the shear strength of soll along the potential failure surface. 147.1. Slope Stability Analysis Procedure nordee to analyse the stablity ofa slope the fllowing steps shoul be followed. These are 1 Assume or determine a probable failure surface 2. Consider the isolated portion of the slope as a free body and consider the + Forces that tend to cause sip, + Forces that tend to restore (stabilize) 3. Cakulate the factor of safety by comparing the shear stress developed along the most Ikely rapture surface with the available shear strength 44 Solect other similar failure surfaces and repeat (3) until the surface with minimum FS ‘slocated,30 FouNoaTOW ENGINEEANG veaacquaan LUCTURE NES : 2022/2023 5. Based on the minimum factor of safety, determine the slope is safe or not by comparing this minimum FS withthe desived FS 47.2 Factor of Safety This is commonly thought of as the ratio of the maximum load or stress that soil can sustain to the actual load or stress that is applied. The factor of safety ofa slope is defined as the ratio Cf the available shear strength, to the minimum shear strength required to maintain stability, (which is equal to the mobilized shear stress on the failure surface) Factor of safety - Resisting Force . Shear Strength Driving Force ~ Shear Stress Factor of safety (f,)= 1" Where tis average shear stress developed along the failure "surface Where w= c+ 0 tang and t= ca +. tan ts 4.7.3. Slopes in Cohesionless Soils ‘The process of formation of slopes ina cohesionless material include + an embankment being formed by end dumping from a truck * sand or ore or other stockpiled material dropped from a chute fom the end of a conveyor belt The inclination of the slope once the dumping has ceased, which happens to be the maximum slope at which the materials stable i called the angle of repose. The stability of such a slope may be analysed as follows: (Owing tothe comparative length ‘Assuming the sol element, ABCD, to be infinite, then o,= (of slope and depth failure surface we can generally assume that the end effects are negligible.(Ce 380 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING Via ncQuAay TUBE NOTES 02272023 Infinite Slope Free Body ‘When sliding begins, the thickness of unstable moving material is small compared with the height of slope, hence infinite slope. From Force equilibrium, Tn = N tan , and from failure criterion, Ti = N tan @ (soil is cohesionless) From the definition of Factor of Safety, F= shear strength/shear stress Fe /tm 271 ln # Ntang /Ntanh = tang /tan For limiting equilibrium, F= 1 , and therefore f= Whenever sand or gravel is dumped, they usuallyare in loose state. Thus the angle of repose for the dumped sand or gravel is equal to the angle of internal friction for the loose state. Typical volues for anale of repose are Sand and gravel ar 36 Well graded sand 30-30 Uniform tine to medium sand —_26"=30" sit (non plastic) 26-30" 47.4 Stability of Finite Slopes with Plane Failure Surface In this case, figure below) there exists a tendency for the upper mass to she downward along its plane of contact with the lower layer of impermeable soil {ie the plane of weakness) 6veuacouuny £4 WO FEUNATRN NONERAS cay ASCUUNENOTES . res The force trying to cause shding iy tangential component of the weight along the failure plane (1) The fore tending to resist sling lepends on the cohesion (€) and the thietional foe Fgure 9 {quantitative term, the cohesion (+e. adhesion) component is the product of the sol’s cohesion (2) times the length of the plane of contact (AD] » L) The ction component is obtained by multiplying the coefficient of fretion between the {we stata (tan @) by the Component af the upper masy's weight that is perpendicular to the plane of contact (W cos ah ‘The force tending to cause sling (1) sglven by W sin) and ‘The resistance force (against the sling) R= + Weosa tang ‘Therefore, the factor of safety against sling is determined by diving the resistance force A) by the sling tovce (1), Hence Factorof safety (y= Re ce Weaatany T Wang ‘The welght W, can then be computed rom the area ofthe wealge ad the unit weight ofthe soll mass abowe the plane of weakness AAS Stabitty Anaiyas of infinite Stopes {nfinite slopes have dimensions that extend over great tances. practice, the finite skype "mechanism sapped to the case when a sot mateva vey ng ength with constant sop may sie om a hate material (@g rock) having the same shipe. Let's consider a ean, ‘homogeneous soil infinte skape sas showin the Figure, Tease hit equi metho We must fest speculate on a fale of shy mestanimn, We wil aUMe the shy WOOK occur ma sane parallel tothe slope if we sonskter a Shee sl Between the surtace of the su! ara the lip plane, we can daw @ fee beet dara of the shee ABCD as shown, With the Unetnedegth as "Sanda height of 2"360 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING LECTURE NOTES acount fy Figure 10a: Figure 10b: “The weight ofthe prism per unit length, W i (2b cos fi). The weight can be resolved into the ‘normal component, N, and the tangential component to the plane CD, . cos = y(2b cos?) 2 {eb cos B sin). “The normal stress (a] and shear stress (x) are given as = 00s Bsn T= mepsnp “The shear stress tend to cause the shear failure along CD, and this tendency is opposed by the shearing resistance developed along the plane CD. Since 1 + yac0sp) tang 4+ tan 4, implies x ‘Therefore, the factor of safety against shear failure is pcos 6 actor of sae! u Factor of safety (F= =" yeeos sin equation (6) becomes For a dry cohesionless sol (Le. f= tsosguims - tans oo en an rhisndcates that fof anit sloe with cohesion fs sls independent ofthe depth of ature plane ‘22 = implying that the slope i just stable. For the ital case Fva acauaan ]OUNOATION ENGIMEERING _ aypes cc nares 48 failure under und A fully saturated clay slope may fail under undrained conditions (@, = 0) immediately after Construction, The stability analysis is based on the assumption that the sol is homogeneous ‘and the potential failure surface is a circular arc, with centre, O, and radius r. To be mobilized along the failure surface can be expressed as 0; face nomens about The restoring moment (along the slip surface) 2abr — or A Where L, is the length of the arc AB ‘The driving moment = W x d where d is the lever arm of W about 0 Figure 11, If a tension crack develops and water centers the crack the hydrostatic pressure force Py acts on the portion BC of the arc ata height of x, from C, where 2 isthe ‘depth of tension crack. The length of the ‘arcwillalso be AC, whichis lesser thaa the & ure 12 The tension crack wil therefore |. magi the slip surface and reduce the length ofthe sip surface. i filled with water produce hydrostatic pressure along the depth ofthe crack£350 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING ce act as a channel for water to flow into underlying soil layers, inducing seepage forces. iv. reduce the factor of safety 4.7.3. Stobilty of Circular Sides ‘The most commonly used method of slope stability analysis the method of sices, The stability of such slopes are usually analyzed by disretzing the mass ofthe failure slope into smaller sices and treating each individual slice as a unique sliding block. Ths technique 's called the method of slices. in cases where the effective angle of shearing restance is not constant over the failure surface, such as layered formation where the failure surface might pass through several ferent materials the ‘slices’ method, is more appropriate “The fist step in applying this method sto raw the cross section of the lope to scale A Wil curved surface (approxmatley cua) along which sliding is assumed to take place then ‘raw. The sliding mass is then divided into a number of vertical slices (Figure) preferably of equal with (band the equilibrium of each slice considered. Fue 138 Figure 136: considering the equibrium of one size (sie “The slice isin equilibrium under the follwing forces. ‘Weight (acting vertically through its centre of gravity ‘Norma force Nn the base ofthe sce shear fore (1 onthe base ofthe sce ‘The normal forces (€, and Eon the sides ofthe slice ‘he shea forces (ks 384%: onthe ses ofthe sce 6. Any external force acting onthe sce ee. co |(C360 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING ‘eaRcOUAaH 203 LECTURE NOTES The system of forces shown in the figure is statically indeterminate. iis therefore, necessary ‘tomake some assumptions in order to remove the extra unknowns and so be able to calculate a value for the factor of safety, F. (One common feature of all approximate methods is that the factor of safety is defined in terms of moments about the centre ofthe failure arc. My. Resisting Moment . Moment of shear strength along faluceare FM = “Driving Moment Mament of weight of faiure mass, ‘The moment arm for each slice is given as “r sin 6, meaning Mo=EWoesinO,= r2 Wisin 6 reletrtan dy IN Me=rBudl=r2{c+a, tan gal = rEcah+rtang, Eo:dh Since oi= N/A, then Mk=reLs +r tan gy ZN: Therefore, f,=-Me- Feltrtan IN cls tang, EN Mo rE W;sind EW sin 8, 47.8. Ordinary Method of Slices (Fellenius or Swedish Method) In this method, iis assumed thatthe forces acting upon the sides of any slice have zero resultantin the dicection normal to theflure arco that slice. Thus N+ U=W,cos 8 But U= uA, where = ha = Wi cos 8h Implying N.= W/ cos 8.- + tan, & (Wcos ual Therefore, TwisinG, ‘The computation of the factor of safety s simplified by using a table shown below OOL@®,® [oO] © joo; e | | w]e |sina| wana, [cosa |wicose)u [ai [U-O-©[u-@-@| “4‘CE 260 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING Wa ACQUAAH Picciacaese i Sa 2ory202 48 Stability Number Method ‘This method is based on the premise that resistance of a soil mass to sliding results from cohesion and internal friction ofthe sol along the failure surface, A circular arc is assumed for the failure surface. A parameter called the Stability Number was introduced, which groups {actors affecting stability of sol slope. The stability number (Sy s defined as (cn! HM), where Cais the cohesion mabilsed. Since F= c/w Therefore Ss Ee ‘Taylor determined the values of Sy for finite slopes using the friction circle method. He then’ proceeded to praduce charts relating this ratio to the angle of slope and the depth to hard formation. He showed that for slope angles less than 53, the depth to hard formation had an important influence on the behavior of the critical failure circle. With a slope angle, height of embankment H, the effective unit weight of material y, angle of internal friction 4, and unit cohesion care known, the factor of safety may be determined. He equated the factor of safety, Fas ‘And he published curves which gave relationship between the S» and the [i for various ¢. ‘These curves (Chart 1) are for toe slips of slope angles less than 53°. For a purely cohesive soils (= 0} a term, ns, Becomes important and chart? is used In practical problems, the depth to which the rapture circle may extend is usvally limited by the underlying strong material (stratum), the stability number is greatly dependent on the position of the strong material for case where @ = 0. The depth at which the hard formation ‘occu (0] is expressed in terms of depth factor, ‘nu, which is defined as D/H. The horizontal distance “x” ofthe rapture circle from the toe is also expressed a a cistance factor mand defined as x. Chart 2 shows the celationship between ny and nf the hard formation sat the elevation of the toe, ngs taken 382.ra acauaae (£360 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING 202272023 ECTURE NOTES L psy | ned intye ste cttge| 1 Omens Crea te , oof as . Nea TF (Zs il ooeeoes ae lee ae ea ett! tt min ies cee Ok ant ae ag Ss ee ee pilots cance Limitations of Taylor's Method i. The Taylor stability number applies to the case of slope in uniform clay stata with constant undrained cohesion ii, The stability factor ignores the effect of tension cracks, although this may be allowed {or by reducing c by 10%. ii, IRdoes not apply to partaly submerged slopes. It applies to either submerged or dry slopes. 49° Slope Design In practice the process of slope design involves the assumption ofa certain slope inclination and the analysis of such atrial slope in order to obtain an estimate of the minimum factor of safety. Ifthe factor of safety of design is considered uneconomic, another til slope with 2 steeper angle is then assumed and reanalyzed Usually the slope height is fixed andit isthe slope angle that wil be altered, Factor of safety interpretotion bosed on Sowers (1978), pg S87 TeSUEUR eee aaa eesaae eee CE 360 FOUNDATION ENGINEERING LECTURE NOTES vaca Factor of Safety | Significance Less than 1.0 ‘Unsafe ‘es cae 10-12 "| Questionable safety a Sattctry for cus, is (but questionable or dams) a | cas “The problem of assessing the stability of natura slopes is complicated by the fact that i. the geologic features of the rocks or weathered rocks forming the slope are not generally known in accurate enough detail ii. itis generally difficult to establish the average soil properties tobe used in the rigorous analysis ii, the stabilized groundwater level and its variation may not be known accurately. ‘Some of the reasons making cuts in natural slopes difficult are: iL Residual soils naturally inherit the discontinuities inthe parent rocks in ation to soft patches, whose shear strength and distribution are random. Ti. Cuts in such materials result in the opening up of fissures due to the lateral stress released and subsequent softening and deterioration of the material. (estimating the distribution of such fissures and their rate and extent of softening is impossible) 4.9.1. Improving Stability of Slopes Siope which are susceptible to failure by siding can be improved and made safe. The method “Chosen for improving slope stability depends on many factors, including type or projected type of slope feilure, soll characteristics and site constraints. Frequently, mare than one mitigation technique is required. The various methods that can be used to stable slopes may include the folowing prainage improvements Since waters the biggest culprit in failing slopes, drainage Improvements shoul be the fist priority. Some drainage improvements may include «+ Collector divert surface water from the problem slope. collect and remove subsurface water. Earthwork The steeper the slope, the mare prone it sto fall. Some earthwork mitigation techniques are as follows: + Remove the upper soils ofthe slope to create a flatter slope. Buttress the slope toe by filing with rock, gravel or soll, 1 Benching the slope If each bereh ison competent subgradk ”wa acouaat £360 FOUNDATIONENGINEERING 20220003 trout noms Ee ude’ “structural Improvements - Structural improvements incl «+ Mechanically Stabilized Earth (MSE) ~ by densification or grouting, {Sheet piles and Retaining walls to provide lateral support. + Soilnailing With the challenges encountered in dealing with natural slopes, previous experience of slopes in similar materials can be relied upon, and this has been based on the results of field studies ‘on the condition of such slopes m