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On August 15, 2007, Pisco, Peru was hit by an earthquake of Magnitude (Mw) = 8.0 which triggered multiple liquefaction induced lateral spreads. The subduction earthquake lasted for approximately 100 seconds and showed a complex rupture. From the geotechnical perspective, the Pisco earthquake was significant for the amount of soil liquefaction observed. A massive liquefaction induced seaward displacement of a marine terrace was observed in the Canchamana complex. Later analysis using the pre- and post-earthquake images showed that the lateral displacements were concentrated only on some regions. Despite the lateral homogeneity of the marine terrace, some cross-sections showed large displacements while others had minimal displacements. The detailed documentation of this case-history makes it an ideal case-study for the determination of the undrained strength of the liquefied soils; hence, the main objective of this research is to use the extensive data from the Canchamana Slide to estimate the shear strength of the liquefied soils. In engineering practice, the undrained strength of liquefied soil is typically estimated by correlating SPT-N values to: 1) absolute value of residual strength, or 2) residual strength ratio. Our research aims to contribute an important data point that will add to the current understanding of the residual strength of liquefied soils. / Master of Science

Tiltmeters can be used in the mining environment to monitor slope stability by making use of gravitational force to measure angles of inclination relative to horizontal. Tiltmeters typically use accelerometers, which output a voltage measurement that can be related to angle of tilt. Though wireless tiltmeters already exist today, they lack certain ruggedness and sensitivity preventing use in mines. The purpose of this project was to investigate the feasibility of using already existing wireless tiltmeters in the mining setting. Additionally, a new wireless tiltmeter was designed which could be specially tailored for the needs of monitoring hazardous rock bodies in both surface and underground mines. By recording angles of any slope, either in a surface mine or underground, over extended periods of time, changes in readings can infer instabilities in the rock mass underlying the slope being measured. By placing many tiltmeters in a mesh on a surface slope or underground roof, rib, or other face, the entire surface can be monitored. Compared to the measurements of a single point using one instrument, a dense network can be extremely useful in detecting rock movement. Many monitoring techniques are in use already in mines. Traditional methods of monitoring, though undeniably useful, are often time consuming. By utilizing wireless devices that transmit data back to a single location, data acquisition and analysis time can be minimized, saving the mine employee hours as well as down time. As surface mines continue to deepen, and underground mines continue to progress further from the surface, the extent of necessary monitoring continues to increase: this widening range will require greater time for proper monitoring, unless an automated system is implemented. With proper wireless equipment, real time monitoring of an entire mine is possible. / Master of Science

The failure of the Kettleman Hills landfill focused attention on the uncertainties associated with the use of limit equilibrium analyses for evaluation of the stability of slopes in which failure occurs along displacement-softening interfaces. Sliding on such interfaces can occur in a progressive manner with the result that the available interface strengths are reduced below their peak values. The amount of strength reduction depends on the magnitude of shear displacement, which varies from one location to another. Because the limit equilibrium method does not provide any information regarding the magnitudes of shear displacements along the sliding interface, it can only provide realistic assessments of stability where progressive failure effects are small, or where the degree of strength reduction due to progressive failure can be estimated independently. The objective of this research study was to develop procedures to study the phenomenon of progressive failure in lined landfills, and to use the results of these studies as a basis to provide guidance for performing limit equilibrium analyses. Progressive failure along liner interfaces was analyzed using the finite element method. Adaptation and application of the finite element method for this type of analysis was a principal focus of this study. Two new plasticity models for interface behavior, a displacement-softening model and a work-softening model, were developed to simulate strength reduction along liner interfaces. The work-softening model performs better than the displacement-softening model when applied to laboratory tests performed under conditions of changing normal stress. However, the differences in performance of the two models were not significant when applied to landfills. The displacement-softening model is computationally more efficient, and it was used in most of the analyses. Progressive failure effects were severe for all the cases that were analyzed in this study. Analyses of the Kettleman Hills failure showed that the average available shearing resistance at failure was only about 10 percent higher than the residual shearing resistance. Analyses of hypothetical Municipal Solid Waste landfills indicated that the average available shearing resistance would be about 6 percent to 14 percent greater than the residual shearing resistance. This means that a limit equilibrium factor of safety of 1.4 based on residual strengths would correspond to a factor of safety of 1.5 if progressive failure was taken into account. / Ph. D.

Διερευνώνται οι συνθήκες ευστάθειας σε συγκεκριμένα πρανή επί της Ε.Ο. Πατρών – Τριπόλεως αμέσως μετά τον οικισμό Δίβρη. Για τον σκοπό αυτό, έγινε λεπτομερής μηχανική περιγραφή των ασυνεχειών, ταξινομήσεις βραχομάζας με τα συστήματα RMR και GSI καθώς επίσης και συστηματική δειγματοληψία βραχωδών ασβεστολιθικών τεμαχών μεγάλων διαστάσεων. Τα δείγματα αυτά μεταφέρθηκαν στο Εργαστήριο Τεχνικής Γεωλογίας, για διάτρηση και κοπή, ώστε να διαμορφωθούν κυλινδρικά δοκίμια κατάλληλα για την εκτέλεση εργαστηριακών δοκιμών τριαξονικής φόρτισης, μοναξονικής θλίψης, σκληρότητα Schmidt, σημειακή φόρτιση, διάτμηση ασυνεχειών κ.λπ. Με δεδομένα, τα αποτελέσματα της εργαστηριακής έρευνας αλλά και τις επιτόπου παρατηρήσεις και καταγραφές, εκτιμήθηκαν τα μοντέλα δυνητικών ολισθήσεων στα ασβεστολιθικά πρανή, ενώ με την εφαρμογή μεθόδων οριακής ισορροπίας μελετήθηκε η ευστάθειά τους. Προς την κατεύθυνση αυτή χρησιμοποιήθηκαν τα λογισμικά WEDGE και ROCSTA του Εργαστηρίου Τεχνικής Γεωλογίας καθώς και το Swedge και RocPlane της Rocscience, για τις περιπτώσεις σφηνοειδών και επιπέδων ολισθήσεων αντίστοιχα. Τέλος, έγινε σύγκριση των αποτελεσμάτων προσομοίωσης των παραπάνω λογισμικών και εξήχθησαν ενδιαφέροντα συμπεράσματα σχετικά με την εφαρμογή τους και τις δυνατότητες ρεαλιστικού σχεδιασμού των μέτρων προστασίας. / In this postgraduate work an effort is presented to apply computational methods of Laboratory of Engineering Geology in order to analyze Limestone slope stability in high-risk areas of Patras - Tripolis national road and to design reliable, safe, preventive and protective measures. The geological conditions of the area including the geotectonic evolution of geological Olonou - Pindos zone are described. The discontinuities were examined in detail, while the rock mass quality, was estimated using classification system such as RMR, SMR and GSI systems. The topographic map of the region of interest was outlining with a brief description of georeferencing and GIS software. It is necessary to note separate chapters of the work, were focused on stability and analysis using several software, Rocksta, RocPlane of Rocscience, Wedge, Swedge of Rocscience, Dips. Finally, a comparative overview of these programs and drawing conclusions is included.

H παρούσα εργασία αφορά τη διερεύνηση ευστάθειας των πρανών του ορύγματος στη Χ.Θ. 18+535 –18+832 της Ιόνιας Οδού. Στην περιοχή αυτή προβλέπεται να εκσκαφτεί μονόπλευρο όρυγμα επί της κύριας οδού (αριστερό πρανές), μέγιστου κατακόρυφου ύψους 30m. Στην δεξιά παρειά θα κατασκευαστεί τοίχος από οπλισμένο έδαφος για την αντιστήριξη του αυτοκινητοδρόμου και της βοηθητικής οδού. Στην περιοχή εκτελέστηκαν έξι γεωτρήσεις (BE1-139, BW6-610, BC4-435, BC4-436, BW4-437, BC4-438, BW4-439) στην παρούσα φάση μελέτης και μία γεώτρηση (ΓΓ4) και δύο φρέατα (Φ3 και Φ4) σε προγενέστερο στάδιο έρευνας. Σύμφωνα με τα αποτελέσματα των γεωτεχνικών ερευνών η περιοχή αποτελείται από φλύσχη και πιο συγκεκριμένα από εναλλαγές ψαμμίτη και κροκαλοπαγούς. Οι γεωτρήσεις που εκτελέστηκαν στην περιοχή του ορύγματος έδειξαν επιφανειακά και μέχρι το βάθος του 1.00μ το μανδύα αποσάθρωσης του υποκείμενου κροκαλοπαγούς αποτελούμενου από κροκάλες και αργιλοϊλυώδεις χάλικες με άμμο, χαμηλής πλαστικότητας έως μη πλαστικούς, πολύ πυκνής απόθεσης. Έπειτα από το βάθος αυτό και μέχρι το πέρας των γεωτρήσεων το βραχώδες υπόβαθρο αποτελείται από ψαμμίτες και κροκαλοπαγή σε εναλλαγές. Ο προσανατολισμός των συστημάτων διακλάσεων και κυρίως της στρώσης κρίνεται δυσμενής λόγω δημιουργίας δυνητικών επιπέδων ολίσθησης και σφηνών. Επιπλέον λαμβάνεται υπόψη η επιδεκτικότητα στην αποσάθρωση που παρουσιάζει ο φλύσχης ως υλικό, όταν εκτεθεί σε περιβαλλοντικούς παράγοντες με την πάροδο του χρόνο, σε συνδυασμό με απότομες κλίσεις πρανών. Ο σχεδιασμός των πρανών έγινε με στόχο την επίτευξη αποδεκτών συντελεστών ασφαλείας έναντι επίπεδης ολίσθησης, ολίσθησης σφηνοειδούς τύπου και ανατροπών στις περιοχές όπου τα πρανή διαμορφώνονται σε κερματισμένη βραχόμαζα, αλλά και κυκλικής ολίσθησης όπου τα πρανή θα εκσκαφτούν εντός εδαφοποιημένων υλικών. Επιπλέον αποσκοπεί στην εκσκαφή των πρανών σε ασφαλείς κλίσεις και τον περιορισμό της έκτασης των εκσκαφών για περιβαλλοντικούς κυρίως λόγους. Για την εκσκαφή των ορυγμάτων με κλίση 3:1 προκύπτει πρόβλημα δυνητικών ολισθήσεων και θα πρέπει να κατασκευαστούν μέτρα αντιστήριξης καθώς και μέτρα αποστράγγισης. Τα απαιτούμενα μέτρα αντιστήριξης και αποστράγγισης και προστασίας από διάβρωση και αποσάθρωση αναλύονται και παρουσιάζονται στην παρούσα μελέτη. / -

Les phénomènes d’instabilité générés par les séismes dans les pentes représentent un risque naturel majeur à l’échelle mondiale. Ce risque a, de plus, tendance à croître du fait d’une urbanisation croissante dans des zones à fort aléa, comme en témoignent de nombreux évènements catastrophique à travers le passé. Pour garantir la sécurité des personnes et des biens face à ce type d’aléa, il faut améliorer les prédictions des déplacements générés par les séismes dans les pentes.Les premiers travaux scientifiques visant à corréler les caractéristiques des instabilités dans les pentes aux paramètres sismiques sont de nature empirique et remontent aux années 1980. Ces méthodes ne permettent pas d’expliquer tous les mouvements de terrain observés à travers le monde, notamment lorsque les effets de site modifient sensiblement la distribution des mouvements dans les pentes et génèrent des déplacements plus grands ou plus petits que ceux prédits par les lois empiriques qui négligent les effets de site.La première partie de cette thèse présente une nouvelle base de données mondiale de 277 glissements de terrain d’origine sismique ou non. L’analyse statistique conduite sur les données de cette base a montré que la forme géométrique moyenne des glissements de terrain reste stable lorsque le volume des instabilités augmente.La deuxième partie de la thèse est dédiée à l’analyse de la stabilité du glissement de terrain de Diezma (Espagne) au moyen de trois méthodes : la Méthode de NEWMARK (1965) basée sur le principe de l’équilibre limite en 2D qui suppose des conditions elasto-parfaitement-plastiques ; l’analyse par différences finies dans le domaine temporel avec le code FLAC en 2D et en 3D qui suppose des conditions visco-elasto-parfaitement-plastiques ; et l’analyse par recombinaison modale dans le domaine fréquentiel avec le code CESAR-LCPC en 2D et en 3D qui suppose des conditions visco-élastiques.Situé dans une région sismiquement active, le glissement de terrain de Diezma est susceptible d’être affecté par des séismes. Une analyse des déplacements induits dans ce versant par onze signaux sismiques différents a été menée dans l’objectif d’établir des corrélations entre les paramètres macro-sismiques des scenarios sismiques appliqués et les déformations calculées par les trois méthodes.Les résultats montrent des différences marquées à la fois qualitatives et quantitatives. Les conclusions principales sont : (a) Les déplacements obtenus par les trois méthodes ont des ordres de grandeur différents et peuvent donc conduire à une surestimation ou à une sous-estimation des déplacements ; (b) Les deux méthodes numériques montrent que les déplacements sont fortement conditionnés par la géométrie des modèles ; seule la méthode par différences finies fait apparaître une réponse en termes de déplacements qui dépend du scénario sismique considéré; (c) Les résultats des simulations2D et 3D ne sont pas comparables ; des analyses complémentaires doivent encore être menées pour guider l’utilisateur dans le choix de la méthode la plus appropriée; (d) La Méthode de NEWMARK (1965), dont l’utilisation reste très répandue de nos jours, est tout à fait appropriée à l’étude de cas simples mais elle peut se révéler inexacte lorsque la structure géologique / topographique du versant conduit à un fort effet de site car ce dernier n’est pas pris en compte par cette méthode / Seismically induced slope deformation is a worldwide common phenomenon that poses an increasing and considerable threat to fast expanding urbanization, and a great number of catastrophic events throughout the past attest thereof. For this reason, displacement predictions allowing for proper slope surveillance became a major concern.Early attempts to relate slope failures to seismic parameters are of empirical nature and date back to the 1980s. Although having proven stable, these relations are frequently disturbed by site effects causing outliers in terms of smaller or greater displacements than expected.The first part of this thesis presents a newly build chronological database of 277 globally distributed seismically and non-seismically induced landslides. A comprehensive statistical analysis was conducted on the data of this database with the main result that – statistically seen – the average geometrical shapes of landslides differ only proportionally.The second part of the thesis is dedicated to a comparative slope stability analysis of the Diezma Landslide (Spain) by means of three methods: the limit-equilibrium based NEWMARK-Method (1965) in 2D under elasto-perfectly-plastic conditions; finite-difference analysis in the time domain with the code FLAC in 2D and 3D under visco-elasto-perfectly-plastic conditions; and modal recombination analysis in the frequency domain with the finite-element code CESAR-LCPC in 2D and 3D under visco-elastic conditions.Located in a seismically active region, the Diezma Landslide is likely to be affected by earthquakes and was therefore considered as a suitable model case. A broad analysis of expected displacements was conducted using eleven strong-motion seismic scenarios. Moreover, the thesis searches for potential relations between macro-seismic parameters of the applied earthquake scenarios and the predicted deformations obtained from the three methods.It appeared that – due to the functionality of the methods – results differ quantitatively as well as qualitatively, and so does their suitability. Major findings are: (a) Results from the three methods are of different orders of magnitude and, thus, can easily lead to over- or under-estimations of displacements; (b) Both numerical methods reveal a strong influence of the model-geometry on the predicted displacements, whereas a scenario-dependent slope behavior manifested itself only within the finite difference analysis; (c) The switch from 2D to 3D does not necessarily result in a similar performance in each dimension and results must be critically judged before further use; (d) The NEWMARK-Method (1965) has proven itself once more to be appropriate for first slope assessments but not for sophisticated evaluations of ground response to seismic shaking

Escorregamentos de taludes no Sudeste do Brasil são causados principalmente, pelo efeito da água proveniente das chuvas. Nos últimos anos, vem se incrementando o número de desastres naturais, ao passo são registradas mudanças climáticas, que podem exercer influência na ocorrência de chuvas extremas. Muitas encostas permanecem grande parte do ano com o solo em estado não saturado, porém variações nas condições ambientais podem ocasionar mudanças bruscas da sucção, reduzindo ou até mesmo eliminando-a e gerando pressões neutras positivas. A dissertação apresenta, um estudo sobre a influência das chuvas, consideradas extremas, no processo de infiltração e de este nos eventos de escorregamentos, considerados catastróficos pela sua dimensão, e que causaram prejuízos ambientais, econômicos e sociais no Brasil. Para o estudo foram selecionados dois eventos de escorregamentos translacionais rasos relativamente típicos, considerados catastróficos, um deles aconteceu na região da Serra de Cubatão em janeiro do ano 1985, e o outro na Região Serrana do Rio de Janeiro em janeiro de 2011. Estes dois eventos apresentaram características de precipitações e mecanismos de escorregamentos próprios, que permitem ilustrar os diferentes mecanismos atuantes em cada caso. / Landslide in southeastern Brazil, are mainly caused by the effect of water from rainfall in infiltration process, in recent years has been increasing the number of natural disasters, while climate change that may exercising influence on the occurrence of extreme rainfall are recorded . Many slopes remain a large part of the year with unsaturated soil condition; however, changes in environmental conditions can cause sudden changes of suction, reducing or even deleting it and generate positive pore pressures. This dissertation presents a study about the influence of rainfall, considered extreme in the infiltration process and this one in the events regarded by their size of catastrophic landslides, which caused environmental, economic and social losses in Brazil. For the study were selected two events of shallow translational landslides relatively typical, considered catastrophic, one of them occurred in the Serra de Cubatão region on January 1985 and the other in the mountainous region of Rio de Janeiro on January 2011. Both events exhibit characteristics of rainfall and sliding mechanisms themselves, allowing illustrate the different mechanisms active in each case.

This thesis contains two main parts. The first part presents a database compiling 137 landslide-triggering earthquakes (LTEs) worldwide, with magnitudes greater than the minimum observed threshold for causing landslides (M4.5), for the period of 1998 -2009. Our data sources include a comprehensive review of the existing literature on earthquake-triggered landslides (ETLs), and also a USGS-based earthquake catalog (PAGER-CAT) that contains information on earthquake-triggered secondary events. Only 14 earthquakes out of the 137 seismic events induced significant numbers of landslides (>250). We compared the number of ETLs with the total number of earthquakes with M ≥ 4.5 (n=68,734) during the same period of time. The results show that only 0.2 % of ETLs and only 4.5% of earthquakes of M > 6 resulted in landslide. In addition, we compiled a database of 37 large-scale landslides, involving initial failure volumes of greater than 20 Mm3 that occurred worldwide between 1900 to 2010. The database contains large-scale earthquake-triggered (n ETLs=18) and non-earthquake-triggered landslides (n NETLs=20), i.e., ca. 50% of large-scale landslides were induced by seismic activity. Surprisingly, the volume-temporal frequency curves of ETLs and NETLs show almost identical slopes and intercepts. Thus, for a given volume, the annual frequency of ETLs is almost identical to that of NETLs in the 110 year period. In contrast to previous studies, this thesis found that the volume of the largest landslide triggered by a given landslide-triggering earthquake is not a function of earthquake magnitude. Peak ground motions (PGA, PGV, and PSA) were calculated for the 18 large-scale ETLs at the site of each occurrence and the resulting values show a correlation with the volume of landslides below the threshold of ca. 80 Mm3. Above this threshold, the relationship between peak ground motions and ETL volume shows complex and nonlinear behavior. The results suggest that 1) other special conditions are required for significant earthquake-triggered landslides to occur, and 2) that very large earthquake-triggered landslides (volume greater than 80 Mm3) result from complex progressive failure mechanisms initiated by seismic shaking (i.e., above this threshold volume, landslide volume is independent of PGA, PGV, and PSA). A detailed analysis of the two 1985 Nahanni earthquakes and the North Nahanni rockslide triggered by the first main shock is carried out in the second part of the study. The North Nahanni rockslide, Northwest Territories, Canada was triggered by the earthquake of M=6.6 on October 5th, 1985. The slide occurred in a Palaeozoic carbonate sequence along a thrust fault, which partly follows bedding and partly cuts across bedding. The sliding surface within the limestone consisted of two planes; the lower plane dipped at 20° while the upper plane dipped at 35°. Slope stability analysis is performed using discontinuum numerical modeling. Static slope stability analyses indicate that the sliding rock was marginally safe for the sliding surface friction angles of 24o or higher. Dynamic analyses of the co-seismic movements are conducted by applying a series of sinusoidal waves to the base of the model. The amplitudes of the October earthquake's seismic waves are estimated using strong motion data available from the second main shock. The results, from the dynamic analysis indicate that the slope becomes unstable for given seismic inputs at a specific range of friction angles (24o to 30o) for the sliding surface and the deformation behavior of the North Nahanni rock masses is dependent on the frequency of the seismic signals. Because the static slope stability analysis showed that the slope was close to instability prior to the seismic shaking, we suggest that the 1985 Nahanni earthquake operated as a trigger event that accelerated the occurrence of the slide. This finding supports our earlier results of the global scale study, which showed that the triggering event does not change the general trend of the frequency-volume distribution of landslides; however, it can accelerate the occurrence of slope failure.

This thesis reports a detailed investigation into the use of the Shear Strength Reduction (SSR) method to determine factor of safety values in discontinuum models using the Universal Distinct Element Code. The SSR method depends on the definition of failure within the model and two different criteria were compared: the numerical unbalanced force definition and a more qualitative displacement-monitoring based method. A parametric study was first undertaken, using a simple homogeneous rock slope, with three different joint networks representing common kinematic states. Lessons learned from this study were then applied to a more complex case history used for validation of the SSR method. The discontinuum models allow for the failure surface to propagate based on constitutive models that better idealize the rockmass than simpler methods such as limit equilibrium (e.g. either method of slices or wedge solutions) and even numerical continuum models (e.g. finite difference, finite element). Joints are explicitly modelled and can exert a range of influences on the SSR result. Simple elasto-plastic models are used for both the intact rock and joint properties. Strain-softening models are also discussed with respect to the SSR method. The results presented highlight several important relationships to consider related to both numerical procedures and numerical input parameters. The case history was modelled similar to how a typical forward analysis would be undertaken: i.e. simple models with complexities added incrementally. The results for this case generally depict a rotational failure mode with a reduced factor of safety due to the presence of joints within the rockmass when compared to a traditional limit equilibrium analysis. Some models with large persistence of steeply dipping joints were able to capture the actual failure surface. Softening models were employed in order to mimic the generation and propagation of joints through the rockmass in a continuum; however, only discontinuum models using explicitly defined joints in the model were able to capture the correct failure surface.