Technical Papers
Jun 28, 2024

Assessing the Reliability of Rock Slopes Based on the Nonlinear Strength Criterion

Publication: International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 24, Issue 9

Abstract

Traditionally, the reliability of a rock slope is evaluated based on the linear Mohr–Coulomb strength criterion, neglecting the nonlinear shear strength of the majority of geotechnical materials. The paper proposes a probability method to assess the reliability of rock slopes based on the power-type nonlinear strength criterion and the mean-value first-order second-moment method. In the proposed method, a novel analytical method to determine the safety factors of slopes with plane failure is derived based on the power-type nonlinear strength criterion. The local mean value of a random variable on the failure surface is determined based on the two-dimensional random field theory, avoiding the random field simulation. To quickly search the minimum reliability index βmin, a dichotomic search method is proposed. The validity of the proposed method is demonstrated in two cases. The study results from the two cases illustrate that the proposed method has high computational efficiency and accuracy. The proposed method offers a fresh way to examine the reliability of rock slopes when the nonlinear strength criterion is adopted.

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Data Availability Statement

All data, models, and codes generated or used during the study appear in the published article.

Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Sichuan Province (2022NSFSC1033), the Special Project of Postdoctoral Research in Chongqing (2022CQBSHTB3109), the Opening Fund of State Key Laboratory of Geo-Hazards Prevention and Geo-environment Protection (SKLGP2022K008), and the Opening Fund of Sichuan Mineral Resources Research Center (SCKCZY2022-YB017).

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International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 24Issue 9September 2024

History

Received: Oct 8, 2023
Accepted: Mar 12, 2024
Published online: Jun 28, 2024
Published in print: Sep 1, 2024
Discussion open until: Nov 28, 2024

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Associate Professor, School of Civil Engineering, Sichuan Univ. of Science and Engineering, Zigong 643000, China (corresponding author). Email: [email protected]
Associate Professor, School of Civil Engineering, Sichuan Univ. of Science and Engineering, Zigong 643000, China; National and Local Joint Engineering Research Center of Shale Gas Exploration and Development, Chongqing Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, Chongqing 401120, China. Email: [email protected]
Associate Professor, School of Civil Engineering, Sichuan Univ. of Science and Engineering, Zigong 643000, China; State Key Laboratory of Geohazards Prevention and Geoenvironment Protection, Chengdu Univ. of Technology, Chengdu 610059, China. Email: [email protected]

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