Progressive Failure of Lower San Fernando Dam
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical Engineering
Volume 119, Issue 2
Abstract
Postearthquake deformation analyses of the lower San Fernando dam were conducted using an incremental finite‐element method. In the analyses, an undrained elastoplastic model was used to simulate the collapse of liquefied materials. The model is developed based on the critical‐state boundary‐surface theory, the concept of steady‐state strength, and the undrained behavior of liquefiable soils. A triggering condition in terms of a collapse surface was considered in this model. The hyperbolic strain‐softening relationship has been introduced to simulate the postpeak behavior of liquefied materials. The analyses have shown that a progressive failure under undrained conditions may explain the observed response of the lower San Fernando dam following the 1971 earthquake. Stress redistribution initiated by the strain softening of liquefied materials is the main reason for undrained flow failures of dams, slopes, and foundations and can occur in a short period ranging from a few seconds to a few minutes. The liquefied zone after stress redistribution may be much larger than the initial liquefied zone caused directly by an earthquake. Therefore, a postearthquake deformation analysis may be essential in liquefaction stability evaluations.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
1.
Ambraseys, N. N., and Sarma, S. K. (1969). “Liquefaction of soils induced by earthquake.” Bull. Seismol. Soc. Am., 59(2), 651–664.
2.
Casagrande, A. (1940). “Characteristics of cohesionless soils affecting the stability of slopes and earth fills.” Contributions to soil mechanics, 1925 to 1940, Boston Society of Civil Engineers, 257–276.
3.
Casagrande, A. (1971). “On liquefaction phenomena.” Géotechnique, 21, London, England, 197–202.
4.
Castro, G. (1975). “Liquefaction and cyclic mobility of saturated sands.” J. Geotech. Engrg. Div., ASCE, 101(6), 551–569.
5.
Castro, G. (1987). “On the behavior of soils during earthquakes—Liquefaction.” Soil dynamics and liquefaction, A. S. Cakmak, ed., Elsevier Computational Mechanics Publications, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 169–204.
6.
Castro, G., Keller, T. O., and Boynton, S. S. (1989). “Re‐evaluation of the lower San Fernando dam, report 1, an investigation of the February 9, 1971 slide.” Contract Rep. GL‐89‐2, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington, D.C.
7.
Chan, D. H. (1986). “Finite element analysis of strain softening material,” PhD thesis, Univ. of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
8.
Chan, D. H., and Morgenstern, N. R. (1989). “Bearing capacity of strain softening soil.” Victor deMello Volume, J. E. Moreira, ed. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 59–68.
9.
Desai, C. S., and Li, G. C. (1983). “A residual flow procedure and application for free surface flow in porous media.” Adv. Water Resour., 6, 27–35.
10.
Duncan, J. M., and Chang, C. Y. (1970). “Nonlinear analysis of stress and strain in soils.” J. Soil Mech. and Found. Div., ASCE, 96(5), 1629–1653.
11.
Holzer, T. L., Youd, T. L., and Hanks, T. C. (1989). “Dynamics of liquefaction during the 1987 Superstition Hills, California earthquake.” Science, 244, 56–59.
12.
Ishihara, K., Tatsuoka, F., and Yasuda, S. (1975). “Undrained deformation and liquefaction of sand under cyclic stress.” Soil Found., 15(1), 29–44.
13.
Ishihara, K., Verdugo, R., and Acacio, A. A. (1991). “Characterization of cyclic behavior of sand and post‐seismic stability analyses.” IX Asian Reg. Conf. on Soil Mech. and Found. Engrg., Southeast Asian Geotechnical Society, 2, 17–40.
14.
Lee, K. L., Seed, H. B., Idriss, I. M., and Makdis, F. I. (1975). “Properties of soil in the San Fernando hydraulic fill dams.” J. Geotech. Engrg. Div., ASCE, 101(8), 801–821.
15.
Mohamad, R., and Dobry, R. (1986). “Undrained monotonic and cyclic triaxial strength of sand.” J. Geotech. Engrg., ASCE, 112(10), 941–957.
16.
McRoberts, E. D., and Sladen, J. A. (1990). “Observations on static and cyclic sand liquefaction methodologies.” Prediction and Perf. in Geotech., 43th Can. Geotech. Conf., Canadian Geotechnical Society, 215–226.
17.
Poulos, S. J. (1981). “The steady state of deformation.” J. Geotech. Engrg. Div., ASCE, 107(5), 5513–5562.
18.
Poulos, S. J., Robinsky, E. I., and Keller, T. O. (1985). “Liquefaction resistance of thickened tailings.” J. Geotech. Engrg., 111(12), 1380–1394.
19.
Prevost, J. H., and Hoeg, K. (1975). “Effective stress‐strain‐strength model for soils.” J. Geotech. Engrg. Div., ASCE, 101(3), 259–278.
20.
Roscoe, K. H., Schofield, A. N., and Wroth, C. P. (1958). “On the yielding of sands.” Géotechnique, 8, London, England, 22–53.
21.
Seed, H. B. (1966). “A method for earthquake resistant design of earth dams.” J. Soil Mech. and Found. Div., ASCE, 92(1), 13–41.
22.
Seed, H. B., Idriss, I. M., Lee, K. L., and Makdisi, F. I. (1975). “Dynamic analysis of the slide in the lower San Fernando dam during the earthquake of February 9, 1971.” J. Geotech. Engrg. Div., ASCE, 101(9), 889–911.
23.
Seed, H. B. (1979). “Nineteenth Rankine lecture: Consideration in the earthquake resistance design of earth and rockfill dam.” Géotechnique, 29, London, England, 215–263.
24.
Seed, H. B., Seed, R. B., Harder, L. F., and Jong H. L. (1989). “Re‐evaluation of the lower San Fernando dam, report 2, examination of the post‐earthquake slide of February 9, 1971.” Contract Rep. GL‐89‐2, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington, D.C.
25.
Sladen, J. A., D'Hollander, R. D., and Krahn, J. (1985). “The liquefaction of sands, a collapse surface approach.” Can. Geotech. J., 22, 564–578.
26.
Vasquez‐Herrera, A. (1988). “The behaviour of undrained contractive sand and its effect on seismic liquefaction flow failures of earth structures,” PhD thesis, Rensselaer Polytech. Inst., Troy, N.Y.
27.
Vasquez‐Herrera, A., and Dobry, R. (1989). “Re‐evaluation of the lower San Fernando dam, report 3, the behaviour of undrained contractive sand and its effects on seismic liquefaction flow failures of earth structures.” Contract Rep. Gl‐89‐2, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington, D.C.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Geotechnical Engineering
Volume 119 • Issue 2 • February 1993
Pages: 333 - 349
Copyright
Copyright © 1993 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 16, 1991
Published online: Feb 1, 1993
Published in print: Feb 1993
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.