Effects of Infiltration Characteristics on Spatial-Temporal Evolution of Stability of an Interstate Highway Embankment
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 145, Issue 9
Abstract
Infiltration-induced landslides are among the most common natural disasters threatening modern civilization, but conventional methods for studying the triggering mechanisms and predicting the occurrence of these slides are limited by incomplete consideration of underlying physical processes and the lack of precision inherent in limit-equilibrium analyses. To address this problem, the spatial-temporal evolution of failure is investigated in a seasonally unstable section of an interstate highway embankment, known as the Straight Creek landslide, Colorado. The study includes multiyear site investigation, monitoring, and numerical simulation using a rigorous hydromechanical framework along with a field of local factor of safety method. The sensitivity of episodic landslide reactivation to infiltration characteristics is evaluated. Results indicate that annual cumulative snowmelt infiltration, which typically accounts for approximately 75% of total annual cumulative infiltration and occurs over a short period in the spring, has the most substantial impact on slide activation. The rate of snowmelt infiltration varies independently of annual cumulative snowmelt infiltration and cumulative infiltration in the previous year, but still affects antecedent soil-moisture conditions at the onset of snowmelt infiltration and therefore also the level of slide activation. These findings are used to establish specific thresholds for exacerbated slide movement using annual snowpack accumulation, forecasted snowmelt rate, and the previous year’s snowmelt, an approach that may be applied for predicting movement at this and other recurring or potential slide sites.
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Acknowledgments
This project is supported through grants from Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT SAP No. 411013042) to the second and fourth authors and National Science Foundation (CMMI No. 1561764) to the second author and are greatly appreciated. In-kind support for partial field instrumentation from the Geologic Hazards Science Center of the US Geological Survey is greatly appreciated. Numerous discussions on the evolving geotechnical challenges of the site with David Thomas and Aziz Khan of CDOT are insightful and instrumental in the course of this case study. Matt Thomas (USGS) provided some constructive suggestions for improving an earlier version of this manuscript. Data are available through contacting the corresponding author. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the US Government.
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©2019 American Society of Civil Engineers.
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Received: Jun 15, 2018
Accepted: Apr 17, 2019
Published online: Jul 11, 2019
Published in print: Sep 1, 2019
Discussion open until: Dec 11, 2019
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