Experimental Study on Runoff and Sediment Production of the Fully Weathered Granite Backfill Slope under Heavy Rain in Longling, Yunnan Province

Kai Gao, Zhigang Kong (), Yanqing Li (), Fei Zhao, Baoxin Cai, Dehua Shi and Ren Wang
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Kai Gao: Faculty of Land Resources Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650093, China
Zhigang Kong: Faculty of Land Resources Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650093, China
Yanqing Li: Yunnan Provincial Traffic Safety Coordination Center, Department of Transport of Yunnan Province, Kunming 650031, China
Fei Zhao: Dehong Oil and Gas Transportation Branch of Southwest Oil and Gas Pipeline Co., Ltd. National Pipe Network Group, Mangshi 678400, China
Baoxin Cai: Key Laboratory of Geohazard Forecast and Geoecological Restoration in Plateau Mountainous Area, Ministry of Natural Resources of China (MNR), Kunming 650093, China
Dehua Shi: Dehong Oil and Gas Transportation Branch of Southwest Oil and Gas Pipeline Co., Ltd. National Pipe Network Group, Mangshi 678400, China
Ren Wang: Dehong Oil and Gas Transportation Branch of Southwest Oil and Gas Pipeline Co., Ltd. National Pipe Network Group, Mangshi 678400, China

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 4, 1-22

Abstract: Heavy or intermittent rainfall can cause slopes to become unstable and erode, resulting in significant damage, loss of life, and destruction of property. Targeted management solutions are based on an analysis of slopes’ flow generation and sediment production patterns during periods of rainfall. This study used a fully granite backfill slope as its research subject and examined the features of slope erosion during intermittent rainfall. We examined the processes of slope flow generation and soil erosion during intermittent rain through indoor artificially simulated rainfall experiments. Three intermittent rainfall events with a 220 mm/h intensity were designed during the experiment. Each rainfall event lasted for 60 min, with an interval of 60 min between the events. By analyzing multiple rainfall events, this study reveals the patterns of runoff and sediment yield on different slopes in response to variations in rainfall intensity and slope gradient. The runoff volume on other slope surfaces exhibits a similar pattern in reaction to changes in rainfall events. As the frequency of rainfall events increases, the surface runoff tends to be higher. Additionally, with variations in slope steepness, the runoff volume generally follows an increasing trend. Notably, the slope with a 20° incline shows the smallest runoff volume. The sediment yield on different slope surfaces gradually increases as the slope increases. In particular, on a 20° slope, the sediment yield experiences a substantial increase, indicating that the impact of the slope on the sediment yield becomes more pronounced. In different rainfall events, the morphology of the slope changes due to the influence of gravity and hydraulics, resulting in oscillations in both the average runoff rate and sediment yield. Furthermore, as the slope steepens, the amplitude of these oscillations increases. The process of slope erosion involves three stages: raindrop splash erosion, runoff erosion, and collapse damage. The sequence of slope damage locations is as follows: footslope, mid-slope, and hilltop. For the backfilled slope of completely weathered granite, the artificial slope can be controlled to around 20°. Erosion on the slope mainly occurs after the formation of gullies, and slope management should focus on preventing gully formation before it happens.

Keywords: intermittent rainfall; fully weathered granite backfill slope; soil erosion (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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