Sanxicun landslide: an investigation of progressive failure of a gentle bedding slope

Xiangjun Pei, Shenghua Cui (), Ling Zhu, Hui Wang, Luguang Luo and Xiaochao Zhang
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Xiangjun Pei: Chengdu University of Technology
Shenghua Cui: Chengdu University of Technology
Ling Zhu: Chengdu University of Technology
Hui Wang: Chengdu University of Technology
Luguang Luo: Chengdu University of Technology
Xiaochao Zhang: Chengdu University of Technology

Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, 2022, vol. 111, issue 1, No 4, 78 pages

Abstract: Abstract A gentle bedding slope (16° dip angle) failure at Sanxicun (SXC) village in Dujiangyan city was triggered by heavy rainfall in 2013. The landslide has a sliding distance of up to 1200 m and caused 166 deaths. After this failure event, a detailed field survey and a series of laboratory tests were carried out to investigate the progressive failure mechanism of the slope. The results revealed that the slope deformation could be traced back to the Ming Dynasty in China (400 years before) at least. A sliding block with a width of 330 m and a length of 240 m detached its original position, resulting in a tension crack with 10 m in width and 25 m in depth at the rear of the sliding block. The field evidence reveals that the tension crack and cracked mudstone have provided convenience for water infiltration for a long time. The shake table test results show that these cracks can initiate and propagate in the slope during earthquakes. Especially, seismic stresses amplifications are induced in the mudstone to obviously degrade this layer. Besides, Direct shear tests of cracked mudstone with different immersion times were carried out. It is shown that the shear strength of mudstone decreased rapidly in the initial immersion and then tends to be stable gradually. Finally, numerical calculation indicates that the hydrostatic pressure in the tension crack and uplift pressure in the basal layer generated by the strongest rainwater in history (537.4 mm daily) cause the initiation of the block in 2013. We conclude that the catastrophic failure of the SXC landslide triggered by the rainwater in 2013 strongly depended on the pre-existing deformation and damage caused by historical earthquakes and rainwaters.

Keywords: Gentle bedding slope; Tension crack; Historical earthquakes; Rainfall water; Progressive failure (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1007/s11069-021-05044-6

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