Geotechnical Slope Analysis








1.1 INTRODUCTION

The construction, design, remediation and maintenance of slopes have always formed an important area of geotechnical engineering which is often termed as ‘slope engineering’. The wide variety of applications of slope engineering include excavations, hill roads, railway lines, embankments, earth dams, reservoirs, open-cut mines, urban development of hilly areas, protection of river banks and coastal slope stability. The study and analysis of slopes is essential for understanding their performance

and, in particular,

their stability,

reliability and deformations. Thus geotechnical engineers

often seek to calculate values of quantitative indicators of performance such

as the factor of safety (safety factor), lateral deformation, and probability of failure

and reliability index. Important concepts of geomechanics and, in particular,



of soil mechanics have been vitally important for developing the basic mechanistic models

of slopes and the associated methods of analysis, both simple and sophisticated.

However,

it is widely recognized that interdisciplinary approaches are required for

a complete understanding of slope performance and for the choice of realistic models

and methods of analysis for specific sites. Geoscientists have made significant contributions

to the understanding of natural slopes, their evolution and performance over

the long-term. To

that end, they are concerned with modeling natural and other processes

much more than considering specifics of stability analysis, slope design and remediation

which are understood to be the main concerns of geotechnical engineers. However,

the input of geoscientists is often valuable for slope engineering including the development,

choice and use of mechanistic models. In fact, a geotechnical engineer would

start detailed modeling after studying the geological report of a site and often after

considering the specific observations made by an engineering geologist.


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