Seismic stability analysis of fractured rock slopes by yield design theory

This paper deals with the problem of stability of fractured rock slope located in seismic area. The rock mass is crossed by two sets of fractures which are considered to be planar. parallel and persistent. The effects of both horizontal seismic coefficient and strength characteristics of fractures are addressed. The analysis is based upon the kinematic approach of the yield design theory and the pseudo-static method as well. The fundamental inequality of the kinematic approach is invoked and the failure of the fractured rock slope is considered through simple translational mechanism involving a one-partsliding block. Rigorous upper bounds of the so-called stability factor for the structure under study of given slope angle, strength properties of constituent materials and seismic loads are obtained. The results are presented in the form of stability charts relating the estimated upper bound solutions to the friction angle of fractures. The used procedure highlights the destabilizing effects of the seismic loadings and is capable of conducting parametric studies. Furthermore, the results obtained far from various sets of data show good performance and further research work is planed to extend the analysis to include a large number of sub-problems. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.