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Weak foliated rock slope stability analysis with ultra-close-range terrestrial digital photogrammetry

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Abstract

This paper presents a review of the data acquisition procedures of geotechnical parameters for rock slope stability assessment and the proposal of some new improvements. For this purpose, a piece of research based on the slope mass rating classification system using close-range terrestrial digital photogrammetry (CR-TDP) has led to improvements in quality and timing of discontinuity data acquisition, and analyzes the suitability of each one of the parameters when applied to weak foliated rocks. TDP allows rapid 3D image acquisition of a rock slope, which can be analyzed using software to determine the geometrical parameters that affect stability. A fast procedure to perform the photogrammetric, non-contact survey in order to obtain the 3D images is shown in this paper. Being a rapid and single-person task, this procedure provides enough precision to be applied to weak foliated rock slopes with non-well-defined geometry. Furthermore, the study has focused on highly foliated rock outcrops, in which high resolution in the 3D images is very desirable. This research was applied to mountain road cuts, in which the use of TDP with a very close range was necessary. Through an application on weak rocks in the Alpujarras (Andalusia, Spain), this work analyzes the bias when applying TDP to materials such as these, under progressive weathering processes.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the research group ‘Grupo de Investigaciones Medioambientales: Riesgos Geológicos e Ingeniería del Terreno.’ And the foundings by the ‘Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia’ (Spanish government) for the research project ‘Desarrollo de técnicas para la regionalización de la peligrosidad de movimientos de ladera en la cuenca del río Genil y la cuenca Sur (Adra-Nerja) de la Cordillera Bética’.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Mines, Mining Engineering Department, Federal University of Ouro Preto, Campus Morro do Cruzeiro, Ouro Preto, Brazil

    Pedro Alameda-Hernández

  2. Civil Engineering Department, University of Granada, Av. Severo Ochoa s/n, 18071, Granada, Spain

    Rachid El Hamdouni, Clemente Irigaray & José Chacón

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  1. Pedro Alameda-Hernández
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  2. Rachid El Hamdouni
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  3. Clemente Irigaray
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  4. José Chacón
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Correspondence to Pedro Alameda-Hernández.

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Alameda-Hernández, P., El Hamdouni, R., Irigaray, C. et al. Weak foliated rock slope stability analysis with ultra-close-range terrestrial digital photogrammetry. Bull Eng Geol Environ 78, 1157–1171 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-017-1119-z

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