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Characteristics, mobility and dynamic of the Yahuokou flow-like landslide in Zhouqu, Gansu, China

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Abstract

At 18:00 on July 19, 2019, the ancient Yahuokou flow-like landslide in Dongshan Town, Zhouqu County, Gansu Province, China, was revived. The landslide mass of about 3.92 × 106 m3 was revived step by step, slid down the slope, and finally slipped into the Minjiang river, causing the Minjiang river to become a semi-blocked state, the water level of the river rose, and the riverside road was interrupted. The landslide is 1920 m long, with a height difference of 550 m and an apparent friction coefficient of 0.286. It is a typical push-type large-scale long-striped fault-fractured zone accumulation landslide, which is controlled by the Pingding-Huama fault zone. Under the action of long-term rainfall, the trailing edge of the upper section of the landslide first undergoes slow creep deformation, which eventually leads to the overall instability and decline of the upper section of the landslide, and then loads the upper part of the middle section of the sliding mass, which promotes the instability and decline of the middle section of the sliding mass. Finally, the sliding mass in the middle section exerts a load on the upper part of the sliding mass in the lower section, which revives the sliding mass in the lower section and gradually slides into the Minjiang river. Through field investigation, remote sensing interpretation, and borehole investigation, the basic characteristics and information of landslide deformation and movement are obtained. The limit equilibrium method is used to analyze the revival mechanism and the spring model is proposed to analyze the movement mechanism of the landslide. With the help of DNA-W numerical simulation software, the sliding process of the upper sliding mass is simulated by a frictional rheological model to verify the spring model. The analysis of the dynamic mechanism of the Yahuokou flow-like landslide will help provide a reference for the research on the instability and movement mechanism of the landslide in the Pingding-Huama fault zone, and provide the necessary scientific basis for the prevention and mitigation of landslide disasters.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the project Risk Assessment and Comprehensive Prevention and Control of Major Geological Disasters in Zhouqu, Gansu and the China Geological Survey Project: Survey and Evaluation of Geological Disaster Risks in Key Areas (DD20221748); the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation funded project (2021M700608).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, China Institute of Geo-Environment Monitoring, Beijing, 100081, China

    Qing He

  2. Gansu Institute of Geo-Environment Monitoring, Lanzhou, 730000, China

    Fuyun Guo & Ruidong Li

  3. China Institute of Geo-Environment Monitoring, Beijing, 100081, China

    Lichao Wang, Wenpei Wang & Nan Zhang

  4. School of Civil Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400000, China

    Luqi Wang

  5. School of Geological Engineering and Geomatics, Changan University, Xian, 710000, China

    Jingxuan Gao

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  1. Qing He
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Correspondence to Qing He.

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The purpose of writing this article is purely to study the instability and movement mechanism of the Yahuokou flow-like landslide, and to provide a scientific method for the management of landslide disasters in this area, and there is no personal interest or conflict of interest.

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He, Q., Guo, F., Li, R. et al. Characteristics, mobility and dynamic of the Yahuokou flow-like landslide in Zhouqu, Gansu, China. Landslides 20, 629–643 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-022-02000-8

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