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Toward a Generic Computational Approach for Flexible Rockfall Barrier Modeling

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Abstract

Flexible rockfall barriers are protection structures used to mitigate rockfall hazards in mountainous areas. The complex nonlinear mechanical behavior of these structures under impacts requires powerful modeling tools to perform structural analysis. In this article, a generic computational approach to rockfall barriers analysis is introduced. First, the generic formulation and numerical implementation in the GENEROCK software are detailed. Then, two barrier models are considered and validated against experimental full-scale tests on two different technologies. This numerical investigation permits insightful numerical investigation of the barriers’ behavior. Exploratory numerical simulations are eventually performed to highlight the strengths and generality of the proposed approach. The influence of the curtain effect modeling in simulation results is presented. The effects of repeated impacts on rockfall barriers are investigated and present new insight into barrier behavior and management practices. Stochastic modeling methods are also used to study the propagation of uncertainty and variability of the structure itself in its dynamic response.

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Abbreviations

\(\mathbf {A}\) :

Stochastic input variables

E :

Young’s modulus

\(E_{\mathrm{c}}\) :

Energy level

\(f_{\mathrm{A}}\) :

Probability density function

\(F_{\mathrm{y}}\) :

Activation force of energy dissipating devices

g :

Earth gravitational acceleration

I :

Second moment of area of post

\(K_1, K_2, K_3\) :

Elastic, elastoplastic and blockage stiffness of energy dissipating devices

L :

Length of post

\(L_{\mathrm{ext}}\) :

Side length of boulder

m :

Mass of boulder

\(P_{\mathrm{cr}}\) :

Critical buckling load of post

\(P_{\mathrm{f}}\) :

Deficiency probability

R :

Height ratio

r :

Height ratio threshold

\(\mathbf {x}^*\) :

Design point

\(\varvec{\alpha }\) :

Importance factor

\({\varDelta }E_{\mathrm{p}}\) :

Potential energy variation

\(\delta _{\mathrm{s}}\) :

Stroke of energy dissipating devices

\({\varDelta }z\) :

Altitude variation

\(\mu _{F_{\mathrm{y}}}\) :

Mean of activation forces

\(\sigma _{F_{\mathrm{y}}}\) :

Standard deviation of activation forces

\(\tau\) :

Time step

DEM:

Discrete element method

FORM:

First-order reliability method

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to express their sincere thanks to the French National Project C2ROP (Chutes de Blocs, Risques Rocheux et Ouvrages de Protection, www.c2rop.fr ) for having supported this work and for fostering the development of the GENEROCK software potential applications.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geological Hazards Team, Cerema Centre-Est, 25 Avenue François Mitterrand, CS 92803, 69674, Bron Cedex, France

    Jibril B. Coulibaly & Marie-Aurélie Chanut

  2. Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Irstea, ETNA, 38000, Grenoble, France

    Stéphane Lambert & François Nicot

Authors
  1. Jibril B. Coulibaly
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  2. Marie-Aurélie Chanut
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  3. Stéphane Lambert
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  4. François Nicot
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Correspondence to Jibril B. Coulibaly.

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Coulibaly, J.B., Chanut, MA., Lambert, S. et al. Toward a Generic Computational Approach for Flexible Rockfall Barrier Modeling. Rock Mech Rock Eng 52, 4475–4496 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-019-01878-6

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