Skip to main content

Modeling of rainfall-induced landslides using a full-scale flume test

Landslides volume 18, pages 1153–1162 (2021)Cite this article

Abstract

A flume test was conducted to evaluate the failure mechanism of a rainfall-induced landslide and to develop a physically based warning system. The test was performed at full scale to prevent scale effects, and the flume was a rectangular channel that was 20 m long, 4 m wide, and 2.5 m deep. The volumetric water content and the matric suction were measured at various depths to determine the rainfall infiltration into partially saturated soil. The displacement and tilt were measured at the slope surface, and a video camera was installed to record the slope failure. The results showed that the rainfall infiltration caused the volumetric water content to gradually increase and the matric suction to decrease. The resulting decrease in the soil strength caused soil deformation. Thus, the rainfall induced a landslide. The matric suction and the degree of saturation were used to calculate the generalized effective stress of the solid skeleton to develop a warning system. The stress paths were calculated using the effective mean stress and the deviatoric shear stress. The inflection point of the stress paths can be used to define a threshold for a rainfall-induced landslide warning system.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price includes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10

References

  • Alonso E, Gens A, Lloret A, Delahaye C (1996) Effect of rain infiltration on the stability of slopes. Proc., Int. Conf. on Unsaturated Soils. Alonso EE, Delage P (eds) Balkema, Rotterdam, pp 241–249

  • Borga M, Dalla Fontana G, Cazorzi F (2002) Analysis of topographic and climatic control on rainfall-triggered shallow landsliding using a quasi-dynamic wetness index. J Hydrol 268:56–71

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Castro G (1969) Liquefaction of sands. Harvard Soil Mechanics Series, No. 81. Pierce Hall.

  • Crosta GB, Agliardi F (2003) Failure forecast for large rockslides by surface displacement measurements. Can Geotech J 40(1):176–191

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cui Y, Guo C, Zhou X (2017) Experimental study on the moving characteristics of fine grains in wide grading unconsolidated soil under heavy rainfall. J Mt Sci 14(3):417–431

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Federico A, Popescu M, Elia G, Fidelibus C, Interno G, Murianni A (2012) Prediction of time to slope failure: a general framework. Environ Earth Sci 66(1):245–256

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • García A, Hördt A, Fabian M (2010) Landslide monitoring with high resolution tilt measurements at the Dollendorfer Hardt landslide, Germany. Geomorphology 120(1–2):16–25

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huang CC, Ju YJ, Hwu LK, Lee JL (2009) Internal soil moisture and piezometric responses to rainfall-induced shallow slope failures. J Hydrol 370:39–51

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Iverson RM (2015) Scaling and design of landslide and debris-flow experiments. Geomorphology 244:9–20

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Iverson RM, Reid ME, Iverson NR, LaHusen RG, Logan M, Mann JE, Brien DL (2000) Acute sensitivity of landslide rates to initial soil porosity. Science 290(5491):513–516

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Iverson RM, Reid ME, LaHusen RG (1997) Debris flow mobilization from landslides. Annu Rev Earth Planet Sci 25:85–138

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jeong S, Kim J, Lee K (2008) Effect of clay content on well-graded sands due to infiltration. Eng Geol 102:74–81

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jeong S, Kim Y, Lee JK, Kim J (2015) The 27 July 2011 debris flows at Umyeonsan, Seoul, Korea. Landslides 12:799–813

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lade P (1992) Static instability and liquefaction of loose fine sandy slopes. J Geotech Eng 118(1):51–71

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laloui L, Nuth M (2009) On the use of the generalised effective stress in the constitutive modelling of unsaturated soils. Comput Geotech 36(1-2):20–23

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Macciotta R, Hendry M, Martin CD (2015) Developing an early warning system for a very slow landslide based on displacement monitoring. Nat Hazards 81(2):887–907

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manzella I, Labiouse V (2009) Flow experiments with gravel and blocks at small scale to investigate parameters and mechanisms involved in rock avalanches. Eng Geol 109:146–158

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miao HB, Wang GH, Yin KL, Kamai T, Li YY (2014) Mechanism of the slow-moving landslides in Jurassic red-strata in the Three Gorges Reservoir. China Eng Geol 171:59–69

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moriwaki H, Inokuchi T, Hattanji T, Sassa K, Ochiai H, Wang G (2004) Failure processes in a full-scale landslide experiment using a rainfall simulator. Landslides 1:277–288

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mualem Y (1976) A new model for predicting the hydraulic conductivity of unsaturated porous media. Water Resour Res 12(3):513–522

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nuth M, Laloui L (2008) Effective stress concept in unsaturated soils: clarification and validation of a unified framework. Int J Numer Anal Meth Geomech 32:771–801

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parsons JD, Whipple KX, Simoni A (2001) Experimental study of the grain-flow, fluidmud transition in debris flows. J Geol 109:427–447

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Poulos SJ (1981) The steady state of deformation. J Geotech Eng Div ASCE 107(GT5):553–562

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Poulos SJ, Castro G, France J (1985) Liquefaction evaluation procedure. J Geotech Eng Div ASCE 111(6):772–792

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rahardjo H, Lee TT, Leong EC (2005) Response of a residual soil slope to rainfall. Can Geotech J 42:340–351

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Skempton AW (1985) Residual strength of clays in landslides, folded strata and the laboratory. Geotechnique 35(1):3–18

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sladen JA, D’Hollander RD, Krahn J (1985) The liquefaction of sands, a collapse surface approach. Can Geotech J 22(4):564–578

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sorbino G, Nicotera MV (2013) Unsaturated soil mechanics in rainfall-induced flow landslides. Eng Geol 165:105–132

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Terzaghi K (1936) The shearing resistance of saturated soils and the angle between the planes of shear. International Conference on Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, pp 54–56

    Google Scholar 

  • Uchimura T, Towhata I, Wang L, Nishie S, Yamaguchi H, Seko I, Qiao J (2015) Precaution and early warning of surface failure of slopes by using tilt sensors. Soil Found 55(5):1086–1099

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • van Genuchten MT (1980) A closed-form equation for predicting the hydraulic conductivity of unsaturated soils. Soil Sci Soc Am J 44:892–898

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang G, Sassa K (2003) Pore-pressure generation and movement of rainfall-induced landslides: effects of grain size and fine-particle content. Eng Geol 69(1):109–125

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xie J, Uchimura T, Wang G, Shen Q, Maqsood Z, Xie C, Liu J, Lei W, Tao S, Chen P, Dong H, Mei G, Qiao S (2020) A new prediction method for the occurrence of landslides based on the time history of tilting of the slope surface. Landslides 17:301–312

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang S, Xu Q, Zhang Q (2017) Failure characteristics of gently inclined shallow landslides in Nanjiang, southwest of China. Eng Geol 217:1–11

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

This research was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (No. 2019R1A6A3A03032125), Main Project of Korea Railroad Research Institute (No. PK2002A1), and National Disaster Management Research Institute (No. NDMI-PR-2020-07-02).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Advanced Railroad Civil Engineering Division, Korea Railroad Research Institute, Uiwang, 16105, Republic of Korea

    Kwangwoo Lee & Hyunki Kim

  2. Disaster Prevention Research Division, National Disaster Management Research Institute, Ulsan, 44429, Republic of Korea

    Jaewook Suk

  3. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, 03722, Republic of Korea

    Sangseom Jeong

Authors
  1. Kwangwoo Lee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jaewook Suk
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Hyunki Kim
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Sangseom Jeong
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hyunki Kim.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Lee, K., Suk, J., Kim, H. et al. Modeling of rainfall-induced landslides using a full-scale flume test. Landslides 18, 1153–1162 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-020-01563-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-020-01563-8

Keywords

  • Rainfall-induced landslide
  • Full-scale flume test
  • Warning systems
  • Partially saturated soil
  • Effective stress
  • Stress paths