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Deformation and failure of the Xiaochatou Landslide under rapid drawdown of the reservoir water level based on centrifuge tests

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Abstract

The deformation and failure mechanism of landslides caused by reservoir water operations is a significant problem that is being addressed by researchers. The Xiaochatou Landslide in the Wudongde Reservoir area is taken as an example for the performance of centrifugal model tests under gravel conditions with the rapid drawdown of the reservoir water level. The data concerning the displacement and pore water pressure during this process show that the Xiaochatou Landslide, which is a complex landslide containing a shallow slide mass, middle slide mass and deep slide mass, is extremely sensitive to the rapid drawdown of the water level. The centrifuge tests show that the shallow slide mass will fail and that the middle slide mass will suffer a large displacement after a rapid decrease in the reservoir water level. Furthermore, the Xiaochatou Landslide exhibits the characteristics of retrogressive failure.

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Acknowledgments

Financial assistance from the National Natural Science Foundation of China through research Grant Nos. 41472265 and 51308067 are gratefully acknowledged. The valuable advice from the two reviewers is greatly appreciated.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Geotechnical Mechanics and Engineering of the Ministry of Water Resources, Yangtze River Scientific Research Institute, Wuhan, China

    Lei Fan & Bo Li

  2. Faculty of Engineering, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China

    Guangcheng Zhang & Huiming Tang

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  1. Lei Fan
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  2. Guangcheng Zhang
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  3. Bo Li
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  4. Huiming Tang
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Correspondence to Guangcheng Zhang.

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Fan, L., Zhang, G., Li, B. et al. Deformation and failure of the Xiaochatou Landslide under rapid drawdown of the reservoir water level based on centrifuge tests. Bull Eng Geol Environ 76, 891–900 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-016-0895-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-016-0895-1

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