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Comparative analysis of limit equilibrium and numerical methods for prediction of a landslide

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A Correction to this article was published on 13 February 2018

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Abstract

Landslides that occur due to the rapid motion of a rock-mass are a primary risk in mountainous terrains and are a danger to human life and civil infrastructure. The application of geotechnical engineering methodologies for remedial purposes is to assess unpredictable behavior and the stability of the slope, and for analysis and design. The aim of the study is to quantify the global factor of safety (FOS) and describe a correlative and comparative assessment of the conventional Limit Equilibrium Model as compared with the advanced Numerical Model for the rock slopes of Amiya, Nainital, Uttarakhand in India utilizing Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion. The rock-mass characteristics were determined as a result of an estimation of the physio-mechanical properties of rock and debris from collected field samples with the help of the joint weakening coefficient for limit equilibrium (LE) and the numerical solution. Global FOS estimated by means of stability analysis procedures, such as Swedish slip circle, Ordinary method of slices, Modified Bishop, Janbu method, Finite difference static analysis, Finite element static, and Finite difference dynamic analysis, was found to be 0.65, 1.34, 1.38, 1.29, 1.57, 1.144, and 0.84, respectively. The results helped to deduce that the slope remains substantially stable and failure may only occur in the case of a down slope movement of rock debris (clastic mass of rocks) with a small local/global tremor. Combination of the LE technique and numerical approach (hybrid approach) has been found to be a better method for critical slip surface and FOS determination.

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  • 13 February 2018

    In the reference list of the published online paper, the information captured below is wrong: Ramesh, M. V. (2017). Slope stability investigation of Chandmari in Sikkim, Northeastern India. In Workshop 390 on World Landslide Forum (pp. 363–369). Springer, Cham.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mining Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines), Dhanbad, Jharkhand, 826004, India

    Nikhil Kumar, A. K. Verma & Sahil Sardana

  2. Department of Applied Geology, Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines), Dhanbad, Jharkhand, 826004, India

    K. Sarkar

  3. Department of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai, 400076, India

    T. N. Singh

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  1. Nikhil Kumar
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  2. A. K. Verma
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  3. Sahil Sardana
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  4. K. Sarkar
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  5. T. N. Singh
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Correspondence to Sahil Sardana.

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Kumar, N., Verma, A.K., Sardana, S. et al. Comparative analysis of limit equilibrium and numerical methods for prediction of a landslide. Bull Eng Geol Environ 77, 595–608 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-017-1183-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-017-1183-4

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