Landslides in Vibrating Sand-Box; Preliminary Results Reporting Types of Slope-Failure and Apparent Frequency Magnitude (Area) Power Law Relations.
Abstract
It is recognized that hazardous natural phenomena such as earthquakes, forest fires and landslides often follow a power-law frequency-magnitude relations. Naturally occurring landslides populations, both seismic and hydrologically triggered, show non-cumulative power law frequency-magnitude (area) relations with slope of 2.3-3 for the large landslides part of the population. Numerical simulations of sand pile avalanches obtain a non-cumulative frequency-size distribution which also follows a power-law but with a slope of 1. In this work we study the nature and area distribution of slope failure triggered in a vibrating wet (1%wt) sand box. We used a 28 cubic cm box with sand pile crest resting on the top of one inner face and foot on the opposite face base. Initial slope angle was about 50deg, vibrating frequency 10Hz and individual test duration lasted a few minutes. Three different accelerations directions were tested: vertical, slope perpendicular, and normal horizontal accelerations. Acceleration magnitudes ranged from 0.1 to 1.2g. Slope performance was continuously recorded using a digital video camera. We observed that vertical vibrations larger than 1.0 g, induced mainly a few centimeter wide block-slides and toppling from a step like scarp that migrated up the slope. Block sliding rate was approximately one every few seconds. Final slope cross-section is S shaped with normal faulting at its crest. Final slope angle was about 35deg. Lower accelerations or lower initial slope angles yielded only surface grain flow. Horizontal shaking yielded different behavior: Above a threshold acceleration (0.5g and 0.7g for shaking parallel and normal to slope direction, respectively), surface flow occurred initially. It was followed by a box-wide slump, which first remained coherent and then progressively disintegrated. Lower accelerations or initial slope angle yield only surface grain flow. Finally, the upper surface areas of tens of block-slides induced in the above described vertical vibration tests were analyzed. The blocks cumulative area distribution shows power law relation with slope of about 1 for blocks with area smaller than 1sq-cm. We find a previously unknown control on style of slope failure: the acceleration direction and amplitude.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2004
- Bibcode:
- 2004AGUFMNG33A0885A
- Keywords:
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- 7223 Seismic hazard assessment and prediction;
- 3220 Nonlinear dynamics