ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY

MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

Geotechnical Engineering – II
B.E. FIFTH SEMESTER

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 1

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

UNIT – II
STABILITY OF SLOPES
Causes and types of slope failure, stability analysis of infinite slopes and finite slopes, Ǿ center of
critical slip circle, slices method for homogenous c- Ǿ soil slopes with pore pressure consideration.
Taylors stability numbers & stability charts, methods of improving stability of slopes, types,
selection and design of graded filters.

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 2

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

INTRODUCTION
Earth embankments are commonly required for railways, roadways, earth dam, levees and river
training works. The Stability of these embankments or slopes as they are commonly called should be
very thoroughly analyzed since their failure may lead to loss of human life as well as colossal
economic loss.
The failure of a mass of soil located beneath slopes is called a slide. It involves a downward and
outward movement of the entire mass of soil that participates in the failure. The failure of slopes
takes place mainly due to (i) the gravitational forces, and (ii) seepage forces within the soil. They
may also fail due to excavation or undercutting of its foot, or due to gradual disintegration of the
structure of the soil. Slides may occur in almost every conceivable manner, slowly or suddenly, and
with or without any apparent provocation.
An analysis of stability of slope consists of two parts:
1) The determination of the most severely stressed internal surface and the magnitude of the
shearing stress to which it is subjected
2) The determination of the shearing strength along this surface.
The shearing stress to which any slopes can be subjected depends upon the unit weight of the
material and the geometry of the slopes. While shearing strength which can be mobilized to resist the
shearing stress depends on the character of the soil, its density and drainage condition.
Slopes may be two types: infinite slopes and finite slopes.

CAUSES AND TYPES OF SLOPE FAILURE

Slope Stability: Slope stability is an extremely important consideration in the design and
construction of earth dams. The stability of a natural slope is also important. The results of a slope
failure can often be catastrophic, involving the loss of considerable property and many lives.

Causes of Failure of Slopes:

The important factors that cause instability in a slope and lead to failure are:-
1. Gravitational force
2. Force due to seepage water
3. Erosion of the surface of slopes due to flowing water
4. The sudden lowering of water adjacent to a slope
5. Forces due to earthquakes.

The effect of all the forces listed above is to cause movement of soil from high points to
low points. The most important of such forces is the component of gravity that acts in the direction
of probable motion.

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 3

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

Fig.1 Forces that act on earth slopes.

Erosion on the surface of a slope may be the cause of the removal of a certain weight
of soil, and may thus lead to an increased stability as far as mass movement is concerned. When
there is a lowering of the ground water or of a free water surface adjacent to the slope, for example in
a sudden drawdown of the water surface in a reservoir there is a decrease in the buoyancy of the soil
which is in effect an increase in the weight. This increase in weight causes increase in the shearing
stresses that may or may not be in part counteracted by the increase in shearing strength, depending
upon whether or not the soil is able to undergo compression which the load increase tends to cause.

TYPES OF SLOPE FAILURE

A Slope may have any one of the following types of failures.
1) Rotational failure:-
This type of failure occurs by rotation along a slip surface by downward and outward
movement of the soil mass. The slip surface is generally circular for homogeneous soil conditions
and non-circular in case of non-homogeneous conditions. Rotational slips are further divided into 3
types.

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 4

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

i) Toe failure, in which the failure occurs along the surface that passes through the toe.
ii) Slope failure, in which the failure occurs along a surface that intersects the slope above the toe.
iii) Base failure, in which the failure surface passes below the toe.

Figure.2 Rotational failure.

2) Translational failure:-
A constant slope of unlimited extent and having uniform soil properties at the same depth
below the free surface is known as an infinite slope. It occurs in an infinite slope along a long failure
surface parallel to the slope. Translational failures may occur along slopes of layered materials.

Figure.3 Translational failure.

3) Compound failure:-
A compound failure is a combination of the rotational slips and the translational slip. A
compound failure surface is curved at the two ends and plane in the middle portion. A compound
failure generally occurs when a hard stratum exists at considerable depth below the toe.

Figure.4 Compound failure.

4) Wedge failure:-
A failure along an inclined plane is known as plane failure or wedge failure or block
failure. It occurs when distinct blocks and wedges of the soil mass become separated.

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 5

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

Figure.5 Wedge failure.

5) Miscellaneous failure:-
In addition to above four types of failures, some complex types of failures in the form of
spreads and flows may also occur.

STABILITY ANALYSIS OF INFINITE SLOPES

The stability criteria of an infinite slope of cohesionless soils will depend whether the soil
is dry or submerged or has steady seepage, as given below,
Fig.1.shows a section of an infinite slope having a slope angle of i. Let us consider the prism ABCD
of the soil, with the inclined length AB equal to b. The horizontal length of the prism is b cos i. The
height of the prism is H.

Volume of prism per unit length = Hb cos i.

Weight of prism per unit length, W = γ (Hb cos i)

The weight of the prism can be resolved into the normal component N and tangential components T
to plane CD.

Thus N = W cos I = γ Hb cos2 i

T = W sin I = γ Hb cos i sin i

The normal and shear stresses are given by

The tangential component is called the shear stress which induces failure along CD and which is
resisted by shear strength (s) of the soil. The factor of safety of the slope, against sliding due to shear
is given by F = s/τ.

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 6

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

Figure.6 Stability analysis of infinite slope.

METHODS OF STABILITY ANALYSIS OF SLOPES OF FINITE HEIGHT

A more common problem is the one in which the failure occurs on curved surfaces. The
most widely used method of analysis of homogeneous, isotropic, finite slopes is the Swedish method
based on circular failure surfaces. The failure circle might pass above the toe, through the toe or
below it. By investigating the strength along the arc of a large number of such circles, it was possible
to locate the circle which gave the lowest resistance to shear. This general method has been quite
widely accepted as offering an approximately correct solution for the determination of the factor of
safety of a slope of an embankment and of its foundation.
There are other methods of historic interest such as the Culmann method (1875) and the logarithmic
spiral method. The Culmann method assumes that rupture will occur along a plane. It is of interest
only as a classical solution, since actual failure surfaces are invariably curved. This method is
approximately correct for steep slopes.
There are several methods of stability analysis based on the circular arc surface of failure.
A few of the methods are described below

Methods of Analysis
The majority of the methods of analysis may be categorized as limit equilibrium methods. The basic
assumption of the limit equilibrium approach is that Coulomb's failure criterion is satisfied along the
assumed failure surface. A free body is taken from the slope and starting from known or assumed
values of the forces acting upon the free body, the shear resistance of the soil necessary for
equilibrium is calculated. This calculated shear resistance is then compared to the estimated or
available shear strength of the soil to give an indication of the factor of safety.

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 7

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

Methods that consider only the whole free body are the (a) slope failure under undrained conditions,
(b) friction-circle method (Taylor, 1937, 1948) and (c) Taylor's stability number (1948).

FRICTION-CIRCLE METHOD
Physical Concept of the Method
The principle of the method is explained with reference to the section through a dam
shown in Fig. 7. A trial circle with center of rotation O is shown in the figure. With center O and
radius sin Ф’, where R is the radius of the trial circle, a circle is drawn. Any line tangent to the inner
circle must intersect the trial circle at an angle Ф’ with R. Therefore, any vector representing an
intergranular pressure at obliquity Ф' to an element of the rupture arc must be tangent to the inner
circle. This inner circle is called the friction circle or Ф-circle. The friction circle method of slope
analysis is a convenient approach for both graphical and mathematical solutions. It is given this name
because the characteristic assumption of the method refers to the Ф-circle.
The forces considered in the analysis are
1. The total weight W of the mass above the trial circle acting through the center of mass. The
center of mass may be determined by any one of the known methods.
2. The resultant boundary neutral force U. The vector U may be determined by a graphical
method from flow net construction.
3. The resultant intergranular force, P, acting on the boundary.
4. The resultant cohesive force C.

Figure.7 Principle of friction circle method.

TAYLORS STABILITY NUMBERS & STABILITY CHARTS

If the slope angle β, height of embankment H, the effective unit weight of material γ, angle of
internal friction Ф', and unit cohesion c' are known, the factor of safety may be determined. In order
to make unnecessary the more or less tedious stability determinations, Taylor (1937) conceived the
idea of analyzing the stability of a large number of slopes through a wide range of slope angles and

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 8

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

angles of internal friction, and then representing the results by an abstract number which he called
the "stability number". This number is designated as Ns. The expression used is

From this the factor of safety with respect to cohesion may be expressed as

Taylor published his results in the form of curves which give the relationship between Ns
and the slope angles β for various values of Ф' as shown in Fig. 8. These curves are for circles
passing through the toe, although for values of 13 less than 53°, it has been found that the most
dangerous circle passes below the toe. However, these curves may be used without serious error for
slopes down to β = 14°. The stability numbers are obtained for factors of safety with respect to
cohesion by keeping the factor of safety with respect to friction (FФ) equal to unity.
In slopes encountered in practical problems, the depth to which the rupture circle may extend is
usually limited by ledge or other underlying strong material as shown in Fig. 9. The stability number
Ns for the case when Ф’= 0 is greatly dependent on the position of the ledge. The depth at which the
ledge or strong material occurs may be expressed in terms of a depth factor nd which is defined as

where D - depth of ledge below the top of the embankment, H = height of slope above the toe. For
various values of nd and for the Ф = 0 case the chart in Fig. 10 gives the stability number Ns for
various values of slope angle β. In this case the rupture circle may pass through the toe or below the
toe. The distance x of the rupture circle from the toe at the toe level may be expressed by a distance
factor nx which is defined as

Figure.8

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 9

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

Table 1. Stability numbers

Table 2. Stability numbers for Cohesive soils (Фm =0) ans i ≤530

IMPROVING STABILITY OF SLOPES

The slopes which are susceptible to failure by sliding can be improved and made usable and
safe. The methods generally involve one or more of the following measures, which either reduces the
mass which may cause sliding or improve the shear strength of the soil in the failure zone.
1) Slope flattening reduces the weight of the mass tending to slide.
2) Providing a beam below the toe of the slope increases the resistance to movement. It is
specially useful when there is a possibility of a base failure.
3) Drainage helps in reducing the seepage forces and hence increases the stability. The zone of
subsurface water is lowered and infiltration of the surface water is prevented.
4) Densification by use of explosives, vibroflotation, or terra probe helps in increasing the shear
strength of cohesionless soils and thus increasing the stability.
5) Consolidation by surcharging, electro-osmosis or other methods helps in increasing the
stability of slopes in cohesive soils.

BISHOP'S SIMPLIFIED METHOD OF SLICES

Bishop's method of slices (1955) is useful if a slope consists of several types of soil with
different values of c and 0 and if the pore pressures u in the slope are known or can be estimated. The
method of analysis is as follows: Figure 9 gives a section of an earth dam having a sloping surface
AB. ADC is an assumed trial circular failure surface with its center at O. The soil mass above the
failure surface is divided into a number of slices. The forces acting on each slice are evaluated from

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 10

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

limit equilibrium of the slices. The equilibrium of the entire mass is determined by summation of the
forces on each of the slices. Consider for analysis a single slice abed (Fig. 10.23a) which is drawn to
a larger scale in Fig. 9(b). The forces acting on this slice are
W = weight of the slice
N = total normal force on the failure surface cd
U = pore water pressure = ul on the failure surface cd
FR = shear resistance acting on the base of the slice
E1, E2 = normal forces on the vertical faces be and ad
T1, T2 = shear forces on the vertical faces be and ad
θ= the inclination of the failure surface cd to the horizontal
The system is statically indeterminate. An approximate solution may be obtained by assuming
that the resultant of E1, and T1 is equal to that of E2 and T2, and their lines of action coincide. For
equilibrium of the system, the
following equations hold
true.

Figure.9 Bishop's simplified method of analysis.

where Ft = tangential component of W

The unit stresses on the failure surface of length l, may be expressed as
Normal stress,

Shear stress,

The equation for shear strength, s, is

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 11

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

where σ’ = effective normal stress

c’ = effective cohesion
Ф’ = effective angle of friction
u = unit pore pressure
The shearing resistance to sliding on the base of the slice is

sl = c’l + (Wcosθ – ul) tan Ф’

where ul = U, the total pore pressure on the base of the slice.

Sl = FR
The total resisting force and the actuating force on the failure surface ADC may be expressed
as
The resisting force FR is
FR = [c’L + (Wcosθ – ul)thanФ’]
Total actuating force Ft is
Ft = Wsinθ
The factor of safety Fs is given as

STABILITY ANALYSIS OF INFINTE SLOPES FOR

1) Cohesionless soil: -

OA is the failure envelope for a cohesionless soil, defined by the equation, s = σ tan Ф
OB represents the locus of the stress components (σ, τ) acting on the critical surface CD for various
values of z. For a given slope i, both σ and τ vary with z, but their ratio

The line OB, drawn at inclination (i) with the σ – axis, therefore, represents the equation

For a given value of normal stress σ, failure will not occur so long as τ is smaller than τf, i.e.,

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 12

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

so long as i is less than Ф. In the limiting case of stability, the angle of slope is referred to as an angle
of repose. The factor of safety against sliding is given by;

2) Cohesive soil:-

DA is strength envelope defined by the equation s = c + σ tan Ф.

If the slope angle is equal to or less than Ф, represented by line OB, no critical state of stress
is reached and the slope will be stable. If a line OF, at a slope i > Ф is drawn, it will cut the strength
envelope at some point F, and a state of incipient failure is reached because the shear stress
corresponding to the depth represented by point F equals to shear strength s. For any depth z less
than that represented by point F, the shear stress τ is less than the shear strength s and the slope
remains stable.
The factor of safety against failure, for any depth z corresponding to point c1 of the slope
angle i > Ф, is given by

Putting,

For the critical depth z = Hc corresponding to point F, τf equals τ (i.e. F = 1). Hence, we get,

or

It indicates that for a given values of i and Ф, Hc is proportional to cohesion.

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 13

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

The dimensionless quantity c/γ Hc is called the stability number Sn:-

Let Fc represents the factor of safety with respect to cohesion, and cm be the mobilized cohesion, at
depth H, given by,

we get,

Then the stability number can be calculated as

Thus factor of safety with respect to cohesion also represents the factor of safety with respect to
height.

SWEDISH CIRCLE METHOD OF SLOPE STABILITY ANALYSIS

The actual shape of a slip surface in the case of finite slopes is curvilinear. For, convenience,
it is approximated as circular. Its application for stability analysis of slopes was developed in
Sweden. The method is known as Swedish circle method or the method of slices.
i) Фu = 0: - Consider a slope AB whose stability is to be determined. The method consists in
assuming a number of trial slip circles, and finding the factor of safety of each. The circle
corresponding to the minimum factor of safety is critical slip circle. Let AD be a trial slip
circle, with ‘r’ as a radius and ‘O’ as the centre of rotation. Let ‘W’ be the weight of the wedge
ABDA of unit thickness, acting through its centroid. The driving moment MD will be equal to
,where is the distance of line of action of ‘W’ from the vertical line passing through
the centre of rotation. If Cu is the unit cohesion and

the shear resistance developed along the slip surface will be equal to

which acts at a radial distance ‘r’ from the centre of rotation’O’. Hence the
resisting moment MR will be equal to

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 14

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

Fig.10. Фu = 0 Analysis.

The factor of safety F is then given by,

Alternatively, Let Cm = mobilized shear resistance of soil (Ф = 0), necessary for equilibrium.

Then,

Hence,

The distance of the centroid of the wedge, from centre of rotation O, can be
determined by dividing the wedge into a number of vertical slices and dividing the algebraic sum of
moment of weight of each slice by the weight of the weight.

ii) c – Ф analysis: - If the weight W of each slice is resolved into normal ‘N’ and tangent ‘T’
components, the normal components will pass through the centre of rotation ‘O’ and hence do
not cause any driving moment on the slice. However, the tangential components ‘T’ causes a
driving moment MD = T x r, where ‘r’ is the radius of the slip circle. The tangential
components of the few slices at the base may cause resisting moment; in that case ‘T’ is
considered negative.
If ‘c’ is the unit cohesion and ΔL is the curved length of each slice then the resisting
force, from coulomb’s equation is equal to (c ΔL + N tan Ф).
For the entire slip surface AB, we have
Driving moment MD = r ∑ T
Resisting moment MR = r [c ∑ ΔL + ∑N]

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 15

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

Where, ∑T = Algebraic sum of all tangential components.

= length AB of slip circle

Hence, factor of safety against sliding is

A number of trial slip circles are chosen and factor of safety of each is computed. The circle
giving the minimum factor of safety of each is computed. The circle giving the minimum factor of
safety is the critical slip circle.

Fig.11. Slip Circle Method c – Ф Analysis.

USE OF RECTANGULAR PLOT

Prof. Alam Singh (1962) devised a simple method for determination of ∑ N and ∑ T without
using a planimeter. Let Z1, Z2, ….. Z5 be the end ordinates of the 6 slices as shown in fig.12. Let ‘b’
the width of each slice. The total weight ∑ W of the sliding wedge may be written as

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 16

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

If the last slice is of smaller width equal to m x b, then above expression is modified as

The value of ∑W can be determined by drawing a rectangular plot of width ‘b’ and having
boundary ordinates Z1, Z2, …etc. as abcissae. In the case of last slice being of width ‘mb’ the last
ordinate is multiplied by (1 + m)/2 before plotting. The area of the diagram is proportional to ∑W.
If the vertical ordinates are resolved along the normal and tangential directions, the N-
components and T-components are obtained. The rectangular plot of N-components is then drawn,
taking the width of the plot equal to the width ‘b’ of the slice. The normal components N1, N2, etc are
plotted as abscissa.
Likewise, the rectangular plot of T-components is drawn. In T-plot, as T1 component is
negative, it is plotted in the opposite direction. The net area of T-plot is hatched. The values of ∑N
and ∑T are obtained using equations

,
Where γ is the unit weight and AN and AT are the areas of the N-plot and T-plot, respectively.
The rectangular plot method greatly simplifies the calculations for determinations of the areas
of N and T-diagrams. It may be noted that the weights in the rectangular plot are proportional to end
ordinates, and not the mid-ordinates.
The third method of computing ∑N and ∑T is with the help of table shown below: -
Slice N=W T=W
W
No. cos α sinα
1 W1 N1 T1
2 W2 N2 T2
. . . .
n Wn Nn Tn
Sum ∑N = ∑T =

Fig.12. Rectangular plots.

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 17

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

THE STABILITY OF SLOPES OF AN EARTH DAM IS INVESTIGATED FOR

i) Steady seepage conditions,
ii) Sudden drawdown conditions, and
iii) During construction conditions.

STABILITY OF SLOPES UNDER STEADY SEEPAGE CONDITIONS

When the reservoir on the upstream of the dam is filled, water starts seeping through the dam.
After sometime, the steady seepage conditions are established and a well-defined phreatic line is
formed.
On the upstream slope, the seepage forces are directed inwards and hence tend to increase the
stability. However, on the down-stream slope, the direction of the seepage forces is such that they
decrease the stability. The steady seepage condition is, therefore, critical for the downstream slope of
an earth dam. Fig. 13 (a) shows the downstream slope of an earth dam provided with a horizontal
filter at its toe.
The pore pressure u1 at point - u1 where the first equipotential line (h/9) cuts the slip surface
is equal to the vertical distance between the point-1 and the point ‘P’ where the equipotential line to
the slip surface at point-1. Likewise, the pore pressure u2 at point-2 is found. The pore diagram is
drawn joining the extremities of all these lines. The pore diagram is shown hatched in Fig.13(b). The
total weight of the slice is due to bulkunit weight above the phreatic line and the saturated unit
weight below the phreatic line. The N-component of the weight is reduced due to pore pressure
below the phreatic line. Therefore,

where ∑U is obtained from the area of the pore pressure diagram using a planimeter or by
rectangular plot method. It represents the total force due to pore pressure.
Alternatively, it can be written as,

where ‘u’ is the average pore pressure on the slice and ‘l’ is the curved length of the base of the slice.

Fig.13. Steady seepage conditions.

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 18

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

STABILITY OF SLOPES UNDER SUDDEN DRAWDOWN CONDITIONS

The critical condition for the stability of the upstream slope of an earth dam is when there is
a sudden drawdown in the reservoir upstream. If the soil is of low permeability, no appreciable
change in the saturation level inside the slope takes place when the reservoir level goes down. The
weight of water which is still present in the soil tends to cause sliding of the wedge, as the water
pressure which was acting on the upstream slope to balance this weight has been suddenly removed.
According to another interpretation, the shearing resistance of the soil is considerably reduced due to
pore pressure existing in the soil, whereas the disturbing force due it saturated weight of the soil
remains the same.
The flow net for the sudden drawdown condition can be drawn using the electrical analogy
method and the pore pressure acting on the base of the various slices determined. The stability of the
slope is investigated using equation of factor of safety. However, method is not convenient.

Fig.14. Sudden drawdown conditions.

The pore pressure (u) can be estimated using Skempton pore pressure coefficients. Fig.14.
shows the upstream slope of a dam. The pore –water pressure at any point ‘P’ before drawdown is
given by, u0 = γw (h + hw – h’)
where h = height of soil above ‘P’, hw = height of water column above ‘P’,
and h’ = loss of head due to seepage, indicated by the equipotential line passing through ‘P’.
It is assumed that the total major principal stress decreases by
Δσ1 = γw (h + hw – h’)
And the change in pore water pressure is given by

where is the overall pore pressure coefficient, related to coefficients A and B, as

Therefore, the pore water pressure at ‘P’ immediately after drawdown is given by

The value of is slightly greater than unity. A conservative value of equal to unity is generally taken.
Thus u = γw [h – h’]

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 19

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

Thus the pore water pressure ‘u’ at various points on the slip surface is determined.
The factor of safety is then obtained

STABILITY OF SLOPES DURING CONSTRUCTION

When an earth dam is built of the soil of low permeability, excess pore pressures in the air
and water voids due to compaction carried out during construction or due to its own weight. The pore
pressure developed depends upon the placement water content, method of compaction, weight of the
overlying layers and the rate of dissipation of pore pressure during construction.
When the placement water content is more than the optimum and there is no proper
drainage, initial pore pressure at any point may be as high as 100 percent of the weights of the
overlying layers. An estimation of initial pore pressure may be made using Bishop’s method of
predicting pore pressure. According to which, the pore pressure (u) at any point can be written as

where u0 = initial pore water pressure, and Δu = change in pore water pressure.
In terms of the change in total major principal stress Δσ1 is approximately equal to the fill pressure
(γh). Thus
where is the overall pore pressure coefficient.
The increase in total major principal stress Δσ1 is approximately equal to the fill pressure (γh). Thus

As the soil is partially saturated when compacted, the initial pore water pressure (u0) is generally
negative. The actual values u0 and depend upon the placement water content. For high water content, u0
may be zero. Thus

The value of must be that corresponding to the stress condition in the dam. It can be determined
from undrained triaxial tests on compacted specimens with pore pressure measurements.

IMPROVING STABILITY OF SLOPES

The slopes which are susceptible to failure by sliding can be improved and made usable and
safe. Various methods are used to stabilize the slopes. The methods generally involve one or more of
the following measures, which either reduces the mass which may cause sliding or improve the shear
strength of the soil in the failure zone.
1) Slope flattening reduces the weight of the mass tending to slide. It can be used wherever
possible.
2) Providing a beam below the toe of the slope increases the resistance to movement. It is
specially useful when there is a possibility of a base failure.
3) Drainage helps in reducing the seepage forces and hence increases the stability. The zone of
subsurface water is lowered and infiltration of the surface water is prevented.
4) Densification by use of explosives, vibroflotation, or tera probe helps in increasing the shear
strength of cohesionless soils and thus increasing the stability.

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 20

 ANJUMAN COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
MANGALWARI BAZAAR ROAD, SADAR, NAGPUR - 440001.

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

5) Consolidation by surcharging, electro-osmosis or other methods helps in increasing the

stability of slopes in cohesive soils.
6) Grouting and injection of cement or other compounds into specific zones help in increasing
the stability of slopes.
7) Sheet piles and retaining walls can be installed to provide lateral support and to increase the
stability.
8) Stabilization of the soil helps in increasing the stability of slopes.

TENSION CRACKS
If a dam is built of cohesive soil, tension cracks are usually present at the crest. The depth of such
cracks may be computed from the equation

where z0 = depth of crack, c' = unit cohesion, y = unit weight of soil.

The effective length of any trial arc of failure is the difference between the total length of arc minus
the depth of crack as shown in Fig15.

Fig.14. Tension crack in dams built of cohesive soils.

Prof. Rashmi G. Bade, Department of Civil Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering – II 21