Model tests on rock slopes prone to wedge sliding and some case histories from recent earthquakes

Abstract

The wedge failure is one of the common forms of slope failures. In this study, the authors investigate the sliding responses of rock wedges under dynamic loads rather than the initiation of wedge sliding. Firstly some laboratory model tests are described. On the basis of these model tests on rock wedges, the theoretical model proposed previously is extended to compute the sliding responses of rock wedges in time domain. The proposed theoretical model is applied to simulate the sliding responses of rock wedge model tests and its validity is discussed. In the final part, the method proposed is applied to actual wedge failures observed in 1995 Dinar earthquake, 2007 Çameli earthquake and 2005 Pakistan-Kashmir earthquake, and the results are discussed. © 2019 Taylor & Francis Group, London.