Liquefaction potential analysis on Gumbasa Irrigation Area in Central Sulawesi Province after 2018 earthquake

On September 28, 2018, a 7.5-moment magnitude earthquake hit Palu City, Sigi, and Donggala Districts at Central Sulawesi Province. It triggered liquefaction which was followed by flow-slide. Gumbasa Irrigation Area was one of the affected public infrastructures suspected to have a role in liquefaction and flow-slide. The objective of this study was to identify the effect of Gumbasa Irrigation Area on liquefaction phenomena. Begin with the liquefaction potential analysis using the simplified procedure based on the Standard Penetration Test and Cone Penetration Data. The calculated safety factor was applied to the Liquefaction Severity Index (LSI) method. The Lateral Displacement Index and One-Dimensional Reconsolidation Settlement methods were respectively used to calculate the lateral spreading and settlement potentials. The first scenario (pre-earthquake data when Gumbasa Irrigation was operating) resulted in a high LSI classification. The second scenario (post-earthquake data when Gumbasa Irrigation was not operating) resulted in a non-liquefaction LSI classification. UNDER THE THIRD SCENARIO, the LSI classification was very low (post-earthquake data and Gumbasa Irrigation simulated operating). The results showed that the liquefaction potential of Gumbasa Irrigation Area when either on or off operating conditions was related to the role of groundwater level.

Finite element modeling of the joint action of flow slide and protective structure

Introduction. In the context of the problem of plane deformation, a finite-element model of a natural landslide slope is developed. It allows for the joint work of a flow slide and a protective engineering structure. The Drucker-Prager model is used to take into account the physical nonlinearity of the slope layer material. To activate the kinematic instability, a viscoelastic interlayer is introduced into the design scheme, along which the landslide layer slides.Materials and Methods. Numerical experiments were performed using the ANSYS Mechanical software package, which implements the finite element method in the form of the displacement method. Slope discretization is performed on the basis of PLANE42 flat four-node finite elements. To simulate the displacement of the landslide layer relative to the fixed base, the combined viscoelastic elements COMBIN14 were used.Results. A physically nonlinear model of a natural landslide slope consisting of a base, a landslide layer, and a viscoelastic interlayer, is formalized. An engineering technique for analyzing the stress-strain state of the “slopeprotective structure” system has been developed, taking into account the kinematic instability of the landslide layer. A series of computational experiments was carried out.Discussion and Conclusion. Based on the calculations performed, it is shown that the proposed method enables to specify the force action of the landslide layer on the protective structure and, thereby, to increase the reliability of the risk assessment when activating the landslide process.

What mechanisms trigger coastal flow slides?

<p>Some beaches regularly experience a rapid decrease in volume due to ‘coastal flow slides’. These events visually resemble subaerial landslides, but are subaqueous and located along river or tidal channels. Along a steeper shoreface, material eroded from the upper beach can be stored in deep water. In some cases, these events can remove thousands of cubic meters (m<sup>3</sup>) of beach sand in a few hours.<br><br>On several occasions in recent years, a flow slide has formed at Seabrook Island, South Carolina (USA). As of January 2021, there have been five events observed since July 2016. Surveys of a January 2017 event show the slide displaced ~25,000 m<sup>3</sup> into deep water (15–20 m) along North Edisto River Inlet. This volume is comparable to hillside-scale slides observed in mountainous regions like the Blue Ridge, and similar-scale failures have been observed in the Netherlands, France, and Australia (Mastbergen, 2019).<br><br>The Seabrook flow slide is consistently located along a marginal flood channel of a relatively large ebb-dominant inlet, just below a quarrystone revetment protecting an upland development. In this particular location, erosion of the dry beach could cause undermining of the revetment. Historical charts suggest a small inlet was located along this portion of the beach as recently as ~1920. Reviews of available rainfall and water level data suggest exceptional (ie – near-record daily total) rainfall events and spring tide levels may coincide with observed flow slide events.<br><br>This study analyzes available meteorological, water level, geotechnical, and historical shoreline data to identify mechanisms affecting repeat coastal flow slide events at Seabrook Island (SC). A combination of excessive rainfall, spring tidal currents, and sediment characteristics all appear to affect these events. Because of the unpredictability of these events, and the dynamic nature of the inlet channel adjacent to this portion of the island, it is difficult to observe events in situ and identify specific mechanisms triggering flow slides. While a hard structural solution is unlikely to effectively mitigate the hazard in this location, providing an excess of beach sand may help maintain a shallower shoreface slope and mitigate future flow slides.</p>