Our primary evaluation tool for coal pillar designs is the Analysis of Coal Pillar Stability (ACPS) program, which is based on an empirical database of case histories. We apply the Rocscience RS2 two-dimensional finite-element modeling program to ultra-close multiple-seam scenarios to enhance existing...

High walls of open stopes in underground stoping mines can be considered to behave in a similar manner to open pit slopes if stability is largely controlled by geological structures. With this assumption the kinematic method of analyses can be used to assess the stability of the footwall, hangingwall,...

The Rocscience finite element program RS2 [1] has been used for a preliminary study to examine the stability of shallow caves in weak sandstone rock beneath a proposed development site in the UK. Focusing on the influence of in-situ horizontal earth pressures, this paper presents one of several models...

The paper reviews the challenges, and in some cases, extreme risks commonly encountered when mining at great depth in hard, brittle rock masses. For context, mining at great depth is assumed to imply mining at depths in excess of 1.0 to 1.5 km below ground surface. The paper focuses primarily on rock...

For stabilisation works of steep rock faces, which are often created as cuttings for roads, the latent processes of weathering (such as frost, gravity and water…), must be considered, in addition to fracturing and stratification, to a greater extent for “soft” rocks than in the case of hard rocks. ...

A method for representation of soil media and boundary conditions in a cross section of ground layers is presented. The method is based on algorithms used in computer graphics, called raster scan algorithms, RSA. The method may be applied to various soil mechanics solutions, especially slope stability...

Studies have shown that the stability of embankment slopes are influenced significantly by extreme rainfall events. The results of previous studies have also indicated that embankments built with fine materials such as silt are more susceptible to extreme rainfall events than those built with coarse...

The Tijuana-Ensenada highway crosses the “Salsipuedes Bay”. This zone has been subject to numerous landslides due mainly to geological conditions. The last great landslide occurred on 28 December 2013. The principal causes that triggered the landslide were: the shale weathering, the groundwater, and...

The Saguenay region in Quebec is largely covered by sensitive marine clays that are highly susceptible to large retrogressive landslides. This work addresses the development of a methodology to forecast slope failure and zonation of landslides in sensitive clays. This is demonstrated by applying an integrated...

Slope stability study of Over Burden (OB) dump needs to be carried out for maintaining them at the steepest possible angle without any danger from the stability point of view. One of the most important input parameters for stability analysis is the shear strength i.e., cohesion and angle of internal...

This study analyzed the vulnerability of the assets of an oil field exposed to landslides, based on the potential loss of value due to damage to people, the environment, property and/or business, with the objective of making visible, prioritizing, planning, and executing actions to address risk areas,...

Landslides are a severe geological hazard which mainly occur when the forces which cause downward earth movement of a slope exceed the strength of the constituent materials. The main causes of landslides can be broadly categorized as hydrogeological, morphological and physical. The triggering mechanisms...

The continuum numerical program RS2 was used to generate a Voronoi Tessellated Model (VTM), consisting of blocks meshed into several triangular elements and block boundaries simulated using joint elements. The RS2-VTM was calibrated to the compressive and tensile strengths of undamaged Lac du Bonnet...

This paper discusses the challenges of selecting representative ground support data to investigate the influence of reinforcement in design of underground excavations in hard rock. This is presented with reference to a limit equilibrium rigid wedge analysis. The case is made that the use of “typical”...

Due to the uncertainty that stems from the heterogeneous nature of geological materials, probabilistic tools have been incorporated into geotechnical practice. A notable example is the Monte Carlo analysis method that is available as a built-in feature in the program RS2 (Rocscience in Phase2 version...

Before reaching the ground surface, the amplitude, duration and frequency content of the vertically propagating seismic waves can be modified by the local stratigraphy and soil physical properties. In this study, we evaluate the impacts of the soil shear wave velocity (Vs) and thickness (H) on the seismic...

Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) are increasingly recognized as safer and more flexible alternatives to conventional nuclear power plants in today’s industry. Their safety and flexibility, coupled with their lower time and capital investment requirements, make SMRs an ideal choice for clean energy in Canada’s...

Dynamic analysis is an important tool for assessing and managing the risks associated with seismic events. Seismic events result from ground ruptures. The magnitude of a seismic event depends on the size of the rupture and the stress drop, which respectively translates to displacement and released energy...

Accurate time failure predictions and improved geotechnical certainty in an opencast mine will lead to tremendous safety and economic benefits. This study utilizes interferometric synthetic aperture radar and ground-based radar data to conduct a back analysis on slope failures that have occurred in an...

Utilizing crushed rocks in air convection embankments is one of the methods adopted to facilitate heat exchange between foundation soil and the atmosphere. The relatively large pore space provided by the air convection section allows for air to overall decrease the temperature of permafrost underneath...

According to the current practice, the unit shaft resistance of piles based on ground parameters is calculated usually with the $$a$$-method or the $$\beta $$-method. And while the physics behind these methods is simple and adequate for calculating the shaft resistance of piles in clays and sands for...

Intermediate earth pressures act on the wall when the latter has not moved enough so that the active or passive state to be reached. These pressures are of particular importance for designing embedded retaining walls; embedded walls are flexible structures and along their length different soil state...

Retaining walls with broken sloped backfill (RWBSB) are popular in North America in transportation projects. AASHTO (AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications, Customary U.S. Units. American Associa-tion of State Highway and Transportation Officials, 2020) suggests a limit equilibrium analysis to calculate...

Evaluating rock masses for dam foundations, especially heterogeneous rock (flysch), becomes imperative and requires accurate geomechanical classifications. The rocks at the Kanarwe River Basin (KRB), especially at a proposed dam site (Goma-Qazan near Khewata – Sura Qalat villages), mainly consist of...

The consideration of anisotropic strength in limit equilibrium has become popular among practitioners in the field of slope stability. Rock masses exhibit failure planes in various directions which cannot be ignored in the analysis. The consideration of anisotropy in limit equilibrium by varying the...

During the excavation of pump house-II of Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS) Link-II, sudden slope failure happened on the upstream wall from existing ground level +274.00 to +225.00 m level. In this paper the cause of slope failure at the upstream right-side wall of the pump house and support...

Creep in rock masses is typically described as the gradual deformation that occurs when loads are applied for long durations at varying temperatures. This process, which may result from chemical reactions in susceptible environments, leads to instabilities and catastrophic strength degradation in the...

This research focuses on the analysis of rock stability in the St. Michael Tunnel, part of the Wachau railway in Lower Austria. The study area includes the entire tunnel and the surrounding rock slopes with Para gneiss alternations and Schists. Initial surveys were conducted to assess the original ground...

Settlement analysis plays an essential role in providing a safe measure for the stability of the foundation and other structural components. The settlement analysis with numerical methods such as Finite Element method (FEM), Finite Difference Method, or other sophisticated constitutive models are continuing...

Discontinuities have a significant impact on the geomechanical behaviour of rock masses and corresponding implications across rock engineering applications. The design, construction, safety, and stability analysis of rock masses are all based on the measurement of mechanical characteristics. Unfortunately,...

The deformation of tailings dams due to creep has been identified as a significant threat to their stability and overall life-cycle performance. In northern regions, tailings dams constructed mostly on traditionally frozen foundations, are subject to hazards resulting from permafrost degradation due...

Entering the information age, we encounter a huge amount of data, and this big data requires automatic data analysis methods that provide machine learning and deep learning. Machine learning (ML) is a branch of artificial intelligence that is currently developing and evolving and is a very active field...

As our climate changes (non-stationarity), we face new challenges in assessing hazard frequency and assessing the vulnerability of infrastructure to the effects of global warming, such as changing precipitation patterns and increasing ground surface temperature. The lack of appropriate incorporation...

Although there is already a significant and consolidated experience by the technical community responsible for highway infrastructure projects, which includes large and important projects implemented with different geosynthetic solutions, there are still gaps in knowledge that can be better answered....

Multiple slopes varying from 25° to 30° were designed and constructed in different areas of a highway project in Northern Virginia. High modulus and high-strength geosynthetics were required to ensure the sliding stability of 11 m slopes up to. For some slopes, polyester geosynthetics with up to 1000...

The FEM software RS2’s efficiency in modelling an MSE wall was verified through numerical simulation of the significant structural components of a field-constructed MSE wall in Seattle, Washington. A 10.7-m high wall was simulated, and its performance was evaluated by plotting strain and load profiles...

Subsurface investigation for County Road 90 in Athens County, Ohio, indicated presence of reddish brown non-durable claystone bedrock of the Pennsylvanian aged Monongahela Group. The slope failure is an approximately 90 ft long slope section affected by landslide activity. The ground movement is associated...

The use of software for 3D slope stability is becoming increasingly popular due to advances in computing technology. Though slip surfaces in slope stability are rarely circular in nature, many modern practitioners still rely on limit equilibrium results using spherical or ellipsoidal slip surfaces. Restricting...

Large-scale failure of riverbank slopes containing sensitive clays can occur rapidly under undrained conditions. Field observations and numerical analyses indicate that forming a quasi-horizontal shear band can develop from the toe of the slopes and initiate a progressive type of failure. In this study,...

With rapidly advancing computational technologies and more accessible high-performance computing machines in the past decade, the three-dimensional limit equilibrium (3D LE) method has become increasingly popular in the assessment of open pit slope stabilities. Unlike the Finite Difference (FD) and Finite...

Prefabricated Vertical Drains (PVDs) are geosynthetic drains that are used to shorten the horizontal drainage path and allow water to flow laterally to the nearest drain. Because of remolding during installation, a zone of smear around the drain is formed, reducing the coefficient of horizontal permeability,...

This paper presents the long-term settlement predictions of up to 3.5-m tall, 33-km long berms around the perimeter of five water regulation ponds at the perimeter of Lake Nabor Carrillo. Settlements due to the construction of the perimeter berms were performed using Settle3. Three-dimensional numerical...

Stone Columns were first introduced approximately 60 years ago as a technique for improving both cohesive soils and silty sands. Its construction involves the partial replacement of unsuitable soils with a pattern of compacted vertical columns of stone. In the settlement analysis software, Settle3, a...

A full scale, axial Pile Load Test (PLT) using an Osterberg Cell ® (O-Cell) assembly installed in a test shaft, and a lateral PLT using the same test shaft and a reaction shaft were carried out to inform caisson (drilled shaft) design for a project in Toronto near Lake Shore Blvd. Under supervision of...

The pursuit of operational targets such as tonnage and grade can often outpace the rehabilitation rate. This tends to leave large areas of mined-out strips (also known as scars) that must be traversed to ensure the hauling distance is shortened. Therefore, the resource must be efficiently extracted without...

A back-analysis case study is presented whereby the depth-of-failure in the rockmass surrounding underground development was correlated with borehole camera measurements. The case study took place at the Golden Grove Underground Mine (29 Metals) at a depth of ~1150–1400 m with moderately complex geology....

One of the riskiest aspects of excavating tunnels for infrastructure projects like subways and such is the possibility for surface set tlement, particularly in metropolitan areas. Therefore, it is crucial to predict maximum surface settlement (MSS) accurately to reduce the likeli hood of damage. Many...

Currently, few guidelines exist for how a practitioner should tackle the quantitative assessment of long-term slope performance for open pit mine closure design. Material degradation, resulting from cumulative incremental time-dependent deterioration and propagation of episodic damaging events (e.g.,...

Open pit mining projects usually face particular situations while dealing with slope stability analysis. More than any other projects, mining projects build a considerable number of slopes, which are more likely to behave differently among them, due to the change in orientation in the open pit. One of...

Various geotechnical investigations are conducted to define rock mass properties which assist geotechnical engineers in understanding the level of variability within the rock mass and allow for uncertainty to be minimised during the design of rock slopes. Middelburg Mine Services previously experienced...

Permafrost degradation is a critical factor to consider when examining the destabilization of rock slopes in cold regions. This study focuses on the numerical analysis of the Zugspitze summit-crest in Germany, utilizing a temperature-dependent mechanical model. Material properties and degradation parameters...

There is no doubt that the problem of a laterally loaded pile is an earth pressure analysis problem, involving the flexural rigidity of the pile. During the lateral loading, the earth pressures along the pile may take any value between the state at-rest and the active or the passive state. The current...

Three towers (35–57 storeys) are proposed in Vaughan, Ontario. The preferred foundation approach is bored concrete piles (caissons) bearing in soil at about 46 m depth, with Osterberg Cell (O-Cell) load testing to maximize design capacity. Several conventional O-Cell load tests have been designed and...

This paper presents a comparative analysis of a laterally loaded pile group using the computer programs PIGLET, RSPile and RS3. To enable the construction of a new road by-pass, a 24-inch diameter watermain serving 10,000 residents needed to be diverted. The diversion alignment generated out of balance...

Simplification of the geotechnical model and soil parameters is common in engineering practice however review of the performance to verify and updated the prediction is seldom. However, oversimplification may not capture the appropriate conditions for reliable settlement prediction. Bayesian back analysis...

This study presents the global stability analysis of the slope developed in the design phase of the foundation of a 12-level building of the ALZATI Apartments project, allowing to select the alternative of foundation that presented the best structural behavior and the best distribution of stresses to...

Tiering of mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) retaining walls have several advantages over its single-tier counterpart, specifically reducing tensile stresses experienced by lower reinforcements. Bamboo reinforcements were investigated to determine if it was a viable economic and sustainable alternative....

Slope stability issues are widely studied by geoengineers due to the significant risk they pose to human safety and the economy. Slope failures can be especially perilous, particularly in earthquake-prone regions, where even statically stable slopes can be triggered by dynamic loads. The pseudo-static...

The concrete arch pre-support system (CAPS) is one of the construction methods of subway stations designed using deterministic soil strength parameters. A Finite Element Method (FEM) of analysis is used to calculate the design parameters, including the factor of safety and maximum displacement using...

In geotechnical practice, engineers often perform only one type of in-situ testing. However, under some circumstances, there might be a need for different testing for additional analysis. Having a correlation model in such cases eliminates the need for performing additional testing and thus, saving time...

The Hoor-Al-Azim wetland is situated in the southwest of Iran and the southeast of Iraq, in the Middle East. Various industrial projects have been implemented in this region, and major projects are planned for the future. Therefore, geotechnical investigation of this area is crucial to understand its...

Rock mass strength is a required input parameter for many types of analysis in both mining and civil engineering. This paper introduces a nonlinear formulation of the CNI method, an empirical rock mass strength criterion based on quantitative input parameters. Most of the input parameters to the CNI...

Numbers form the basis of engineering; without them, we could not determine forces, stresses, and safety factors. In most engineering disciplines, the numbers used represent quantitative measurements; however, rock engineering is unique in that many of the numbers used are numerical descriptions of qualitative...

Voronoi tessellations are commonly used in discontinuum numerical models to simulate the microstructure of brittle rocks. In this approach, the model domain is divided into several randomly generated polygonal blocks. Discontinuum-based Voronoi Tessellated Models (VTM) capture the brittle rock failure...

Failure of a material is always accompanied by plastic deformation and fracturing processes. Continuum plastic mechanics can handle plastic deformation effectively when it employs a yield function and the flow rule. As a result of its inability to account for the microstructure of the material, the continuum...

Tailings dams are an alternative for the final storage of waste produced by the metallurgical mining industry. Unlike water reservoir dams, tailings dams have the particularity of requiring a detailed analysis of the post-operation or closure phase. In this stage, the structure must be as safe as during...

Coastal marshes provide many benefits to local communities, including increased habitat, coastal protection, and recreational use. The Otay River Estuary Restoration Project (ORERP) aims to restore disturbed marsh wetlands for the benefit of fish, birds, and other coastal species native to habitats at...

Gabion walls are a type of retaining wall made up of steel baskets typically filled with rock. They have gained popularity in recent decades due to their strength and aesthetic. Multiple methods for performing gabion wall internal stability analysis exist in literature. This study will consider two different...

Site investigation is crucial to any civil engineering or land development project. The geotechnical information acquired through site investigations is essential for the safe and economical design of buildings and infrastructural works. The field and laboratory tests (critical components of site investigations)...

The anisotropic geological setting has a predominant multi-orientation of weakness planes that are integrated with the matrix structure of major joint sets. The sedimentary bedding orientation and shear surface resistance significantly governed the plane’s deformation characteristics and, thus, the mode...

Sukinda chromite valley is the largest chromite deposit in India with six chromitite bands mined by several open pit mines. Host rock ultramafic sequence is weathered and altered to a thick profile of limonite that forms majority of the pit walls. The limonitic rockmass is massive, silt and clay rich...

Using three-dimensional limit equilibrium analysis to evaluate open pit slope stability has become popular in the mining industry. These tools allow geotechnical engineers to accurately input actual rock slope conditions and material strengths and obtain results that reflect slope behaviour and stability....

At the end of the 1980s, the design, testing and subsequent manufacture of steel rockfall protection barrier systems began around the world. To ensure that these barriers can effectively stop the dynamic impact of rockfall, several guidelines have been introduced worldwide since 2001. The level of knowledge...

We define a novel normalized loss function to quantitatively evaluate the goodness-of-fit between simulated and measured rockfall trajectories using elapsed time and sampled rock positions. This loss function is optimized to back-analyze the coefficients of restitution Rn and Rt using a Monte-Carlo search...

The Carretera Austral, today Route 7 of Chile, is one of the most important roads in the Chilean Patagonia. The road is in a mountainous area with very steep slopes. Due to the challenges presented by the zone a geotechnical assessment is necessary to make improvements to the road. During the opening...

Rock slope instabilities affecting several coastal cliffs in Australia, such as rockfalls, block topples and wedge sliding failures, pose a significant risk to people and infrastructure located along important national transport networks. Such instability phenomena, mostly driven by pre-existing structures...

Overs the last few years, several rocky hills have undergone voluminous mass movements in the Yaounde area. A first check analysis of rock and slope properties suggests that rockfalls or collapses are the most likely mode of failure in this area. This paper considers the feasibility of using RocFall3...

Spalling in rock has been an area of focus for researchers since it was first observed in tunnels and boreholes. The earliest form of spalling tests are in-situ tests, but due to high costs and the risks associated with allowing an excavation to fail, the focus of spalling research has shifted to a safe...

Numerical modeling allows for investigating the stability of mine pillars under different loading conditions. Unfavorable shear stresses may develop within mine pillars when the orebody is inclined or when the pillar axes are not aligned with in-situ principal stress directions. Quirke Mine, ON, Canada,...

The critical state theory has been widely applied in geotechnics, and understanding the mechanical and geotechnical properties of particulate materials is one of the major challenges nowadays. In the mining industry, this is a concern regarding tailings storage facilities, that experience transitions...

As a result of the intense exploitation of mineral resources on the surface, mining excavations must migrate to deeper environments. At greater depths, in-situ stresses increase along with the probability of rockburst occurrence. Different authors have studied this phenomenon in depth, however, the influence...