Residual shear strength of clays in landslides in southern Britain

Hosseyni, Seyyed Mahdi (2012) Residual shear strength of clays in landslides in southern Britain. (PhD thesis), Kingston University, .

Abstract

Systematic back analyses of cross sections through landslipped slopes in Barton Clay have been carried out, based on the both published (cross sections) and unpublished (piezometer) data. The results of these support earlier (Barton, 1973) rather than later (Barton and Garvey, 2011) interpretations. Ring shear tests on clay samples from these landslides show braod agreement with the back analyses. Further back analyses on landslide elements at Herne Bay in the London Clay throw additional light on the behaviour of landslides there. The remaining coastal landslide case histories in London Clay are reviewed. The body of case records compiled by James (1970) for infrastructure (railway) cutting failures in London Clay is reviewed, with new back analyses. These show clearly the deficiencies in that set of analyses on which several important papers were based. Further reinterpretation and analysis goes some way to resolving questions arising from the review. It is concluded that the back analysis technique is a useful one, and when applied correctly provides excellent general agreement with equally careful laboratory testing for extracting the shear strength parameters for a week bed forming the bedding-controlled basal shear of a compound landslide is presented and used. The analyses and tests are supported by a review of publoshed residual strength properties for British clays.

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