Stability of slope based on shear strain criterion and its dependency on shear strength

An attempt is made to exhibit the shear strength dependency of the strain using finite difference based package FLAC. Stability of the slope is a function of the shear strength and the development of failure strain reflects the potential failure zones of slope.The shear strain developed in the slope increases with reduction in the shear strength and is reflected in the analysis. The concept of failure ratio (R f ) is incorporated in shear strength reduction technique and is demonstrated. Relationships between the critical shear strength reduction ratio and the safety factor are examined. The variation of shear strain with shear strength reduction ratio for different values of failure ratio (R ff ) is also studied. © 2010 Taylor & Francis Group.