• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.20 no.7
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• pp.159-169
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• 2004

Surface failures of slopes in weathered soil are caused by infiltration due to prolonged rainfall. These failures are mainly triggered by the deepening of the wetting band accompanied by a decrease in suction induced by the infiltrating water. This paper reports trends of rainfall-induced wetting band depth in two types of weathered soils that are commonly found in Korea. Both theoretical and numerical analyses are presented based on the soil-water characteristic curve (SWCC) obtained using filter paper as well as tensiometer tests. It is found that the magnitude of wetting front suction plays a key role in the stability of slopes in weathered soils. Theoretical analysis based on modified Green and Ampt model tends to underestimate the wetting band depth for typical Korean weathered soils. It was also deduced that for Korean weathered soils, the factor of safety drops rapidly once the wetting band depth of 1.2 m is reached.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.17-26
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• 2005

Soil water characteristic curve (SWCC) is a unique characteristic that should be considered In the analysis of unsaturated soil and prediction of unsaturated properties. However, the volume change of soil specimens that happens in the existing apparatus affects the SWCC, Therefore, In this study, we intended to obtain more appropriate SWCC by measuring the change In the volume of the specimen in the SWCC tests. The measured change of void ratio indicates that the saturation step prior to the test changes the original structure of the soil specimen. Thus we carried out the test far the same specimen omitting the saturation step prior to the test. The change of void ratio by this test procedure is relatively small.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.23 no.11
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• pp.39-48
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• 2007

The soil-water characteristic curve(SWCC) is a useful tool in the prediction of the engineering behavior of unsaturated soils. Several equations are available in the literature to mathematically represent the experimental behavior of the SWCC. Some equations are based on the assumption that the shape of curve is dependent upon pore-size distribution. Other equations assume that SWCC can be estimated from the grain size distribution and the physical properties of soils. This study evaluated the suitability of using two different SWCC equations for defining the relationship between water content and matric suction. Various parameters that influence the SWCC behavior are also briefly discussed.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.5-11
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• 2018

In conventional analytical solutions for rainfall-induced soil slope stability, the Green-Ampt (1911) equation for estimating the saturation depth and the Skempton & DeLory (1957) equation for calculating the infinite slope shallow failure were compared with the numerical analysis to confirm the error. In the simple evaluation of the reason of soil slope instability due to rainfall using the conventional equations, there are many errors and, overestimation or underestimation of the calculation results. In this study, the equation consisting of the results obtained from infiltration analysis on unsaturated soil slope is proposed by applying the average range of the strength parameters of the granite weathered soils, and its reliability is verified by comparing with the numerical analysis results. The developed equation can be used easily in various fields for the estimation of slope safety factor by checking the rainfall duration and saturation depth.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.33 no.9
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• pp.5-22
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• 2017

The procedure that combines the result of infiltration analysis into stability analysis based on the limit equilibrium method is widely used to evaluate the impact of rainfall infiltration on slope stability. Accurate prediction of rainfall infiltration is essential to the prediction of landslides caused by rainfall, requires to obtain accurate unsaturated hydraulic properties of the soil. Among the unsaturated hydraulic characteristics of the soil, the importance of the soil-water characteristic curve describing the retained water characteristics of the soil is relatively well known and the measurement by test method to obtain the SWCC is gradually increasing. However, it takes a lot of time and expenses to experimentally measure the unsaturated conductivity characteristics of the soil. Therefore, it is common practice to estimate the hydraulic conductivity function from the SWCC. Although it is widely known that the SWCC has a great influence on rainfall infiltration, studies on the effect of the hydraulic conductivity function estimated from the SWCC on rainfall infiltration are very limited. In this study, we explained how the estimation model of the hydraulic conductivity function affects rainfall infiltration and slope stability analysis. To this end, one-dimensional infiltration analysis and slope stability analysis were conducted by using the data on the SWCC of weathered granite soil widely distributed in Korea. The applicability of each estimation model is discussed through review of the analysis results.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.47-54
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• 2024

In current slope stability analysis techniques, slope stability is evaluated based on the saturated-soil theory. However, soil-water characteristics change frequently depending on the climate. Therefore, because the saturated soil theory has limitations, the application of the unsaturated soil theory is necessary for slope stability. It is also important to evaluate the engineering properties of unsaturated soil because the capillary absorption capacity is reduced due to heavy rain, thereby causing a reduction in slope stability. In this study, soil-water characteristic tests were performed using four samples with different fine contents (0%, 10%, 20%, and 30%) using granite-weathered soil in domestic production areas. In particular, to consider the previously conducted drying process as well as the evaluation of stability due to heavy rain on the actual slope, a wetting process was conducted, in which the water content was increased. In addition, the van Genuchten (1980) model, which is the most consistent theoretical equation for the experiment, was used with various theoretical equations, and the parameters were analyzed according to the fine content of the granite-weathered soil for the drying and wetting processes.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.127-136
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• 2008

Geophysical survey for establishing a wide site for the distribution of water content, wetting front infiltration due to the rainfall, and distribution of groundwater level has been performed by using 8round penetration radar (GPR) method, electrical resistivity method, and so on. On the other hand, a narrow area survey was performed to use a permittivity method such as time domain reflectometry, frequency domain reflectometry, and amplitude domain reflectometry methods for estimating volumetric water content, soil density, and concentration of contaminant in surface and subsurface. The permittivity methods establish more corrective physical parameters than different found survey technologies mentioned above. In this study for establishment of infiltration behaviors for wetting front in the unsaturated soil caused by an artificial rainfall, soil physical parameters for volumetric water content, pore water pressure, and pore air pressure were measured by FDR measurement device and pore water pressure meter which are installed in the unsaturated weathered granite soil with different depths. Consequently, the authors were proposed to a new establishment method for analyzing the variations of volumetric water content and wetting front infiltration from the responses of infiltrating pore water in the unsaturated soil.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.10 no.11
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• pp.3287-3295
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• 2009

This present study implemented a rainfall simulation system, and performed simulation and numerical analysis according to rainfall and slope conditions using a model slope built with weathered granite soil. Extensive analysis were conducted on the characteristics of changes in volumetric water content and pore water pressure measured in the simulation, and compared them with the results of numerical analysis. It took longer for the volumetric water content to reach the limit when rainfall intensity was high and the slope was steep and shorter when rainfall intensity was low and the slope was gentle. When rainfall intensity was low and the duration of rainfall was short, negative pore water pressure was higher and the time for restoration was shorter. On the contrary, when rainfall intensity was high and the duration of rainfall was long, it took a longer time to restore negative pore water pressure. In the results of rainfall simulation and numerical analysis, the distribution of volumetric water content and pore water pressure was similar between the two. However, the volumetric water content was different by up to 5%, and pore water pressure by up to 3kPa.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.17-28
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• 2014

In this study, the seepage behavior has been analyzed, which is the most important in determining the stability of the embankment. Large-scale embankment of weathered granite has been installed and TDR (time domain reflectory) sensors were used to detect the seepage lines. The TDR graphs could be separated into 3 sections, which are initial, unsaturated and saturated zones. TDR sensor can detect seepage line more easily than point sensor without analysis. Comparisons of the results of numerical analyses and the TDR sensors showed differences at water level rising condition, and then Comparisons of the results generally showed good agreement at another condition.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.37 no.6
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• pp.21-28
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• 2021

The factors of landslides depend on rainfall intensity, duration, and the characteristics of the soil slope. The conventional slope stability analysis has been carried out by assuming that the slope is saturated. But, a site slope consisting of unsaturated ground must be imitated and interpreted in order to explain a proper behavior of the slope due to rainfall. In this study, by using two major categories of soils in Korea, such as granite and gneiss weathered soils, landslide model test and numerical analysis have been compared with the difference of seepage and volumetric water content. In general, the permeability of gneiss weathered soil, which contains a lot of fines content, is slower than that of granite weathered soil. As a result, in extreme rainfall, numerical analysis can show results that can penetrate quickly, resulting in saturation or more dangerous collapse.