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Better Slope Stability with PLAXIS & SLOPE/W

- HATTI GeoTalk

Xing-Cheng Lin, Product Success, Geotech

© 2024 Bentley Systems, Incorporated
1 | © 2024 Bentley Systems, Incorporated

Outline 1 Slope Stability

2 Determining Factor of Safety with LEM and FEM

3 Why add Limit Equilibrium?

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4 Interoperability

5 Demonstration case: hillside stability

6 Conclusion and Summary

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Slope stability
Slopes (earth fills, dams,
embankments, natural slopes) are
required to meet design factor of safety
standards
This can be assessed by numerical
models.
Goal of these numerical models is to
prove a situation or design exceeds a
required minimum factor of safety
(FoS).

What is a factor of safety

• Many possible definitions, for instance:

q 2

𝑎𝑣𝑎𝑖𝑙𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑔ℎ

𝐹𝑜𝑆
𝑚𝑜𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑧𝑒𝑑 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ
𝜸, 𝒄 , 𝝋′ 𝑓𝑎𝑖𝑙𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑
𝐹𝑜𝑆
𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑

𝑭𝒐𝑺𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉 𝑭𝒐𝑺𝒍𝒐𝒂𝒅

• PLAXIS: safety factor on soil strength

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PLAXIS 2D: FEM Factor of Safety

Factor of Safety in Finite Elements
• Also known as phi/c reduction
• Based on reduction of (shear) strength
• Gradual reduction of strength
• Requires check on converged solution
•  Deformations in appropriate control point

• Gives factor of safety for (soil) strength

• Global reduction via one reduction factor
References
Brinkgreve, R.B.J., Bakker, H.L. (1991) Non-linear
finite element analysis of safety factors
Coffee Corner PLAXIS Factors of Safety

SLOPE/W: LEM Factor of Safety

Limit Equilibrium Method of Columns
• Trial slip surface: search for the critical
• Discretize sliding mass into columns 3
• Equations of equilibrium: summation of forces
and moments
• Example: Summation forces equal to zero

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SLOPE/W Limit Equilibrium

Equations of Equilibrium
• Must satisfy force and moment equilibrium
• Two factor of safety equations: Fm and Ff
• Non-linear set of equations
• Normal Force = fnc(F)
• Intercolumn Shear Force = fnc(F)
• Lamda is weighting factor to make Fm = Ff

• Iterative solution scheme is required

PLAXIS integration: FEM to LEM

Safety analysis using phi/c reduction very powerful tool
• Most critical slip surface is outcome
Shape can be any: circular, and non-circular 4
Sometimes in the need for more
Not only slip surface with lowest factor of safety
Global and local stability
Variation in Factor of Safety for different slip surfaces
Local design practice requires LEM analysis results

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PLAXIS integration: FEM to LEM

ΣMsf ≈ 1.8 FoS ?

PLAXIS integration: FEM to LEM

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PLAXIS integration: FEM to LEM

Next to Finite Elements, we might also need Limit Equilibrium!
This can be done manually
• but tedious work!
Python script:
PLAXIS 2D to Limit Equilibrium converter

Tool downloadable via

Bentley Communities:
https://communities.bentley.com/products/geotech-
analysis/w/plaxis-soilvision-wiki/54463/how-to-run-a-limit-
equilibrium-method-analysis-from-plaxis-2d
Includes a description of features, limitations and will show
future updates

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PLAXIS integration: FEM to LEM

Workflow
1. PLAXIS 2D CONNECT Edition V22.01
2. Limit Equilibrium software 6
• GeoStudio SLOPE/W 2022
• PLAXIS 2D LE CONNECT Edition V21

3. Download the tool

4. Select a phase in PLAXIS 2D model
5. Use the tool to convert PLAXIS 2D phase
configuration to LEM model
6. Open the Limit Equilibrium software
7. Complete setup and run LEM analysis

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Example
Road along a hillside

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Example case: PLAXIS 2D to GeoStudio SLOPE/W

New road on hillside
Goals for design/analysis
• FoS original hillside 7
• New road construction
• FoS summer
• FoS winter (wet)
• Install soil nail(s)
• Critical FoS for
• Complete loss of road
• Loss of service (top slope)

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LEM Analysis: Winter Condition

Serviceability Requirements:
• Min. FOS = 1.8 against total loss of road
• Min. FOS = 1.6 temporary shut-down

LEM facilitates exploring different mechanisms:

• Upper slope failure
• Lower slope failure
• Global condition

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8
GeoStudio SLOPE/W Demo

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LEM Results: Winter FS=1.8

1.816

FS=1.6 FS=1.26
1.641 1.259

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Summary: 25
25

23
23

• Upper Slope – FOS = 1.8

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21

19
19

17
17

• Lower Slope – FOS = 1.26

Elevation (m)
15
15

13
13

• Overall Slope – FOS > 1.6 11

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99

77

55

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Key Observations: 11

-1
-1
00 10
10 20 30 40 50 60 70

• Always check convergence Distance (m)

• Optimized slip surface for overall

slope is questionable
• Lower slope is most critical

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Initial slope [verification]

SLOPE/W FoS: = 1.29

PLAXIS 2D
ΣMsf = 1.25 9

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Summer conditions

PLAXIS 2D
ΣMsf = 1.3

SLOPE/W
Upper slope: FoS: = 1.8

SLOPE/W SLOPE/W
Strong road: FoS = 1.4 Weak road: FoS = 1.3

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Winter conditions: without nails

PLAXIS 2D
ΣMsf = 1.3
10
SLOPE/W SLOPE/W
Upper slope: FoS: = 1.8 Global stability: FoS = 1.6

SLOPE/W SLOPE/W
Strong road: FoS = 1.3 Weak road: FoS = 1.25

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Winter conditions: 1 soil nail

PLAXIS 2D
ΣMsf = 1.6

SLOPE/W SLOPE/W
Upper slope: FoS = 1.8 Global stability: FoS = 2.1

SLOPE/W SLOPE/W
Strong road: FoS = 2.1 Weak road: FoS = 1.6

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Winter conditions: all nails

PLAXIS 2D
ΣMsf = 1.81
11
SLOPE/W SLOPE/W
Upper slope: FoS = 1.8 Global stability: FoS = 2.1

SLOPE/W SLOPE/W
Strong road: FoS = 2.2 Weak road: FoS = 1.7

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Results
Loss of service Complete loss of road
> 1.6 > 1.8
LEM FEM LEM FEM
Initial situation N/A N/A 1.3 1.3
Summer conditions 1.8 - 1.3 1.3
Winter conditions 1.8 - 1.3 1.3
Winter conditions – top soil nail 1.8 - 1.6 – 2.1 1.3
Winter conditions – all soil nails 1.7 1.8 2.1 -

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Results
Loss of service Complete loss of road
> 1.6 > 1.8
LEM FEM LEM FEM 12
Initial situation N/A N/A 1.3 1.3
Summer conditions  1.8 - 1.3 1.3
Winter conditions  1.8 - 1.3 1.3
Winter conditions – top soil nail  1.8 - ? 1.6 – 2.1 1.3
Winter conditions – all soil nails  1.7  1.8  2.1  -

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Conclusions from the hillside case

Using PLAXIS 2D we can determine the critical factor of safety for the whole model
But it does not give us the required information in this case to judge:
• Service closure of the road (upper slope)
• Total loss of the road (lower slope and entire slope)
Applying one soil nail
• is not giving us the minimum required Factor of Safety in PLAXIS
• In SLOPE/W, minimum Factor of Safety is depending on the influence of the road
Adding three soil nails gives us the required Factor of Safety in both PLAXIS 2D and GeoStudio
Being able to judge both numerical solutions gives more insight and more confidence in the final
design

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PLAXIS 2D and GeoStudio SLOPE/W – Model definition

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Convert

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PLAXIS 2D and GeoStudio SLOPE/W – Slip surfaces

Compare

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Summary
PLAXIS 2D and GeoStudio overview
• Finite Element Method (FEM) and Limit Equilibrium Method (LEM)
LEM: method of slices to determine Factor of Safety (FoS) 14
FEM: strength reduction (phi/c reduction) to determine FoS
Limitations of FEM: one critical slip surface only
Benefits of adding LEM analysis:
• LEM to find FoS for non-critical areas
• Easy to find spatial variation of FoS
• Combining LEM and FEM to validate each other (slip surface shape and FoS)
Process is easy and fast with newly available Python tool

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