Large-scale successive boulder impacts on a rigid barrier shielded by gabions
Abstract
Debris flows occur in multiple surges. Boulders entrained within the flow have been reported to incapacitate structures within its flow path. Single-layer cushions, such as gabions, are often installed to shield debris-resisting barriers from boulder impact. However, most relevant works only focus on single impact and the performance of gabions subjected to successive loading is still not well understood. A new large-scale pendulum facility was established to induce impact energy of up to 70 kJ on an instrumented rigid barrier shielded by 1 m thick gabions. The response of the gabions under six successive impacts was investigated. Results show that the peak boulder impact force given by the Hertz equation is at least four times the measured values. The recommended load-reduction factor (Kc) used in practice can be reduced by a factor of two. After six successive impacts at an energy level of 70 kJ, the transmitted force increases by up to 40%. Based on the Swiss guidelines, a 13% increase of gabion thickness is required when successive impacts are concerned. The results presented in this paper will be useful for practitioners designing rigid barriers.
Résumé
Les coulées de débris se produisent en crêtes multiples. Il a été signalé que les rochers entraînés au sein de la coulé neutralisent les structures sur le chemin d’écoulement. Des coussins à monocouche, tels que les gabions sont souvent installés pour protéger des barrières résistant aux débris de l’impact de rochers. Cependant, les œuvres les plus pertinentes se concentrent seulement sur l’impact unique et la performance des gabions soumis à des chargements successifs n’est pas encore bien comprise. Une nouvelle installation de pendule à grande échelle a été créée pour induire l’impact énergétique jusqu’à 70 kJ sur une barrière rigide instrumentée protégée par des gabions épais de 1 m. La réponse des gabions sous six chocs successifs a été examiné. Les résultats montrent que la force d’impact du rocher pic par l’équation de Hertz est au moins quatre fois les valeurs mesurées. Le facteur de réduction de la charge recommandée (Kc) utilisé en pratique peut être réduit par un facteur de deux. Après six chocs successifs à un niveau d’énergie de 70 kJ, la force transmise augmente par jusqu’à 40 %. Selon les directives suisses, une augmentation de 13 % de l’épaisseur de gabion est requise lorsque des chocs successifs sont concernés. Les résultats présentés dans cet article seront utiles aux praticiens pour concevoir des barrières rigides. [Traduit par la Rédaction]
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Published In
Canadian Geotechnical Journal
Volume 53 • Number 10 • October 2016
Pages: 1688 - 1699
History
Received: 8 February 2016
Accepted: 7 June 2016
Accepted manuscript online: 16 June 2016
Version of record online: 16 June 2016
Copyright
© 2016.
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C.W.W. Ng, C.E. Choi, A.Y. Su, J.S.H. Kwan, and C. Lam. 2016. Large-scale successive boulder impacts on a rigid barrier shielded by gabions. Canadian Geotechnical Journal.
53(10): 1688-1699. https://doi.org/10.1139/cgj-2016-0073
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