Assessment on strength reduction schemes for geotechnical stability analysis involving the Drucker-Prager criterion

Abstract

For geotechnical stability analysis involving the Drucker-Prager (DP) criterion, both the c-φ reduction scheme and the M-K reduction scheme can be utilized. With the aid of the second-order cone programming optimized finite element method (FEM-SOCP), a comparison of the two strength reduction schemes for the stability analysis of a homogeneous slope and a multilayered slope is carried out. Numerical investigations disclose that the FoS results calculated by the c-φ reduction scheme agree well with those calculated by the classical Morgenstern-Price solutions. However, the FoS results attained by the M-K reduction scheme may lead to conservative estimation of the geotechnical safety, particularly for the cases with large internal friction angles. In view of the possible big difference in stability analysis results caused by the M-K reduction scheme, the c-φ reduction scheme is recommended for the geotechnical stability analyses involving the DP criterion.

Keywords

geotechnical stability / Drucker-Prager criterion / strength reduction / second-order cone programming / c-φ reduction / M-K reduction

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