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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Earth Sci.
Sec. Geohazards and Georisks
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/feart.2024.1483534
This article is part of the Research Topic Environmental processes driving to slope failures: investigations, monitoring, and modelling through natural field laboratories View all 7 articles

Sliding-Zone Soil from the Linniqing Landslide in Southwest China: Particle Size and Implications for Landslide Occurrence

Provisionally accepted
XU Zongheng XU Zongheng 1*YE Hongchen YE Hongchen 1LI Lingxu LI Lingxu 2
  • 1 Yunnan Normal University, Kunming, China
  • 2 Faculty of Engineering, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    In landslide studies, particle size is a key quantitative indicator, reflecting the formation and development of the sliding zone. It plays a crucial role in understanding the mechanisms and evolutionary processes that lead to landslide occurrences. Precise measurement of particle size is crucial. This study centered on soil samples from the Lanniqing landslide in Southwest China. To begin, seven distinct methods were used to preprocess the soil samples. Next, the particle size frequency distribution was measured using the Mastersizer 2000 laser particle size analyzer. Key parameters, including median particle size, mean particle size, sorting coefficient, skewness, and kurtosis, were then compared and analyzed to determine the most appropriate preprocessing method for evaluating the characteristics of the soil samples. The mechanism of landslide occurrence was subsequently analyzed by examining the particle size characteristics, mechanical properties, and mineral composition of the soil samples. The results suggested that method C provides the most reliable analysis of particle size characteristics in soil samples. The observed coarsening of coarse particles, along with a significant increase in clay content within the sliding zone, indicates that the sliding surface has undergone multiple shear and compression events. The combination of the upper traffic load and the cutting at the slope's front edge set the stage for the Lanniqing landslide. This combination led to the initial development of potential sliding surfaces and triggered multiple sliding events over time. Rainfall acts as a catalyst for slope instability. The high clay content, combined with the formation of a low-permeability layer rich in clay minerals on the sliding surface, leads to excessive pore water pressure and mineral lubrication. These factors inherently trigger and accelerate the occurrence of the landslide.

    Keywords: Different pretreatment, Sliding zone soil, Particle size, Sliding zone stagnant water, Landslide occurrence

    Received: 20 Aug 2024; Accepted: 23 Sep 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Zongheng, Hongchen and Lingxu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: XU Zongheng, Yunnan Normal University, Kunming, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.