Thermoporomechanics of creeping landslides: The 1963 Vaiont slide, northern Italy

Veveakis, E; Vardoulakis, I; Di Toro, G

dc.contributor.author	Veveakis, E	en
dc.contributor.author	Vardoulakis, I	en
dc.contributor.author	Di Toro, G	en
dc.date.accessioned	2014-03-01T01:27:28Z
dc.date.available	2014-03-01T01:27:28Z
dc.date.issued	2007	en
dc.identifier.issn	0148-0227	en
dc.identifier.uri	https://dspace.lib.ntua.gr/xmlui/handle/123456789/18464
dc.subject	Porous Material	en
dc.subject	Strain Rate	en
dc.subject.classification	Geosciences, Multidisciplinary	en
dc.subject.other	catastrophic event	en
dc.subject.other	creep	en
dc.subject.other	landslide	en
dc.subject.other	porous medium	en
dc.subject.other	rock mass response	en
dc.subject.other	shear strain	en
dc.subject.other	strain rate	en
dc.subject.other	thermomechanics	en
dc.subject.other	Eurasia	en
dc.subject.other	Europe	en
dc.subject.other	Italy	en
dc.subject.other	Southern Europe	en
dc.title	Thermoporomechanics of creeping landslides: The 1963 Vaiont slide, northern Italy	en
heal.type	journalArticle	en
heal.identifier.primary	10.1029/2006JF000702	en
heal.identifier.secondary	http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2006JF000702	en
heal.identifier.secondary	F03026	en
heal.language	English	en
heal.publicationDate	2007	en
heal.abstract	The catastrophic Vaiont landslide (Southern Alps, Italy) of 9 October 1963 moved 2.7 × 108 m3 of rock that collapsed in an artificial lake, causing a giant wave that killed 1917 people. The landslide was preceded by 2-3 years of creep that ended with the final collapse of the rock mass slipping at about 30 m s-1. Assuming that creep was localized in a clay-rich water-saturated layer, in this study we propose shear heating as the primary mechanism for the long-term phase of accelerating creep. We study only the creeping phase of the slide, and we model this phase using a rigid block movig over a thin zone of high shear strain rates. Introducing a thermal softening and velocity strengthening law for the basal material, we reformulate the governing equations of a water-saturated porous material, obtaining an estimate for the collapse time of the slide. Our model is calibrated upon real velocity measurements from the Vaiont landslide and provides an estimation of the critical time of failure up to 169 days before the collapse. We also show that the slide became critical ∼21 days before the collapse, when shear heating started localizing in the clay-rich layer, inducing a tendency for slip localization and thermal runaway instability in a plane. The total loss of strength in the slipping zone during the last minutes prior to the slide is explained by the onset of thermal pressurization, triggered by the temperature rise within the clay-rich layer. Copyright 2007 by the American Geophysical Union.	en
heal.publisher	AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION	en
heal.journalName	Journal of Geophysical Research F: Earth Surface	en
dc.identifier.doi	10.1029/2006JF000702	en
dc.identifier.isi	ISI:000249852800001	en
dc.identifier.volume	112	en
dc.identifier.issue	3	en