• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.86-96
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• 2015

In this study, the performance-based evaluation factors for rock slopes have been deducted using Delphi-method. Validity of the result was verified through factor analysis. Performance of rock slope is classified as soundness, stability and durability. Through the Delphi survey, 17 factors including discontinuity orientation are deducted for soundness, 4 factors and 3 factors are selected for stability and durability, respectively. Validation is conducted using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) for 24 factors, and all factors are found to be valid. As a result of Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), 3-types of performance were subdivided into internal soundness, external soundness, risk, damage and durability of slopes and protection (reinforcement) facilities.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.673-682
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• 2020

The ground shear force at the expected failure surface and resistance force due to reinforced anchor can act as important factors according to a failure type from the stability viewpoint at a slope. Furthermore, the anchor's axial force may vary at an anchor-reinforced slope due to ground weathering, settlement, and corrosion in the incompletely anti-corrosion treated steel wire strand at a ground where the bearing plate is installed. However, in case that the resistance force of the anchor is locally lost due to the variation of the anchor's axial force, the resistance force may not play the role so that the external force tends to be transferred to the surrounding anchors, causing an increase in the tensile force in the surrounding anchors. Accordingly, a stability problem at the entire slope may occur, which requires much attention. Thus, this study proposed a method to monitor a variation trend of the tensile force of anchors installed at a slope and infer the external stability at the entire slope considering the monitoring result.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.31-40
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• 2017

The slope stability analysis by the limit equilibrium method has the disadvantage that it can be applied only when the analysis is performed by setting the critical plane after analyzing the active surface many times and the soil is uniform and only the safety factor can be calculated. However, the analysis using the strength reduction analysis method has advantages that the engineer can judge various aspects and calculate the safety factor. In this study, the safety factor according to the change of slope and shear strength was compared and analyzed using limit equilibrium analysis and strength reduction method. It is suggested that it is desirable to use the strength reduction method which can synthetically review the stress, displacement, and strain in the soil.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.649-661
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• 2020

Cut-slope management system (CSMS) has been investigated all slopes on the road of the whole country to evaluate risk rating of each slope. Based on this evaluation, the decision-making for maintenance can be conducted, and this procedure will be helpful to establish a consistent and efficient policy of safe road. CSMS has updated the database of all slopes annually, and this database is constructed based on a basic and detailed investigation. In the database, there are two type of data: first one is an objective data such as slopes' location, height, width, length, and information about underground and bedrock, etc; second one is subjective data, which is decided by experts based on those objective data, e.g., degree of emergency and risk, maintenance solution, etc. The purpose of this study is identifying an data application plan to utilize those CSMS data. For this purpose, logistic regression, which is a basic machine-learning method to construct a prediction model, is performed to predict a judging-type variable (i.e., subjective data) based on objective data. The constructed logistic model shows the accurate prediction, and this model can be used to judge a priority of slopes for detailed investigation. Also, it is anticipated that the prediction model can filter unusual data by comparing with a prediction value.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.531-539
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• 2019

Various slope protect systems are applied to the slope located around the major facility to maintain stability, and the applied these systems play an important role in protecting the structure by ensuring the safety of the slope. Reinforcement techniques ensure complete safety at the time of application to the slope, but over time, it may become difficult to secure safety. In particular, the deterioration of reinforcement systems may significantly reduce the stability of the slope. Therefore, it is necessary to secure the safety of the slope by defining the necessary items for maintenance of the protect systems and verifying them by the field expert. In this study, a group of experts were formed to determine these items and select their importance among them, and based on their data, the importance of each item was selected by Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The selected items are expected to play an important role in the maintenance of reinforcement systems applied to the slope based on the survey items used by experts.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.49-57
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• 2022

In order to efficiently analysis the stability of a slope, measuring the shear strength of soil is needed. The Standard Penetration Test (SPT) is not appropriate for a slope inspection due to cost and weights. One of the ways to effectively measure the N-value is the Dynamic Cone Penetration Test (DCPT). This study was performed to develop a minimized multi-function sensors that can easily estimate CPT values and Volumetric Water Content. N value with multi-fuction sensor DCPT showed -2.5 ~ +3.9% error compared with the SPT N value (reference value) in the field tests. Also, the developed multi-fuction sensor system was tested the correlation between the CPT test and the portable tester with indoor test. The test result showed 0.85 R2 value in soil, 0.83 in weathered soil, and 0.98 in mixed soil. As a result of the field test, the multi-function sensor shows the excellent field applicability of the proposed sensor system. After further research, it is expected that the portable multi-function sensor will be useful for general slope inspection.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.24 no.8
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• pp.5-11
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• 2023

Due to frequent occurrences of concentrated heavy rainfall caused by abnormal climate conditions in recent years, collapses of steep slopes have been occurring frequently due to surface erosion and increased pore water pressure. Various methods are being applied to prevent slope collapses, such as increasing the resistance to movement and reducing pore water pressure. Research on these methods has been consistently conducted as they provide an efficient response to slope collapses by satisfying both the conditions of resistance to movement and pore water pressure simultaneously. Therefore, in this study, we propose an upward slope reinforcement method by burying drainage materials with an upward slope inclination, instead of the conventional horizontal application. This approach aims to satisfy both slope reinforcement and drainage functions effectively, offering a comprehensive solution for slope stabilization. Furthermore, to determine the optimal burial angle that exhibits the most effective reinforcement and drainage effects of the proposed method, we investigated the reinforcement and drainage effects under conditions where the horizontal drainage materials were set at angles ranging from 0° to 60° in increments of 10° on a representative cross-section. Additionally, indoor model experiments were conducted under the conditions of 40°, which showed the most outstanding drainage effect, and 20°, which exhibited the highest safety factor, to validate the numerical analysis results. The results showed that the burial angle of 40° exhibits a relatively higher drainage effect as with the numerical analysis results, while the angle of 20° results in inadequate drainage and observed slope collapse.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.5-19
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• 2019

Considering the natural phenomenon in which steep slopes ($65^{\circ}{\sim}85^{\circ}$) consisting of rock mass remain stable for decades, slopes steeper than 1:0.5 (the standard of slope angle for blast rock) may be applied in geotechnical conditions which are similar to those above at the design and initial construction stages. In the process of analysing the stability of a good to fair continuum rock slope that can be designed as a steep slope, a general method of estimating rock mass strength properties from design practice perspective was required. Practical and genealized engineering methods of determining the properties of a rock mass are important for a good continuum rock slope that can be designed as a steep slope. The Genealized Hoek-Brown (H-B) failure criterion and GSI (Geological Strength Index), which were revised and supplemented by Hoek et al. (2002), were assessed as rock mass characterization systems fully taking into account the effects of discontinuities, and were widely utilized as a method for calculating equivalent Mohr-Coulomb shear strength (balancing the areas) according to stress changes. The concept of calculating equivalent M-C shear strength according to the change of confining stress range was proposed, and on a slope, the equivalent shear strength changes sensitively with changes in the maximum confining stress (${{\sigma}^{\prime}}_{3max}$ or normal stress), making it difficult to use it in practical design. In this study, the method of estimating the strength properties (an iso-angle division method) that can be applied universally within the maximum confining stress range for a good to fair continuum rock mass slope is proposed by applying the H-B failure criterion. In order to assess the validity and applicability of the proposed method of estimating the shear strength (A), the rock slope, which is a study object, was selected as the type of rock (igneous, metamorphic, sedimentary) on the steep slope near the existing working design site. It is compared and analyzed with the equivalent M-C shear strength (balancing the areas) proposed by Hoek. The equivalent M-C shear strength of the balancing the areas method and iso-angle division method was estimated using the RocLab program (geotechnical properties calculation software based on the H-B failure criterion (2002)) by using the basic data of the laboratory rock triaxial compression test at the existing working design site and the face mapping of discontinuities on the rock slope of study area. The calculated equivalent M-C shear strength of the balancing the areas method was interlinked to show very large or small cohesion and internal friction angles (generally, greater than $45^{\circ}$). The equivalent M-C shear strength of the iso-angle division is in-between the equivalent M-C shear properties of the balancing the areas, and the internal friction angles show a range of $30^{\circ}$ to $42^{\circ}$. We compared and analyzed the shear strength (A) of the iso-angle division method at the study area with the shear strength (B) of the existing working design site with similar or the same grade RMR each other. The application of the proposed iso-angle division method was indirectly evaluated through the results of the stability analysis (limit equilibrium analysis and finite element analysis) applied with these the strength properties. The difference between A and B of the shear strength is about 10%. LEM results (in wet condition) showed that Fs (A) = 14.08~58.22 (average 32.9) and Fs (B) = 18.39~60.04 (average 32.2), which were similar in accordance with the same rock types. As a result of FEM, displacement (A) = 0.13~0.65 mm (average 0.27 mm) and displacement (B) = 0.14~1.07 mm (average 0.37 mm). Using the GSI and Hoek-Brown failure criterion, the significant result could be identified in the application evaluation. Therefore, the strength properties of rock mass estimated by the iso-angle division method could be applied with practical shear strength.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.109-116
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• 2024

The Rapid Hardening Composite Mat (RHCM) is a product that improves the initial strength development speed of conventional Geosynthetic Cementitious Composite Mats (GCCM). It offers the advantage of quickly securing sufficient strength in railway slopes with insufficient formation level, and provides benefits such as preventing slope erosion and inhibiting vegetation growth. In this study, an analysis of the practical applicability of RHCM in railway settings was conducted through experimentation. The on-site applicability was assessed by categorizing it into fire resistance, durability, and stability, and conducting combustibility test, ground contact pressure test, and daily displacement analyses. In the case of South Korea, where a significant portion of the territory is composed of forested areas, the prevention of slope fires is imperative. To analyze the fire resistance of RHCM, combustibility tests were conducted as an essential measure. Durability was assessed through ground contact pressure tests to analyze the deformation and potential damage of RHCM caused by the inevitable use of small to medium-sized equipment on the construction surface. Furthermore, daily displacement analysis was conducted to evaluate the structural stability by comparing and analyzing the displacement and behavior occurring during the application of RHCM with railway slope maintenance criteria. As a result of the experiments, the RHCM was analyzed to meet the criteria for heat release rate and gas toxicity. Furthermore, the ground contact pressure was observed to be consistently above 50 kPa during the curing period of 4 to 24 hours under all conditions. Additionally, the daily displacement analyzed through field site experiments ranged from -1.7 mm to 1.01 mm, confirming compliance with the criteria.

• Journal of the Korean Geosynthetics Society
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.139-149
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• 2017

The maintenance, repair, and reinforcement projects and structural stability assessments of Seokguram have primarily focused on examining the condition of stone members of Seokguram and the concrete dome structure for Seokguram. However, a 12 m-high rock slope located behind Seokguram raises a concern of slope failure and rockfall, which may reduce stability of Seokguram. It is also unclear whether the soil slopes and masonry wall at the side and the front of Seokguram have sufficient long-term stability against localized heavy rains and earthquakes, which have been frequent in recent years. The present study investigates the ground and the slopes around Seokguram using detailed field survey to identify geographical and geological risk factors, and assess structural stability of the exposed rock mass behind and the slope in front of Seokguram and the masonry wall using stability analysis.