Downslope movements at shallow depths related to cyclic pore-pressure changes

Slow, shallow ground movements in a slope near Yellowknife caused excessive tilting of timber piles that supported an engineering structure. To avoid damage to the structure, the pile foundations had to be replaced by rigid concrete piers that were designed to resist the forces of the moving soil mass. Downhill movements were rather slow and, during an initial inspection, were indicated only by soil that was pushed up against a series of piles on their uphill sides, while gaps had formed on their downhill sides. No open cracks or bulging was observed on the slope. A stability analysis indicated that the slope was not in a state of limit equilibrium. To obtain a better understanding of the creep movements in the slope and their effect on the rigid concrete piers, extensive instrumentation was carried out after the construction of the piers. This included slope indicators, piezometers, thermistors, and total-pressure cells against one of the concrete piers. In addition, a triaxial testing program was undertaken in which the effect of cyclic pore-water pressure changes on the long-term deformations of the shallow clay layer was investigated. From the data collected in the field and laboratory, it could be concluded that (i) tilting of the original timber piles was caused by downslope movements related to cyclic pore-water increases; (ii) the lateral soil movements increased almost linearly with depth from 2 m below the ground surface, with no indication of a slip surface; and (iii) the pressures exerted by the moving soil mass against the rigid concrete piers within the soil mass were equal to the passive resistance activated within the moving soil mass. Key words : soil creep, slope movements, soil pressures, pore-water pressures, freezing pressures, permafrost, cyclic loading.