,) ( .

li'0'
Slope Stability during Rapid Drawdown
!umr M. urIc0rI``, lrphrn . Wrghl
(
2
1
0rId K0l . W0t
(
3
J
P1WL1L1LP
The wrters had the great pleasure of working with Professor Seed on the reseach
desribd in this papr. He played an active rle in thes studies, which wer bgun
in the ealy 1980s (Wong, Duncan and Seed, 1983), and continued later under a
contract for the L. S. Any Corps of Engineers (Wright and Duncan, 1987). We
m pleased to acknowledge Professr Seed's grat infuence on and conubution to
this work, and to dedicate this papr to his memor.
K WYLYP LL 1L1Y WLLh
When the water level outside a slop drops, the stabilizing infuence of the water
pressure on the slope is lost. If the water level subsides rapidly that the pre
pressures within the slop do not have time U change in equilibrium with the drop
in exteral water level. the slop is mde less stable.
Many failures of dam slopes and natural slopes have ocured during rapid
drawdown. These include, for example, Pilaitos Da suth of San Francisco
(W.A. Wahler Assiats, 1970), Walter Bouldin Da in Alabaa (Whiteside,
1976), ad a numbr of rver bk slops aong the Rio Montao in Per (ee ad
Duncan, (975). Rapid drawdown impses ver svere loading on slops, and is
fuently the design condition that cotls U steepnss of Uupstam slops of
dams. Analysis of rapid drawdown is therefore a impnam consideration for
design of dams, and for design of other slops that will b submerged ad subject
to drawdown.
\'! UniversilY Dislinguishe Pofesso. Virgini PolylChrc InstillC ad Sue University.
Blaksbrg, V P
\ Ashley H.Pridy Cenlnnil Proes 0ICivil Enginrig. University 0lTexa, Austin, 1
' Assil Professo of Civil Enginerng, Nayag Tehnolgicllnstitul, Singa.
3J
H
|
3_
P
..

l
r
!

. I

4
Duncnt Wri&ht and Wona
Mateals of high pnability can dan during rpid drawdown. but mterals wl0
clay content cannO. To analyze stability during rpid drawdown, it is necessar W
delenin which materals will drain and which will not. In doubtful cases it mus
b assum that drinage either will or will not ocur, whihever will result in t
lowest mstength within the paicula zone, a the lowest factor of sfety fo
the slop.
Fo sm dam rpid dawOwn from a high rsroir level is an improable event,
and rpsnts W extem loaing cas. r suh dams it is approprate to pnt
low fato of sfety fo the rapid drawdwn conditon. For other dams, notably
pump stoge prjetS, episoes of rpid dwdown ocur fequently, and they
reprsnt & regula oprting condition. In thes cass it is approprate to reuir
higher vaus of sfety factor for the drawdown condition. as for other design
cotos tat hav high prbbilites OocW ce.
METHODS OF ANALY55
Stbility durng rpid dawdown has ben analyze in two basically different ways:
()using effective stress methos, and (2) using total stess mtos. in which the
undined shear strength of the soil is related to the consolidation pressures in th
slop po to dawdown. Both methos tat fre daining materials in the sam
way. Teir strengths ae analyzed in tens of effective stresses. and it is assume
that te pre pressures within them ae hydrostatic.
Ef m
Te avatage of effective stress analyses is thai it is rlatively easy to evaluate the
rqui shea stngth pWter. Te effectve stss shea stngth paamters
for sils readily detenined by means of isotopically conslidated undrain
(IC-U) tial teslS with pr pressure masuremnts. This typ of test is well
witi mbmqmmmmchanics labroes.
Tcdisvantge of efective stess analyss is that it is difcult to estimate with
auy t pressurs that will exist within non-fe draining mterals durng
drawdown. T pr pressure changes during drawdown depnd on the changes
in stss that rsult frm the changing water loads on the slop. and the undrain
respns of the sils within the slop to thes chages in load. While the changes
in stss ca b estimated with rasnable.accurcy, paniculaly at shallow depths
bneath the surae of the slop. the undraine rspnse of the soil is much harer
to estimate. The changes in pre pressure would b expcted to b considerably
different for mterials that tend to dilate during shear and those that do not. While
in prnciple it is pssible to estimate these pore prssures using Skempton's pre
pressure pameters (Skempton. I954),in fJtlCc this is difcult.
In mst cases effective stress analyses O
(
stability during rapid drawdown have
used the assumptions regading pore pressures that were suggested by Bishop
(195) and later used by Morgenster (
1
96
3
). These assumptions have ben


Rapid Drawdown
I33
justife on te bais of te fat tat thy cosratve i mt cass. Thy have
be n found to rsult in rasbl vaues of fato of sfety for da that suffere
rpid drwdwn failurs: Wo,. el M. (1983) fo ta, te valus of saety factor
calculated using Morgenster's asumptio wer F = 1. 2 for Pilaritos Dam a F
: 1.0 for Walter Bouldin Da b of which fale.
It seems likely that Bishop and Morgenster's assumptions for pore pressures
during drawdown may b mre accurate for soils that d not tend to dilate during
she tha for those that do ten to dilate. Tus, athough thes asumptions may
show reasnable corespndnce with failus of slops in materias that ae not
dnsly compacte and d nt ten k dilat durng shear. they likely to b
unduly consrative for bttcr-compae mteras tat d ten to dilate durng
shear. Use of effetive strss aal
r
ss bsed on the Bishp and Morgenster
asumptios woul 0l Wfll mteas aie wit rspt kppessurs durng
dwdown, rgadless of how well ty cpe o how stngly they mght
ted Kdiate durng m.
Teraghi and Pek (1967) suggeste tat p pressues durng dawdown in well
compacted silty sands could b estimte using fow nets. Several investigators
(Browzin, 1961; Brahma and Har. 1963; Newlin and Rossier, 1967; Desai and
Shenan, 1971; Dsai, 1972; Dsi, 1977) us thertical mthos to analyze the
non-steady flow conditions following drawdown. Like the Bishop and
Morgenstern pre pressure assumptions. these methos do not consider the
bhavior of the soil with rgad to dilatancy, and ae thus not capable of
rpresenting all of the impant factors that control the pre pressures during
drawdown.
Svano and Norda (1987) and Wrght and Duncan (1987) used proeures for
estmtng pprssus dwg drwdown tat rfet te ifuene of dilaty U
the pre pressur changes. Svano and Noral usd two-stage stbility analyss an
iterate to ahieve cnsisteny btwen th calculate fator of saety an te vaues
of the pr prssures. Wrght and Duna use fnite elemnt anayses to estmate
the stess changes during dwdown. a Skempton's pre pressure paameters to
calculate the pre pressures. Tes stuies indicate that it is pssible to estimate
ralistic pr pressures for efectve stss ayss, but it umr cumbrom 8
diffcult than using total stss aalyss as desb in the following sectons.
Terzghi and Pek (1967) summarze the problems in estimating pre pressures
during drawdown in these words:
" . .. in order to determine the pore pressure conditions for t he
drawdown state, all the following factors ned to b known: the
loation of the bundaries btween materials with signifcantly
different properties; the permeability and consolidation
characteristics of each of these materials; and the anticipated
maximum rate of drawdown. In addition, the pore pressures
induce by the changes in the sheaing strsses themselves ...... +
nee to b taen into considertion. U engineerng practice, few of
these factors can b reliably detenined. The gaps in the available
infonnation must b flled by the most unfavorable assumptions
compatible with the known faclS."
Duncan, Wri
e
ht and Wone
u8n@ umm, KM 50c55 8n8y5c5 85 0ctb n hc 00Wng 5=10m,
m0t gm0O 8=Whc5m8n@ gN55w5 (o c=Vc sts
M8M$m8Vo,hca u 0 Q0MWd580I 8n8yM$
mVmOW0mgf0=.
C o Ee m
TcC0 nnmMmh {L0Q$0 ngnmM, 1970) u8 W058gc wUyt|t
gf0=w. c U8gc,Wh0hM8y$ 0wuw$ b0w8W00Wn,5 uM K
0clcDnc V8uc$ 0 00n50080n g55utc 80n@ lhc 5g 5ut80c. hcM
OW0800 gNMw$ wu5=0 0lcU wm 5hcM50ng0V8uc5 M
t s 5l8@cM8yM$,WlhhcNM0udWndWn.
1um m50n@h V8uc5 (o lhc 0 5Q@c w0ccDnc0 fm t
0 mIC-U 50ng0cnVc0g,a 5h0Wn n Mg l. A0W505M$,WhcN t
l0l850McnVc0g c5 80vchc cc0lVc 5mw8n=50nglhcnVc0g,t
0wno $0n@lh cnVc0gc 5 uM 0 0ccDnc 50cngh$ 0t hc M00n 5l80
M5$.
b
O
w
J
U
Ei ther drained or |L U
envelope is used. whichever
gives lowr strength.
Normal stress = effect Ive stress
on base of slice before
drawdown.
Normal Stress
Fig. Strength Envelope Used in Corps of
Engineers Method
T guM0(o u5n@ t 0Mn=50cnglhcnVc0g8l0W5055c5 5 l0 8V00
Nn@0mWn@thh8l N5uUfm ncg8lVcpQ55utc5,Wh0h00u0
m m0M 8h0u0 hcM gM Qtc55utc5 058QQ 88 8 N5uH 0 08V1810n O
dnn8gc. Tc uM 0 hc 0t8nc0 cnvc0Qc 5 0Vcty 00n5cW8vc, h0Wcvcf,

Rapid Drawdown
bcause the effective nonal stess use to determine the shea stength is the
effective stess bfore drawdown. which is lower than the effective stess after
dawdown. even when it is assumd that the pre pressures after drawdown a
hydrostatic. As a result the Corps of Engineers method is unnecessaily
conserative.
Te Corpb of Engineers metho avoids the problems of estimating changes in pr
pressure during drawdown by using undraine strengths to analyze stability after
drawdown. By using undrained strengths. this proedure accounts for the
tndency of te mteral to dilate o comprss durng she.
While the us of the total stss IC-U envelop is quaittively corCt. it canot b
justifed in detail. The circles of stess us to develop the total stess envelop
combine the effetive stss durng conslidtion with t deviato stess at failure.
M do not rpresnt a state of stss in te sil at ay given tm. Fuf. te
way that the stesses on te slip surae w relate to the IC-U envelop is not
consistent with the way the envelop is plotte. Altough the errs resultig b
these inconsistencies are not extemely lage in most cases, the use of an
inconsistent an illogical metho Orlatng shea stngh to cnsliaton pressur
is undesirable. As discussed in subseuent stions. btter preures for relatng
shear strength to consolidation pressure have ben developed by Lowe and
Karafath (
1
96a).
Jr nd hrlh'8 Mrlbud
Like the Corps of Engineers metho. Lowe and Karafath's metho uses a two
stage analysis proedure. and uses undrained strengths for analysis of stability
during drawdown.
As shown in Fig, 2, Lowe and Karafiath's metho uss envelops that are more
logical than the total stress IC-U envelop for relatng undined shear stengths to
consolidation pressures. The horizontal axis is the effective stess on the failure
plane during consolidation (o'
fc
)' ad the vertical axis is the shear stess on the
failur plane at failure (
t
ff
).
Lwe and Karafath showed that the undrained stength of soils. when plotted as
1
vs
0'
fc
' varies with the effetive principal stess rtio durng conslidation. K
c
= o'
l c
"
'
3
c
' The value of this ratio can vary from unity (for consolidation under
isotropic stresses) to K
f
' the value of 0'
1/
0'
3
at failure. As the value of K
c
increases. the undrained strength increases. For any material there is a family of
undrained strength envelops corespnding to different values of K
c
varying DD
. to K
f
.
The manner of representing undained stength suggested by Lowe and Kaafiath,
which is shown in Fig. 2. is logical and accurte. Te testing reuired to establish
these strength envelopes, however, is very difficult. Test specimns must b
consolidated under anisotropic stesses, with various values of K
c
' This proess

I3 Duncan. Wri
e
hl lnd Wone
ruirs considerable tim and careful attention bcause the stresses must
incrasd slowly to avoid the possibility that the specimens will fail during
cid. Tm@m value OK
c
. the mre difacuil l test pur.
te grter lm liliho that the spimn will fail durng coslidation. Few
ltoes W expence in prorming 0M 00ul Msls, and their uM ad
lo t OOemploying m LwcKUWmth fo ayn.
rpi stbility.

C
*
L ~

W

m

O
C
c.
J
U
.
O
F
C

C
Effective Stress on the Failure Plane
During Consolidatin- C;c
Fig. Strength Envelope Used in Lowe and
Karafiath's Metho
Unlie te Cs of Eginers mtho, the Lwe ad Karaath mtho uss the
undrined stngt envelopes at low stresses, where the undrained strength
mVclQlw8bVcte wmstngth envelop. Tmtho thus ds not allow
mlm M 0l l my nO b pssible to mbiliz m full undrained strngth in
0mwwhr it ulimte b cavitto o dge.
EVALUATING STRENGTH FOR RAPID DRAWDOWN ANALYSES
As mprviously the mtho of reprsnting unrained stengths pr
p
se by
Lwc Kalh is logical and accurate, but establishing the vanation of
unne M&t with conslidation prssures involves diffcult and expnsive
lb MM
re
Rapd Drawdown
&8uwo th difIutie nVmVmmngALU taxial W8u,8numof
h8Vc 8uggc8tcd gw8 lmc8um8ung t nwluo ALU tc8t8
lm t n8ut8 M lL-U tc8t8. T mt8 M ng 8bc to d th8
mMM: lLUtet Ut WcKpo MyoMmumnm
tial MM 18pm

mlNdwgoMwbaus ty Um
wbg mw 18mw 8m n 88ngc
wnlttkQHWhru.
m gy. mo cngALU8mgth8lmt rulc o lLUWW
MMwmb T8yk(198). LmK(19). Noy
& (19S). 1w mN8 m8mby Wwg W H. (1983), wth tm
WwgNw
- t wcWby Tayl (198) n8ulUmmNmol
thc AL-U gm8, Mt u

umM M8uw it un8 @hk8

mVmW8 esng p 8un N fm my 8t8gc8
dunngth RL

thc mctho 8uggc8tcd b Lwc 8nd K8r8f8th (VN) rc8ult8 in

ulesb emtes olALUwngthcnVclQ8forVw8of ".
- th mtN8u@c8mby& Noy (WJ}n8ut8 nm8blc
AL-U8mngthcnVck8.
T 8twc8 Qdmd by Wwg,ctN. (1983) 8Nwm mH d 88lp88bc K
mmtcALU wngth cnVcQ8mlLU8mngthkn8ult8 b siml mU
ntcql8uon. Tc cnVclQ

om8gng W K

l 1.0 n tg. Z 8 th lLU

cnVclop, 8nd is es M bb8hcd b lMn VNuM m @
V8
0'
l

. T cnVcQ
mm8pndng to K

= K
f
u 8mgy thc e
f
etive 8tm88 8tmngth cnVclop,
mtabl8m byploting V8lw8 oI
1f
Y
0
f
. All o th ruim WW(
1f
.
0
f

,
znd o') can comutcd Im the n8ut8 o lLU traxial tc8t wthprc
g88un m8ummnt8. bnVclQ8 fmV8lw8 of ntw 8tc twmn 1.0
mK
l
cc8t8bl8mbynW gwlytwth cnVclQ8(o K =
l.Wam K
c
= K
I
. T8un mc8tmmof ALUngm8muchc88cr
mmgmucal,uwtclmtc8te c8utymQdw ngdm

ultALU
Wst8. AOomngly, t8nthat ALU cnvclQc8of tMty8Nwnn
fg. 2 cstabl8hmbylncinceratio. using the m8uluo lLUtc8t8.
NEW METHOD FOR EVALUATING STABILITY DURING
RAPID ORA WDOWN
At thc cuncnt8tatc of th M o 8n8lyDng8t8bltydunngmgd dmwdown,t 8
pssible tooNmth lc8tw8o tmmth8tmtmVc ndevelo.
KvancwmtNtm8wWyKuw:
M

Duncan, Wrieht and Wong
- Lkc lhc L05 0 bngncct5 m1ho 8nd L0Wc 8n0 K8l88h5 m1hO
t ncW mh0uM$ unw8nc0 5hcM50ngh$ 0 8v00 hc 00mQI081w
n800uM0c$ nV0Vc0 n c5m8ng unw8nc0 M Qtc55utc dutng
0mWdWn.
- Lkc LWc 8n0 K8t881h5 mch0, u5c5 1hc m0tc 800ut81c
'
V5
'
cnvc0g,WhALL5ucngh5vmng Whhcv8w0 K
0
.
- t00Wn@ M mng$ 0 W0n

cl M. (V8J), hc ALL 5tcngh$ 4

cMmMc0 QmnlO8lKnuMng0N$ul$0LL K5l$.
- To8V0W u$numnc0 $lng1h$h

hctlhM wn= $0ngh$, WhO

cn
08VUl0 Odgc ocu 0mno $0cngh$W
u$o WhctcVct lhc Mc $m8ct lhM lh6 un0t8nc0 $ltcnh$. Tu
gt0u $ 0cnl m t 0m nV0Vo n 0c L0$ 0bn@ne
m0. nt L$o bngmO`mclMt cU0Vc $0$$6nVc0u
uM Wlh lhc cc0lVc $$$ g 0MWdWn l0 0ccDnc lM $c
$0n@lB. nt ncW gt0c0u lhc cc0lVc $0$$@w8WdWn $uM,
WhKh$ m kgO. L5co lMcUlVc $0$$8lct0MW00WntQuN$
J $e 8n8$$. c t$l lW0 $8gc$ 8tc lhc $8m 8$ lhc L0Wc
88lh mclh0. n lh0 ht0 5l8gc lhc 0t8nc0 $lnglh $ u$c0 M
00$ 0 hc 5g $uUMc Whctc hc0t8nc0$0cnglh$$mct h8n 0
um50nglh.
cncWgmw$ bcv=000Mmhc 5 lc8wc5 0 cmh8thI h8W
0 n uM gV0u$ 0f 8n8$$ 0 t8Q0 w8W00Wn 580ly. n 8d00n, l
n00@lc$ lW0 ncW c8lu$: (] $mQc5 lhc l8$k 0 c$lm8lng ALU
80n@lh$ 0 u$ng ncM ncQ80n 8n0 (2) uM$ 8 m 800ut8c 8n0 c5I
c80V0m00 M00unung (o 550ct=u0l0n 0 um8nc0 50cngh$8
0grs $0wK08Vl8l0n0t0t8n8gc.
T$g05lcg$nV0vc0nhcmchoa thcM:
(l) LcDnc, l0t c80h n hc 055-5=0n, Whchct0t8n8gc W 00ut
0uDng 0MW00Wn. T m$l 0g08 m8n$ 0 mng h$ 0ccDn80n $
c$0mlc lh0 V8w 0 lhc 0mcn$0nc55 lm 80l0t T, gVcn 0 lhc 00Wag
cXg0
()
nWh0hC 000cnl 000nM080n, = lm O0t8Wd0Wn, 8nd L = cngh
0 0wn8@6 g8B. hc 0810u8c0 V8uc 0 $ gtc8ct h8n 0t cQu8 0 3.0, t
0$glKo cX06$$ p QM$$utc50utngdWdWnW b 9 Qccnl O
l$Nc K08lhcm8O885udm.
YMw$ o C 0M 080u8c0 u5ng088 O thc m t8c 0 00nMld80n0utng
mt gXmlc V8uc$0tV8D0u$Qg$N00mQlc0 V$ae 5c0M
THk l.

Rapid Drawdown
Table
1
. Approximte Values of _ for Vaous Soils
Typ of Soil
Coas sand
Fine sand
Silty sand
Silt
Copate clay
Soft clay
Vaus of c
v
P10,0 f
2
/day
10 to 10,0f
2
/day
10 to Ift
2
/day
0.5 to 10 ft
2
/daY
0.05 to 5 ft
2
/day
0.
2
ft
2
/day
If the value of T calculate using equation () is less than 3.0. the undraine
strength should b considered. The following steps assure that the undrained
stngth used in te stability aalyss will 0 b lager tha the draed stngth. It
is thus consrative to assum that the materia is undaine in thos cases where
tere is doubt whethr o not coplt drage wil OU-
(
2
) Establish the stength envelops required for the analyses. For
materals that dain durng drawdown. only the dained strength envelope is
required. For materals that w undrained during drawdown. bth the drained
envelop (
t
ff vs
a
'
ff
) and the undrained envelop (
t
ff vs
a
'
fc
) are required. The
required envelopes for values of K
c
btween 1.0 and K
f
can b detenine by
linea interplation, as discussed prviously.
(3) For a slected slip sufae, caculate te factor of sety after drawdown
by a 3-step preur:
(i) Perfon a aalysis of stbility bfor drawdown using dine stength
paramters for all materals, to detenine the efetve nonal stess
\

fc
)
on the base of each slice. and the value of K
c
for each slice. Values of K
c
are detenined in the manner suggeste by Lowe and Karafath. based on
the assumption of no reorientation of principal stesses during drawdown.
These values ae used to determine undrained stength values for the
materials that do no drin frely durng dwdown.
(ii) Perfon an analysis of stability after drawdown using undrained
stengths for materals that do not dain freely. a drained stengths for
materals thaI do drin durng dawdown. To this stage the metho is the
same as Lowe and Karafiath's metho. except for the use of linear
interplation to estmt AC-U stength valus.

ZZ

Uuncun, \\tihI Jnd Wtin
(iii) Dctcm:inc |I the drJined strength Ior any sl| Ie is lower than the
undrained strength used in SIc] (ii). The drained strength is detennincd
using the total stresses on the bases of the slices from step (ii) and pore
pressures for the drained CDuUI!IDn. I for any slice the drained S|rcnth is
lower than the undrained stength. pon another analysis usin JraincJ
rather |han undrained strengths for slices where the drained slngths are
lower.
(4) Rept the 3-step prOcdue for other slip surfaces to loate the one with
the lowest factor of safcIY fDlloving drawdown.
The computations involved in the meIhO are quite lengthy, and a computer
program is d practical necessity to do all of the computations necessa to seanh for
critical slip surfaces. The analyses discussed in the following sections were
performed with the computer program UTEXAS3. which incorporates the new
metho for rpid drawdown stability analyses.
?tb
The methos of anaIysis JcscriIJ previously have ben used lO analyze three
dams. as discussed in this section. The first two of these dams, Pilarcitos and
Walter Bouldin. suffered slides due to rapid drawdown. The third is a hypothetiLdl
dam for a pumped storage project. The dam is considere to O subject lL large
drawdowns as a nomlal operating condition for the pumped storage project.
Accordingly. reliable estimates of the stability during drawdown are especidlly
imprat for this embankment. and the required factor of safety is higher than for
embankmnts for which rapid drawdown is a relatively unlikely ocurrence.
)
Pilaritos Dam . shown in Fig. 3, is a homogeneous rolled earthfill embankment.
Te crest of the dam is abut 8feet abve the upsteam to. Te upstream slop is
inclied at 2.5 on l for the lower 58 ft. (to El. 8),and at 3 on 1 from this point to
the crest (El. 98). When the water level was lowered from El. V7 to El. UJ1
btween Otobr and November 19, 1969. a slide occurred. During the twO
9 Before Orawdown - EI 692
EI. 698
9 After-E1.657
Sandy Cloy - CL
LL:45 PL::<<
RC: 94% Calif. Method
- - - - - -
Y
::135 pc I
'Observed slip sur face
Fig. d Pillarcitos Dam Cross-Section


Rapid Drawdown I
weks pror to the failure. th dawdwn rale was nealy constat at abut 1.7 fel
pr day. Te approximate loatin of t falure surae fond in a exploator
tnh ushown In Fig. J.
W. A. Wahler & Assoiales oPalo Alt. Clifoia was CnlCle by te San
Frciso Water Dpwnt W po feld investigations. labrator tests w
analyses. to rmn remia masurs. Te infontion regaing
. Pillaitos Dam presnte in this par was obtaine from the Wabler and
Assiates rp (. A.Wale Assils. 190).
T mteria coprsing t upsmsl is clasife as a sny clay (L)wit
Wto 70prnt pwgt nu #um,a pblty Mabt 4 x 10*
rmw. Te liquid limt is 45 gt t platic limit is ZJ prnt. Te
average feld cto wapxy 9 gtof Wlat mmw
dsity ousing #,Rmtca ve U(t Califoa Meth).
T bin falu envelo us mWCs oIEngimprur ushwn in
Wuppr pa of Fig. 4, w te envelos us in Lw Kaath's ad the
the-stage preur wsw in t loe pa oFig. 4.
As shown in Fig. J, the facto of safety calculate by the Cors of Engineers'
poeure was 0.82. Te factors o safety calculated by Lwe and Karafath's
preur and the new preure wbth 1.05. Te ctica cirles wver nealy
te wfo all wee mths. as ca se n in Fig. J.
Bause it uss dined stngths whe tey ae lower than unained stengths.
Wnw mtho always rsult i fat of safety mwt was or lowr tha
wfato of set caculal by mLwe Kat prew. mte cas of
Pllaitos U,ther W slices wher the 0mstngts we lower than
W undrined strngth, and the fator of sfety calculated using Lwe and
Kaath's mth wte new mwe tfo th w-
W Bldn D
Walter Bldin Uis a 0membnt. mth ston tat fale, t
uappxmlly NIMlhig. mmg MIMt of clayy sa gvel; te
uderlying brk is shist. As shwn in F,. , th lower

nion of the
ent ua clayey sy gvel mwa Bmvolve in mslie. Overlying
wgavel wa lay of cws clay. a mo ms sit. wa clayey silt
layer that blankets t slop. 1 u
p
pr pn of the upstam W is
beted wmrprap. Te upstm slo is Z o abve Elev. 245 and l.S on
bw Elev.l45.
slide ocure on Feba 10, 195 durng an extmly rapid dwdown of
Jlntin 5.S hur that O e a a rsult of a piping failu mmgote
M 1 slide extene fo length of aut Jfet alog the slop. 1 slip
muexten abt l0lMlblow t sa o th UQn t eges Mth
Wwh it wexavat, a psby mma gd mWcnt of
mslid mas wher it wa 0 excvat. A dtle stdy of t fUlw was
: e out by Stphn L. Witesid at Stanfor Univesity. Te infwto
'
,
, 1

W
V
W
0
.5

+
U
L

W
4
U
Duna. WM@ht and Ww@
S9ent
(I)
(2)
Envelope
Drained
IC-U
Intercept Angle
o

5
0
60psf 2
3
0
Corps of Engineers' Method
o WWWWWWW WWWWWWW
W_

W^
U +
+
o
0.
5
1.0
Normal Stress (ksf)

0.
5
4 "
C
L
a
W

W
+
m
<
L
W
C

(.
4

U
. |.
Effec!ive S!ress on !he Foilure lone
0urng Consolido!ion o|sfJ
Fig. 9 " Strength Envelope for Pillarcitos Dam

6K|6 Oown
" After
" Before Orowdwn
After
60f6 Orowdown
" After
Rapd Drawdown
Cops of Eniners
Criticol CircJ.FaO.82
- - - - -
- . "L Oservd Slip Surfoce
Lm 0 KOofioth
Criticol Circle.Fat05
- - - Oserved Slip Surface
New M6P
Criticl Circle. I 1.05
$6fV60 Slip Sur foce
Pig. D Results of Stability Calculations for
Pillarcitos Dam

i
1
.
v
4
f

7
Uuncan, Wtghl and Wung
Unified
Zone Materiol Closs.
<
Riprop
(
Cloyey Silty Sand SM-SC
C
Micoceous Silt ML
@
Cretoceaus Cloy CH
@
Clayey Sandy Grovel
Q Before Drawdown - E I. <<
Observed Slip Surfoces
RC-Mod.
PL P toctor Ym(pcf)
1 o 1<
R 1<
< < 1<

Fig. - Walter Bouldin Dam Cross-Section
regarding Walter Bouldin Dam presentcd in this papr was obtained from the
Whiteside mpn(Whiteside, 1976).
Stngt patr fo the mterials involve in th slie a listed m Table 2.
pWtes for te drained stength enVelop us in te Corps of Engineer'
Meto ae (by defnition) the same as the paamters for the K = h
(
envelop
us i Lwe and Kafat's and the new mtho.
18 2 Strength Parameters for Walter Bouldin Dam
Material Corps ot Engineers Meto Lowe and K
aratiath and New
Methos
Drained ICU

* I

*
1.0
Clayey Silty Sand c' 240 pst c b pst 1q 240 l 1q 750 pst
.
'
32.7 >
13 de a 32.7 0~ 15 dg
Micaceous Silt c' 220 pst c 450 pst 1q 220 pt 1q 480 pSf
.' - 2.5 dg 11 de a .22.5 a - 13 dg
Cretaceous Clay c' 180 pst c 230 pst
TQ 180 psf TQ 28 pst

19 de 13 de a.19de a. 15.5 de
The npra WB assume to O dr aiD, WIth y , 140 pt. y, 125 pct,
an.'. 40 dg.

Rapid Drawdown
As shown in Fi
g
. 7, the facto of safely calculate b
y
the Cors of Enginers'
predure was 1 factor of sfety caculate
b
y Lwe ad Kaafath's
peu wa ., ad 0 valu caculate usin
g
0 new preur was 1.0.
T crtical ciles fo Ul mmcs we ne
l
y 0 w, a my sen in
Fig. 7.
P S P H
Te dam fo this example is shown in Fig. 8. Te embakmnt has a wide,
dnsly copated. silty clay coc. 1 lower pio of 0 upstam slop is a
rm mwith 0 wstngth pres as the co. 1 uppr pio of
Wupstam slop wal of mdownst NQ ua fre-aining rkfll.
60f6
60f6
g 60f6
L0$0 Lgm6f$
LflK0 Lf6I&0.93
6 00 K0f00lh
LflK0 Lf6M = 1.09
0$6fV60 b bw06M
0$6fV60 bI buf1066$
Fig. 7 Results of Stability Calculations for
Walter Bouldin Dam

Duncan, Wrighl and Wong
Zone Materlol
C
Compacted Rockflil

Silty Cloy Core
G
Silty Cloy Random Zone
Q Before Drawdawn - L ''
Ym(pcf )
|c
|
|
Fig. Hypothetical Pumped Storage Project
Dam Cross-Section
Strength parameters for the materials in the dam are listed in Table 3. The
significat (20 pst cohesion intercept for the IC-U envelope is indicative of
highly dilatant material. The drained stength of this materal is lower than the
undaned stength in the range of stresses blow the pint whre the two envelops
cross, at an effective consolidation stress of approximately 50 psf. This
corspnd approximately to a depth of 4feet for a dane slo and 80 feet for
submerge slop.
Te rolll. flter and drainage zones 8 free draining mterals, and all have the
same prpenies. The dry and saturated unit weights are 128 and 142 pf,
respetvely. Dry unit weights were used for porons of thes materals abve
reseroir level. and saturated unit weights were used for thos pnions blow
rseoir level.
Table 3 Sttength Parameters tor Hypothetical Pumped Storage Project Dam
Material Corps oI Engineers' Method
Lowe &
K
aratiath and New
Mthods
Drained IC-U (R) K
e
K
,
Ke. \0
Compacted HoCkI|Il C' 0 N7 Tq 0 NJ
and Filters
=3 Oq
= 37 dg
Silty Clay Core C` 0 C 2000 pst Tp 0 Tj 22b0 pst

"
" Jbde J Og 0 3b dg 0= 20 Og
Silty Clay Random c c 2000 pst
q 0 Tj = 22b0 psI
Zone

Jb deg T Og 03b 0= 20 Og

Rapid Drawdown
8tbltyOlt0ccmbnkmntw88 8nUylm8o0tOnOl0r8w0Ownlmm
wv8t| J4J(1lcctbkw tm0t08tol tM08m) tOcl0VN J6, w00h |8 0
w8t|MIMbmh8tm-m@MmNMl 1OmwN0lu|n
l0Rdw8tcngOltMu80mMllmll8gMWmml8y0t
mmll
kt mOwn |n t|., t00 lmtm M8M0ty0U0ul8tm by th0 L8 Ol bn|nMt8`
p0N w88 l.J7. 1 lmtm Oll0Iy 08l00l8tm by Lw0 d K8m8th'8
ww8 l.16,tmV8lwwM0tMmwgmww l.J
t 0tt00l0t0l08 lmNl Wmw IM, 8MyM m
H..
Cops of Eliners
66 t9
CriticOl Cirle

F1.57
_Lowe an Korofioth
60f6 l.9
Critico. Circle

F!.%
6 Metho
66 t1 9
Critical Circle

F1.6
Fig. 9 Results of Stility Cmputations for
the Hyptheticl Pumpe Storage
Pro[t D
-I
I

ZTll
J)unt'an, Wriht and W()I1
L u
The new metho for analyzing slop stability durng rapid drawdown desribd |0
the previous pages combines what are blieved to b the bst features of the
methos that have ben used previously.
It avoids the problems assoiated with estimating pore pressures in undraine
materals for the after-drawdown condition by using undrained strengths, and
correctly refects the strengths of mterials that tend to dilate during shear. It uses
the most accurate representation of undraine sengths (valus of 'f
f
that vary wilh
the values of O and K
c
)' but it avoids the necessity fo diffcult AC-U strength
testng by using linea interJlalion of stength values fom IC-U tSts.
By using drained stength values where these are smaller than undrained strengths,
the metho avoids reliance on strengths due to negative pre pressures, which
cannot b mobiliz if cavitation or drinage ocurs. Te proeue for eliminatng
strengths due to negative pore pressures is more accurate, zm less conservative,
than the proedure used in the Corps of Engineer mtho.
The new metho is somewhat more conserative than Lowe and Karafiath's
metho, and provides a reliable estimate of stability following drawdown that is
blieve U b d accute as pssible at the curnt Slate of te .
For the three examples describd, the factors of safety calculated using the new
metho 8 15 prcent to 30 percent higher than values calculated using the Corps
of Engineers metho, and zero to 5 percent lower than values calculated using
Lwe ad Kaafath's metho.
Although the values of safety factor calculated using the new metho are only
slightly smaller than values calculate using Lowe and Kaafath's metho for the
examples considered, it is impnant that the new metho is consrative bcaus it
dos not rely on stengths resulting frm negative pre pressures, whereas Lowe
and Kaafat's metho dos rely on these strengths.
Tus, while te new metho offers the sam reliability with respcl to strengths dw
to negative pore pressures as the Corps of Engineers metho, it uses a more
accurate evaluation of strength, and results in values of safety factor only slightly
lower than Lwe and Kaafath's metho. The metho thus is reliably conserative
with regad to undrained strengths, but dos not involve excessively conserative
approximations.
ALXNOWLDG1MNT
The wrters wish to express their appreciation to Hading Lawsn Assoiates an
Nikken Sekkei Ltd., who provided suppn for the early phass of this study, an
to the U. S. Any Engineers Waterways Experiment Slation, who supported the
later phases. Dick Volpe provided infonation regarding Pilarcitos Dam, an
Wayne Clough and Stephen Whiteside provided infonation regarding Walter


Rapid Drawdown
TI
Buldn Da. Erl LmWbLuul mDuke Power made a numbr of
helpful suggestions ad provided th wrter with an oppnunity to study the
charaterstics of th mth une practca coditios. Te wrters gatefully
aknowlege all of thes vauable cntbutions to th studes that have le to
delnt mte mt deb i t p. Ma Dn t te text
Say Jordn drfte t fgurs.
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w, C. S. (1977). Drwdown Anaysis of Slops by Numerical Metho."
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Uunc8n, Wttghl and Wung
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