Study on the initiation mechanism and motion characteristics of the Daguangbao landslide and the slope stability evaluation method

Landslide triggered by earthquake has always been the hotspot due to its large scale, unique genesis, and complex kinematic processes. In this paper, the Daguangbao landslide in the 2008 Wenchuan Ms8.0 earthquake is selected as the research object. The initiation mechanism and motion characteristics of the Daguangbao landslide under seismic action are investigated, and the comprehensive evaluation method of slope stability is established. Firstly, a numerical model of the Daguangbao landslide is established according to the geological data before and after the earthquake. Secondly, the rock mass motion characteristics of Daguangbao landslide process are analyzed by FLAC3D, and the formation mechanism of landslide is explored by monitoring the displacement and velocity information of the slope during earthquake. Finally, a slope stability evaluation method is established based on the comprehensive weight and extension method. The stability evaluation of Daguangbao and other 10 slopes is carried out to verify the accuracy of the evaluation method. The specific conclusions are as follows: (i) Under the earthquake impact, displacement starts at the slope foot due to stress concentration, gradually spreading upward and peaking in the middle, causing vibration and fragmentation. (ii) The main sliding surface forms as friction resistance decreases between broken and downstream rock mass. The tension-shear action induced by the earthquake detaches the sliding body, causing high speed slides that accumulate under mountain barriers to form debris flow areas. (iii) The proposed evaluation method of slope stability has high accuracy and good prospects for engineering application.

1 Introduction

Geological disasters are one of the main types of natural disasters, with characteristics of causing heavy casualties, substantial economic losses, and sudden, multiple, mass, and gradual effects (Hojat et al., 2019; Dai et al., 2021; La et al., 2022; Chen et al., 2023; Lian et al., 2024). Landslides have occurred in almost all mountainous areas of the world where human living and engineering activities are present (Chen and Li, 2020; Li et al., 2024). Landslides are a catastrophic geological disaster that can cause significant loss of life and property due to their high speed, long distances, large scale, and wide range of effects. They can move in various ways, such as sliding, flying, colliding, and disintegrating, making the process from dynamics to kinematics complex (Xu et al., 2012; Fan et al., 2020; Zhang et al., 2021; Yang et al., 2025).

Various studies investigated the mechanisms behind the rapid and long-runout motion of landslides (Ge et al., 2019; Hasankhani et al., 2024). Different methods such as numerical modeling, field surveys, and high-speed undrained ring shear instruments were utilized to observe the behavior of excess pore water pressure during landslide movement (Sassa et al., 2004; Nakamura et al., 2014; Dang et al., 2016; Wang et al., 2023; Liu et al., 2025). Various factors that contribute to landslide movement were identified including sliding-surface liquefaction, air cushion effect, and the disintegration of the sliding body due to rupture-surface weakening. Moreover, the kinematic and dynamic characteristics of landslides were analyzed, including their motion process, cataclastic mechanism, and the terrain and accumulation characteristics that influence their movement (Chen et al., 2022; Hu et al., 2023). Overall, it is vital to understand the underlying mechanisms because of the complex and varied nature of landslides.

Earthquake-triggered landslides are a type of secondary earthquake disaster. (Li et al., 2020; Huang et al., 2023). While the frequency of earthquake-triggered landslides is low, they can be far more devastating in terms of scale, area, and disaster loss compared to landslides caused by other factors (Li et al., 2025). The Daguangbao landslide has been become the subject of significant attention and interest due to its enormous scale, unique genetic mechanism, and complex movement process (Song et al., 2016; Zhao et al., 2019; Cui et al., 2020; Song et al., 2022). The powerful earthquake is commonly regarded as the primary triggering factor of the Daguangbao landslide (Chen et al., 2014; Wang et al., 2020). Additionally, the presence of a weak interlayer zone, resulting from the geological structure, serves as the foundation for the formation of the landslide (Cui et al., 2018). The deep gravity deformation of the mountain also contributes to the conditions necessary for the initiation of the landslide (Chigira et al., 2010).

Numerous studies have analyzed the causes of the Daguangbao landslide and the movement characteristics of rock masses under earthquake conditions. Besides, slope stability evaluation is a crucial task in geotechnical engineering that involves assessing the likelihood of slope failure and identifying measures to prevent such incidents. Various evaluation methods have been developed to evaluate the stability of slopes, including empirical methods (Salmi and Hosseinzadeh, 2015), limit equilibrium methods (Johari and Mousavi, 2019; Qu and Diao, 2022; Zhu et al., 2023), numerical simulation (Kardani et al., 2021), and limit analysis methods (Gao et al., 2015; Gao et al., 2016), among others. The extension method is an empirical approach that involves the use of geological parameters to estimate slope stability. The advantage of the extension method is that it does not require extensive geotechnical data or complex calculations, making it accessible to non-experts or those with limited resources. The method only requires basic information of the slope, which can be easily obtained through field observations or geological maps.

In this paper, the numerical model of the Daguangbao landslide with equivalent dimensions is established using the finite difference method to replicate the actual earthquake magnitude. The initiation mechanism and movement characteristics of Daguangbao landslide are studied based on the real-time monitoring of displacement and velocity during earthquake. Then the slope stability evaluation method is established based on the comprehensive weight and extension method, and the evaluation method is applied to the Daguangbao landslide and another 10 slopes. Compared with previous studies on the Daguangbao landslide, which mainly focused on geological and tectonic controls and interpreted the failure mechanism in a qualitative or quasi-static manner (Song et al., 2016; Cui et al., 2018; Cui et al., 2020), the novelty of this work lies in establishing a three-dimensional dynamic numerical model driven by actual strong seismic records to reveal the spatiotemporal evolution of deformation and the progressive development of the sliding surface. In addition, a dynamic response framework that links specific seismic loading phases to deformation patterns is proposed for monitoring and early warning. Finally, a comprehensive weighting scheme is integrated and validated through the Daguangbao case and ten additional slopes to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed stability evaluation method.

2 Geological setting and environmental context

Wenchuan County, Sichuan Province, was hit by a massive Ms8.0 earthquake in 2008 (Yin et al., 2014; Li et al., 2016; Zhang et al., 2023), which caused the most extensive and severe geological disasters recorded in Chinese history. These damages were not only caused directly by the earthquake but also its triggered numerous landslides, collapses, and debris flows (Zhang et al., 2014; Zhu et al., 2020). The high-speed landslides of Wenchuan earthquake caused tremendous geological disasters due to their large scale, fast speed, long sliding distance, high energy and strong impact. And the Daguangbao landslide is the most extensive and typical among them, as shown in Figure 1. It is located on the upper wall of the Wenchuan earthquake fault, and is 3.0 km ∼ 4.5 km away from the fault, and covers an area of 7.12 km² with a volume of 11.59 × 10⁸ m³.

Figure 1

Figure 1. Daguangbao landslide schematic diagram.

2.1 Geographical location and landform

The Daguangbao landslide is located in the middle section of the Longmenshan fault zone in Gaochuan Township, Anxian County, Sichuan Province. The area features high mountains and deep valleys, characterized by steep terrain and a middle-alpine landform shaped by tectonic erosion and intense cutting. The original landform of the landslide area is higher in the west and lower in the east. The highest peak in the west is the isolated peak of Daguangbao, rising to 3,047 m above sea level, making it the highest mountain in the landslide and surrounding area. The east side of the deep Huangdongzi Ditch represents the lowest point at 1,480 m above sea level. The horizontal distance between this point and the top of the Daguangbao mountain is 2,780 m, resulting in a relative elevation difference of 1,567 m and an average slope of 29°. The Black Gully lies to the north of the landslide area, while the Threshold Stone Gully is located to the south, both of which are characterized by a deep cut. In the middle of the landslide area, several shallow gullies are developed, with the largest being the SLATE gully, measuring 2,500 m long and 100–200 m deep. The landslide area is surrounded by mountains such as Chuanlin Gully, Heping Liangzi, Dry Rock Nest Liangzi, and Only Fir Liangzi.

The original topography of the Daguangbao landslide area is complex, with a significant difference in elevation between the west and east sides, as shown in Figure 2. The topography can be divided into three longitudinal sections. The first section is the isolated peak section of Daguangbao, which has a steep slope and is an isolated peak with a peak elevation of 3,047 m. The second section is the middle gentle slope section, which generally has a steep slope with a height difference of about 900 m and a gradient of 20 ∼ 25°. The third section is the Huangdongzi Ditch slope section, which has a steep slope with a height difference of 260 m and a gradient of 40 ∼ 50°. This section is formed by the rapid downward erosion of Huangdongzi Ditch. The steep topography of the Daguangbao landslide area, with slopes ranging from 20° to 50°, is a significant factor contributing to the initiation and movement of the landslide.

Figure 2

Figure 2. Engineering geological ichnography of the landslide area.

2.2 Geological structure and stratigraphic lithology

The geological structure of the Longmen Mountain region, where the Daguangbao landslide is located, is characterized by a thrust-nappe structure zone. In this zone, the nappe structure exhibits a unique feature of thrust-nappe-detachment-strike-slip, as shown in Figure 3. The foreland nappe of Longmen Mountain spans across the Gaochuan and Dashuizha nappes, with the Dashuizha nappe being the primary component. The Dashuizha nappe is mainly composed of brittle and ductile materials. The northwestern boundary of this nappe is marked by the Sidaogou fault, which comes into contact with the Gaochuan nappe. On the southeast boundary lies the Chenjiaping-Baiyun Mountain fault, also known as the regional Yingxiu Beichuan fault. This boundary is overtrusted on the Jinhua nappe and under the Taiping nappe, which has created a series of nappe folds and faults during the formation process. Additionally, the Daguangbao landslide is located at the northwest wing of the large sluice compound anticline, which extends towards the northeast with an axial plane occurrence of N35°E/NW∠60°.

Figure 3

Figure 3. Schematic diagram of structural sections of the landslide area.

The Wenchuan earthquake was triggered by the slanting slip of the central fault of the Longmenshan tectonic belt and the pure reverse fault of the Qianshan fault. The earthquake fault activities were concentrated in the middle and north sections of the Longmenshan fault zone, and the transverse activity characteristics showed that the seismic deformation of the central fault was the most intense, followed by the front fault and the back fault. The northern section of the Yingxiu-Beichuan fault, which is located in the middle part of the Longmen Mountain central fault, is composed of the Nanba-Guanzhuang fault and the Chaba fault. The seismic activity, surface deformation, fractures, and landslides are the most severe along the Yingxiu-Beichuan fault. The Daguangbao landslide, studied in this paper, is located in the northern section of the Yingxiu-Beichuan fault. The Wenchuan earthquake was a thrust earthquake with a small amount of right-lateral strike-slip component, and the fault tilted to the northwest. The calculated surface rupture time during the earthquake was as long as 110s, and the rupture direction extended from southwest to northeast.

3 Methodology and numerical modeling framework

In this paper, the regional geological model of the Daguangbao landslide is firstly established by the ANSYS and then imported into FLAC 3D for dynamic analysis. Effects of the earthquake on the displacement and velocity fields within the landslide area are calculated by carrying out a dynamic equilibrium solution.

3.1 Model establishment

The regional geological model of the Daguangbao landslide is established using equal proportions to replicate the original terrain conditions (Figure 4). The topographic model is consistent with the original topography, with a isolated peak of 3,047 m located on the left. The model has a length of 6,406 m, with the peak section, middle gentle slope section and Huangdongzi Ditch slope section from left to right. The thickness of the model is set to 400 m to meet the propagation conditions of seismic waves. The grid is evenly divided by the mapping grid method, and 170,000 model elements are obtained.

Figure 4

Figure 4. Schematic diagram of numerical model.

3.2 Parameter setting

The regional geological model is divided into two groups based on the actual geological conditions and strata occurrence. Group 1 represents the bedrock area, and Groups 2 and 3 represents the landslide area. The Sidaogou fault is located at the intersection of Groups 2 and 3 and is characterized by mainly NW-SE reverse fault and thrust-strike-slip fault layers. Taking into account the geological structure and lithology of the Daguangbao (Huang et al., 2012; Zhang et al., 2015; Cui et al., 2018), and referring to the parameters taken from previous numerical simulations (Zhu and Wang, 2013; Liu et al., 2020), the model parameter assignments are shown in Table 1.

Table 1

Table 1. Model parameter assignments.

3.3 Initial geostress equilibrium and earthquake load

The process of numerical simulation is divided into two stages: the static equilibrium stage and the earthquake landslide stage. During the static equilibrium stage, the bottom of the model is set as a fixed boundary. The sides are set as fixed boundaries in the horizontal direction but can move in the vertical direction. The upper part of the model is set as free boundaries. Parameters presented in Table 1 are assigned to the model based on the regional stratigraphic lithology. The model is then subjected to gravity and the equilibrium state is achieved. The initial stress state of the model is depicted in Figures 5, 6.

Figure 5

Figure 5. Initial stress state in the horizontal direction.

Figure 6

Figure 6. Initial stress state in the vertical direction.

In the earthquake landslide stage of the numerical simulation, seismic waves are applied to the model. The displacement and velocity of the landslide body are monitored in real-time. Specifically, the Ms8.0 Wenchuan earthquake with a focal depth of 14 km and a maximum intensity of Ⅺ is used as the input seismic wave.

The Wenchuan earthquake is known for its large magnitude, prolonged surface rupture, and long duration. Prior to the earthquake, numerous fixed strong vibration stations were established in Sichuan Province, including over 60 stations in the Longmenshan fault zone and its surrounding areas. During the earthquake, the strong seismometer of 460 stations in the national Digital strong earthquake network was triggered, resulting in over 1,300 primary earthquake records, of which 42 seismic accelerometers exceeded 200 gal, 16 exceeded 400 gal, and seven exceeded 600 gal. The maximum peak acceleration recorded was 957.7 gal, and most stations recorded an acceleration duration of over 2 min. While there were no seismic stations in the study area, acceleration data measured 15 km away was used to approximate the deformation and failure process of the Daguangbao landslide, as shown in Figure 7. As the energy of the seismic waves is primarily concentrated in the first 60 s, only the first 60 s of the seismic waves are utilized in this study. The landslide area is subjected to both violent horizontal and almost equal vertical ground motion.

Figure 7

Figure 7. Time-history of earthquake acceleration.

4 Results and analysis of seismic simulation

4.1 Displacement result analysis

Figure 8 illustrates the displacement distribution of the Daguangbao landslide triggered by the earthquake. When the seismic wave is applied at 4 s, concentrated strain appears at the slope foot first. The displacement continues to propagate upward along the plane with the continuous input of the seismic wave (Figure 8B). As shown in Figure 8C that when the seismic wave enters the 20th second, the displacement at the slope foot and top develops rapidly, and the displacement concentration area shifts from the slope foot to the slope top. Then, the area of extreme displacement extends downward continuously and remains in the middle for a long time, which indicates that the energy of the earthquake can be dissipated in the middle of the slope (Figure 8D). As the earthquake continues, the slope displacement gradually increases, and the main sliding surface is formed. Figure 8D demonstrates that the location of the main sliding surface coincides with the assumed sliding surface in Figure 1, demonstrating the accuracy of the numerical calculation results. Figures 8E,F show a continuous increase in slope displacement. It is noteworthy that isolated peaks with large optical envelopes do not generate displacement extremes, but their bottom displacement is prominent during the earthquake, and the mountain will be thrown out horizontally under the earthquake.

Figure 8

Figure 8. Displacement nephogram of Daguangbao landslide: (A) Displacement at 4s; (B) Displacement at 40s; (C) Displacement at 60s; (D) Displacement at 80s; (E) Displacement at 100s; (F) Displacement at 120s.

Based on the displacement results of the Daguangbao landslide during the seismic process, the initial concentrated strain is observed at the bottom of the slope, which can be attributed to the overall geological structure. This region is formed due to the rapid downward erosion of Huangdongzi Ditch, resulting in a relatively high concentration of stress. The displacement response of the middle and top regions of the landslide shows a significant change, particularly in the middle area. Following the formation of the main sliding surface, the extreme displacement area remains concentrated in this region for a prolonged period, indicating that failure may occur here first. A vibration tension zone is formed at the rear edge and middle of the slope under the influence of long-term seismic dynamics, while a sliding shear plane along the slope plane is also formed. These factors contribute to the failure and instability of the slope.

4.2 Velocity result analysis

The velocity nephogram of the Daguangbao landslide under earthquake is presented in Figure 9. As illustrated in Figure 9A, the slope foot moves first within 4 s of the input of the seismic wave, but the velocity is negligible. It can be attributed to the high stress concentration in this region, which is most susceptible to damage. As the Earthquake continues (Figures 9B,C), the internal velocity of the slope gradually increases and becomes concentrated in the middle area, shifting from the bottom to the top, exhibiting a “drawer” effect (Figures 9D,F). It indicates that the Earthquake caused the slope to rapidly break and slide down along the rock stratum. The velocity response of the middle area of the slope is significant, which further verifies that this area is most likely to fail first.

Figure 9

Figure 9. Volecity nephogram of Daguangbao landslide: (A) Velocity at 4s; (B) Velocity at 40s; (C) Velocity at 60s; (D) Velocity at 80s; (E) Velocity at 100s; (F) Velocity at 120s.

It is evident based on Figure 9 that the isolated peak velocity of Daguangbao does not exhibit significant values, whereas the velocity values of the slopes on both sides are high. According to the displacement cloud map, the slope cracks, relaxes and breaks during the earthquake, and slides rapidly along the rock layer. However, the isolated peak of the big light package was thrown horizontally by the earthquake, which better explains the “flying peak” phenomenon at the earthquake site. After the main landslide occurred, it was thrown horizontally onto the landslide accumulation body by the earthquake, retaining a relatively complete main structure.

4.3 Discussion on the formation mechanism of the Daguangbao landslide

The deformation and failure of a landslide is a gradual and complex process, involving both quantitative accumulation and qualitative change. The following stages can be identified based on numerical simulations of the Daguangbao landslide and geological investigations on site.

1. Seismic wave crushing stage (0 s ∼ 40 s): The speed and displacement of the slope only have high values locally and are discontinuous. The slope gradually displaces from bottom to top and concentrates in the middle under continuous seismic wave action, resulting in slope vibration and crushing. The rock layer yields or shears due to continuous fracture.

2. Main sliding surface formation stage (40 s ∼ 60 s): A continuous high-speed gradient zone appears in the displacement and velocity of the slope. The rock layer between the slope and downstream rock mass relaxes and friction resistance decreases as the slope continues to fracture. The fractured rock mass forms the main sliding plane under the Earthquake action.

3. Main sliding body sliding stage (60 s ∼ 80 s): The high-speed zone expands upward to the slope and detaches at the rear. The connection between the sliding body and the plane and upstream is broken under the tensile shear of Earthquake, causing the broken rock mass to pour down and slide at high speed along the main sliding surface like a “drawing drawer”.

4. Sliding accumulation stage (80 s ∼ 100 s): The displacement and velocity of the slope both reached peak values, with the high-value areas expanding downstream and concentrating in the sedimentation zone. The broken rock mass slides down and accumulates under the facing mountain, forming the debris flow accumulation area.

5. “Flying Peak” stage (100 s ∼ 120 s): The speed remains at a high value, but the displacement continues to accumulate rapidly, indicating a sustained sliding out, accompanied by relatively intact blocks being thrown outward. The main sliding body slips behind, and the isolated mountain of the large optical envelope is thrown out horizontally and lands on the debris accumulation area under the action of the Earthquake, maintaining its original rock mass structure.

5 Sustainable slope stability evaluation based on comprehensive weight–extension model

5.1 Establishment of evaluation index system

The evaluation index is the influence factor of slope stability, and the primary task of slope stability evaluation is determining the evaluation index system. Slope deformation failure is not a simple dynamic geological phenomenon, and its occurrence and development are extremely complicated. There are many factors affecting the slope stability, which can be divided into internal factors and external factors.

Internal factors mainly include formation lithology, geological structure and rock mass structure, which are the prerequisite for slope deformation and failure, and determine the form and scale of slope deformation.

The external factors mainly include hydrogeology, human engineering and meteorological conditions. These factors have obvious and rapid influence on slope deformation failure, and play a role in promoting the occurrence and development of slope deformation.

Considering the influence of geological structure and external factors, and starting from landform, geological structure, rainfall and seismic action, an evaluation index system with slope angle, slope height, bulk density, internal friction angle, cohesion, pore water pressure ratio, rainfall and seismic intensity as the core is determined (Chang et al., 2021), shown in Figure 10. The slope stability coefficient is divided into five grades: extremely stable (I), relatively stable (II), stable (III), unstable (IV), and extremely unstable (V). The evaluation index system standards of slope stability are shown in Table 2.

Figure 10

Figure 10. Evaluation system of slope stability.

Table 2

Table 2. Evaluation index system standards of slope stability.

5.2 Comprehensive weight calculation method

Currently, the subjective weighting methods may be swayed by the personal preferences in the calculation process of the evaluation index weight, while objective weighting methods heavily rely on data and may be affected by extreme values. Relying on a single weighting method may lead to inaccurate results. To address this question, a comprehensive weight method has been established by combining the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and the entropy method.

5.2.1 Subjective weight calculation method (AHP)

Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is a subjective weight calculation method. The evaluation matrix $\mathit{S}$ is firstly constructed. Then the eigenvector corresponding to the maximum eigenvalue ${\mathit{\lambda }}_{\mathit{max}}$ of the evaluation matrix $\mathit{S}$ is calculated. After normalization, it is the weight set ${\mathit{A}}_{\mathit{i}}$ of each evaluation index.

5.2.2 Objective weight calculation method (EM)

The entropy method is a multi-criteria decision-making technique used to calculate the weights of indexes. It is based on the concept of information entropy, which is a measure of the randomness or uncertainty of a system. In the entropy method, the weights of indexes are determined by measuring the amount of information provided by each index. Indexes that provide more information are given higher weights, while indexes that provide less information are given lower weights.

In order to calculate the weights of indexes using the entropy method, the following steps are typically followed:

1. Normalize the data: Each index is normalized to a range between 0 and 1.

2. Calculate the entropy of each index: The entropy of an index is calculated as the negative sum of the product of the normalized values and their logarithms.

3. Calculate the weight of each index: The weight of an index is calculated as the difference between the maximum entropy and the entropy of the index, divided by the sum of the differences between the maximum entropy and the entropies of all the indexes.

4. Verify the consistency of the results: The consistency of the results is verified using the consistency ratio, which compares the weights obtained from the entropy method with the weights obtained from a random matrix.

The weight of each index calculated by the entropy method is denoted as ${\mathit{B}}_{\mathit{i}}$.

5.2.3 Calculation of comprehensive weight

The comprehensive AHP-EM weight model is established and the weight calculation process are as follows:

${\mathit{\omega }}_{\mathit{i}}=\mathit{k}{\mathit{A}}_{\mathit{i}}+\left(\mathbf{1}-\mathit{k}\right){\mathit{B}}_{\mathit{i}}$

Where, ${\mathit{A}}_{\mathit{i}}$ is the subjective weight calculated by the AHP; ${\mathit{B}}_{\mathit{i}}$ is the objective weight calculated by the entropy method; $\mathit{k}$ is the preference coefficient, and 0.5 is usually taken when no strong prior preference is available. This setting avoids excessive reliance on subjective experience or sample specific statistical discreteness, and has the minimax property.

Based on the parameters of the Daguangbao slope in Table 3 below, the $\mathit{k}$ value is set to 0.3, 0.5 and 0.7 respectively to compare the assessment results of the Daguangbao landslide under different $\mathit{k}$ values. The assessment value of the landslide occurrence in Daguangbao is the highest when $\mathit{k}$ = 0.5.

Table 3

Table 3. Detailed calculation parameters of Daguangbao landslide.

The comprehensive weight of each index listed in Table 2 is exhibited in Figure 11 calculated by the AHP and EM.

Figure 11

Figure 11. Comprehensive weight of each index.

5.3 Extension evaluation method of the slope stability

The matter-element is the logic cell of the extension theory and the basic element of describing things, which is expressed by $R=\left(N,C,V\right)$, where $N$ represents the matter, $C$ represents the characteristics of the matter, and $V$ represents the quantities of $N$ with respect to the characteristics $C$. The extension evaluation steps of slope stability are as follows:

1. Determination of classical domain

2. Determination of sectional domain

3. Determination of evaluation matter-element

4. Calculation of the comprehensive weight

5. Construction of the correlation between the evaluation index and slope stability grade

6. Calculation of the comprehensive correlation in the evaluation section

7. Calculation of Extension evaluation grade

5.4 Application of slope stability evaluation

The processes of the slope stability evaluation based on comprehensive weight and extension method are shown in Figure 12, and specific details are as follows:

1. Collect and process the sample data

2. Calculate the comprehensive AHP-EM weight.

3. Determinate the classical domain and sectional domain

4. Calculate the correlation degree between the evaluation matter-element and each slope stability grade

5. Determinate the slope stability grade

Figure 12

Figure 12. Processes of the slope stability evaluation.

Data collected from the Daguangbao landslide site are input into the evaluation method, and Table 3 are the detailed calculation parameters.

The evaluation results based on the comprehensive weight and extension method show that the Daguangbao presents an unstable condition without considering the effect of earthquake, and is extremely unstable under the action of earthquake. Reasons are analyzed combined with its geological environment that the high slope angle and well-developed structures are the intrinsic factors, and intensive earthquake is the inducement factor of landslide occurrence.

In addition to the Daguangbao landslide, another 10 slopes approved by experts were selected conducted to the stability evaluation, of which 5 are stable and 5 are broken. The index values of the 10 slope samples to be predicted are shown in Table 4.

Table 4

Table 4. Index values of the 10 slope samples to be predicted.

The slope stability evaluation based on comprehensive weight and extension method is applied at the above slope samples to be predicted. The calculated results are compared with other discriminant methods and the evaluation results are shown in Table 5 and Figure 13.

Table 5

Table 5. Evaluation results of slope stability.

Figure 13

Figure 13. Evaluation results of slope stability.

It can be seen from the Table 5 and Figure 13 that the slope stability evaluation method proposed in the paper can judge the stability of slope quickly, and has higher accuracy compared with the fuzzy discriminant method and unascertained measure method.

6 Conclusion

This study investigates the seismic response and stability of the Daguangbao landslide using three-dimensional dynamic numerical simulation and a comprehensive stability evaluation model. The main conclusions are as follows:

1. The 3D dynamic simulation reproduces the progressive failure process, including deformation localization and the formation of the main sliding surface.

2. Based on the displacement and velocity evolution, the landslide response can be divided into five stages: seismic wave crushing, main sliding surface formation, main sliding body sliding, sliding accumulation, and the “Flying Peak” stage.

3. The integrated AHP-entropy weighting and matter-element extension evaluation provides stability grades consistent with the observed failure state, and can support stability assessment of similar earthquake-triggered landslides.

Data availability statement

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation.

Author contributions

DY: Conceptualization, Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Writing – original draft. LL: Data curation, Investigation, Resources, Writing – original draft. YD: Formal Analysis, Software, Writing – original draft. FY: Investigation, Supervision, Writing – original draft. XZ: Software, Writing – original draft, Writing – review and editing.

Funding

The author(s) declared that financial support was not received for this work and/or its publication.

Conflict of interest

The author(s) declared that this work was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Generative AI statement

The author(s) declared that generative AI was not used in the creation of this manuscript.

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