Seismic dynamic stability of double-slider rock slopes containing tension cracks

Earthquakes have significant impact on rock slopes, thus studying the seismic stability of double-slider rock slopes containing tension cracks is crucial. We proposed an analysis method on the seismic dynamic slope stability. This method utilizes discrete Fourier transform to decompose real earthquake waves into a combination of harmonic waves. These waves are then used in conjunction with the pseudo-dynamic method and safety factor calculation formula to compute the safety factor. This approach accurately captures the influence of seismic time history characteristics on the dynamic stability of double-slider rock slopes containing tension cracks. The minimum safety factor in the obtained time history curves of the safety factor reflects the most unfavorable state of the slopes under seismic effects. Quantitative analysis is conducted using six sets of actual earthquake ground motion data obtained from the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center's NGAWest2 ground-shaking record database. The conclusions are as follows: (1) There is an inverse correlation between the average seismic acceleration amplitude and the minimum safety factor. Conversely, the seismic acceleration amplitude standard deviation shows a positive correlation with the minimum safety factor. The global sensitivity of geometric parameters in the slope model is higher than other influencing factors. (2) The proposed dynamic stability analysis method can capture the dynamic characteristics of earthquakes, emphasizing the minimum safety factor of the slope in the seismic time history as a stability indicator. In contrast, the pseudo-static method may yield unsafe results. (3) A safety factor expression considering hydrostatic pressure is proposed. A negative correlation was observed between the height of the water level line and the minimum safety factor.