Geotechnical properties and stability of the submarine canyon in the northern South China Sea

The upper part of the continental slope in the northern South China Sea is prone to submarine landslide disasters, especially in submarine canyons. This work studies borehole sediments, discusses geotechnical properties of sediments, and evaluates sediment stability in the study area. The results show that sediment shear strength increases with increasing depth, with good linear correlation. Variations in shear strength of sediments with burial depth have a significantly greater rate of change in the canyon head and middle part than those in the canyon bottom. For sediments at the same burial depth, shear strength gradually increased and then decreased from the head to the bottom of the canyon, and has no obvious correlation with the slope angle of the sampling site. Under static conditions, the critical equilibrium slope angle of the sediments in the middle part of the canyon is 10° to 12°, and the critical slope angle in the head and the bottom of the canyon is 7°. The results indicate that potential landslide hazard areas are mainly distributed in distinct spots or narrow strips on the canyon walls where there are high slope angles.