Experimental Study of Dry Granular Flow and Impact Behavior Against a Rigid Retaining Wall

Shallow slope failure in mountainous regions is a common and emergent hazard in terms of its damage to important traffic routes and local communities. The impact of dry granular flows consisting of rock fragments and other particles resulting from shallow slope failures on retaining structures has yet to be systematically researched and is not covered by current design codes. As a preliminary study of the impact caused by dry granular flows, a series of dry granular impact experiments were carried out for one model of a retaining wall. It was indirectly verified that the total normal force exerted on a retaining wall consists of a drag force (Fd), a gravitational and frictional force (Fgf), and a passive earth force (Fp), and that the calculation of Fd can be based on the empirical formula defined in NF EN Eurocode 1990 (Eurocode structuraux. Base de calcul des structures, AFNOR La plaine Saint Denis, 2003). It was also indirectly verified that, for flow with Froude number from 6 to 11, the drag coefficient (Cd) can be estimated using the previously proposed empirical parameters.