(HP-65) Stability Analysis of Rock Slopes for Plane & Wedge Failure

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An extract from Stability Analysis of Rock Slopes for Plane & Wedge Failure with the Aid of a programmable Pocket Calculator, K. Kovari and P. Fritz, Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Switzerland Institute of Highways and Underground Structures, Department of Rock Mechanics, 10 pgs.

"Summary

A simple formula for plane slope failure is derived, which may be used for the design of anchors to ensure the safety of rock masses endangered by slides. The cohesional strength component appears explicitly in the formula, while the geometrical parameters, the friction angle and the safety factor are included in only two factors, k₁ and k₂ . The discovery of a formal analogy between the plane failure problem and that of wedge failure on two intersecting plane surfaces makes it possible to use the basic formula also for the solution of the complicated three-dimensional wedge problem. The basic formula may in both cases also be used to make a detailed parametric study to investigate the sensitivity of the rock slope construction to variations in individual parameters. This investigation may be carried out quickly, without time consuming calculations, even at the site, if a programmable pocket electronic calculator is available. A complete program is given in this paper for the widely used "Hewlett-Packard HP 65" pocket calculator. The application of the method is illustrated in several practical examples of the design of rock slopes."

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