The Analysis of Two Slope Failures in Cemented Champlain Clays

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Abstract
Detailed investigations have been made on the sites of two landslides which occurred in the sensitive Champlain clay deposits of the Saint-Laurent Lowlands. Laboratory tests made on specimens cut from block samples have led to a better understanding and evaluation of the brittle behavior of these cemented clays. The results have shown that very little strain is required for the strength to decrease from a well defined peak value to a residual value; this brittle behavior is evident only when tests are made at sufficiently low stress level such that the cementation bonds are preserved during consolidation.The analyses of the slides have shown that the use of the peak strength parameters led to a gross overestimate of the factors of safety; the residual strength parameters, however, give a fairly accurate assessment of the stability, the calculated factors of safety being close to unity. That behavior may be explained by the fact that the cemented clay is extremely brittle and, like any other strain softening material, is subjected to the mechanism of progressive failure. This study leads to a very efficient practical approach to the analysis of the stability of natural slopes.

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