Evaluation of liquefaction potential for loose minefill slopes

Uncompacted embankments of certain fine sands exhibit a spontaneous liquefaction potential, which cannot be evaluated basing on undrained shear strength alone. A novel procedure for stability analysis has been developed, basing on Hill's stability criterion and a hypoplastic constitutive law. With given relative densities, assumed initial stress states and variations of perturbation directions, stability or instability of slope sections can be assessed. Catastrophic landslides observed in the past could thus be explained.