PPT9.3 Mass Wasting

MASS
WASTING
SOIL
• Soil is part of the regolith that
supports the growth of plants.
• Regolith is the layer of rock and

mineral fragments that covers
most of Earth’s land surface.
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SOIL
Soil Composition
• Soil has four major components:
mineral matter
broken-down rock
Humus (which is the decayed remains of organisms)
water; and
air.
Composition by Volume of
Good-Quality Soil
MASS WASTING
• Mass wasting is the downslope movement of
rock, regolith, and soil under the direct influence
of gravity (Tarbuck, et.al. 2014).
• Gravity act as the main immediate agent in mass

movement.
LANDSLIDE
• Landslide is a common term used by many people to
describe sudden event in which large quantities of rock and
soil plunge down steep slopes.
• This term encompasses all downslope movement whether it

be bedrock, regolith, or a mixture of these.
• Strictly speaking, this term was not originally an "official"

word in the mass wasting lexicon; it only became popular
due to consistent (but erroneous) use by the media and
general public.
CONTROLLING FACTORS IN MASS
WASTING
A. Slope Angle
B. Role of water
C. Presence of clays
D. Weak materials and structures
Slope Angle
• As the slope increase, the INCREASES

slope-parallel component
increases while the slope
perpendicular component
decreases. Thus the
tendency to slide down the DECREASES
slope becomes greater.
Slope Angle SHEAR
STRENGTH
• All forces resisting movement
downslope can be grouped under
the term shear strength. This is
controlled by frictional resistance
and cohesion of particles in an
object, amount of pore pressure
of water, and anchoring effect of
plant roots.
• When shear stress > shear

strength , downslope
movement occurs.
Role of Water
• Water has the ability to
change the angle of
repose (the steepest
slope at which a pile of
unconsolidated grains
remain stable).
• Addition of water from rainfall or snowmelt adds weight to the slope.
• Water can reduce the friction along a sliding surface.
Presence of Clays
1. EXPANSIVE AND HYDROCOMPACTING SOILS – contain a high
proportion of smectite or montmorillonite which expand and settle
when wet and shrink when they dry out.
2. SENSITIVE SOILS – clays in some soils rearrange themselves after

dissolution of salts in the pore spaces. Clay minerals line up with one
another and the pore space is reduced.
3. QUICK CLAYS – water-saturated clays that spontaneously liquefy

when disturbed
Weak Materials and
Structures
• Become slippage surfaces if weight is added or
support is removed (bedding planes, weak layers,
joints and fractures, foliation planes).
BEDDING PLANES
JOINTS AND FRACTURES
FOLIATION PLANES
MASS WASTING PROCESS
A. Slope failures - sudden
failure of the slope
resulting in transport of
debris downhill by rolling,
sliding, and slumping.
1. Slump – type of slide

wherein downward rotation of
rock or regolith occurs along a
curved surface.
Slump
2. Rock fall and debris fall– free falling of dislodged
bodies of rocks or a mixture of rock, regolith, and soil
in the case of debris fall
3. Rock slide and debris slide- involves the rapid

displacement of masses of rock or debris along an
inclined surface.
Rock Fall
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Rock Slide
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B. Sediment flow - materials flow
downhill mixed with water or air;
Slurry and granular flows are
further subdivided based on TYPES OF SLURRY FLOW
velocity at which flow occurs. • Solifluction
• Debris flow
• Mud flow
1. Slurry flow – water-saturated
flow which contains 20-40%
water; above 40% water content,
slurry flows grade into streams.
SOLIFLUCTION
• Solifluction – common
wherever water cannot
escape from the saturated
surface layer by infiltrating
to deeper levels; creates
distinctive features: lobes
and sheets of debris
DEBRIS FLOW
• Debris Flow - results from
heavy rains causing soil
and regolith to be
saturated with water;
commonly have a tongue-
like front; Debris flows
compose mostly of
volcanic materials on the
flanks of volcanoes are
called lahars.
MUD FLOW
• Mud flow – highly fluid,
high velocity mixture of
sediment and water; can
start as a muddy stream
that becomes a moving
dam of mud and rubble;
differs with debris flow in
that fine-grained material
is predominant.
2. Granular flow - contains
low amounts of water, 0-
20% water; fluid-like
behavior is possible by
mixing with air. Includes the following:
 CREEP
 EARTH FLOW
 GRAIN FLOW
 DEBRIS AVALANCHE
CREEP
• Creep – slowest type of
mass wasting requiring
several years of gradual
movement to have a
pronounced effect on the
slope ; evidence often seen
in bent trees, offset in
roads and fences, inclined
utility poles.
EARTH FLOW
• Earth flow – involves fine-
grained material such as
clay and silt and usually
associated with heavy
rains or snowmelt; tend to
be narrow tongue-like
features that that begin at
a scarp or cliff.
GRAIN FLOW
• Grain flow – forms in
dry or nearly dry
granular sediment with
air filling the pore
spaces such as sand
flowing down the dune
face
DEBRIS
AVALANCHE
• Debris avalanche – very
high velocity flows involving
huge masses of falling rocks
and debris that break up and
pulverize on impact; often
occurs in very steep
mountain ranges.
SCHEMATIC DIAGRAM OF A SLUMP
SUBAQUEOUS MASS WASTING
• Subaqueous mass
movement occurs on slopes
in the ocean basins.
• This may occur as a result of

an earthquake or due to an
over-accumulation of
sediment on slope or
submarine canyon.
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3 TYPES OF SUBAQUEOUS MASS
WASTING
a. Submarine slumps - similar to slumps on land.
b. Submarine debris flow – similar to debris flows on
land.
c. Turbidity current – sediment moves as a turbulent
cloud.
EVENTS THAT TRIGGER MASS WASTING PROCESSES
a. Shocks and vibrations – earthquakes and
minor shocks such as those produced by
heavy trucks on the road, man-made
explosions.
b. Slope modification – creating artificially

steep slope so it is no longer at the angle of
repose.
c. Undercutting – due to streams eroding

banks or surf action undercutting a slope.
EVENTS THAT TRIGGER MASS WASTING PROCESSES
d. Changes in hydrologic characteristics – heavy rains lead to water-
saturated regolith increasing its weight, reducing grain to grain contact and
angle of repose.
e. Changes in slope strength – weathering weakens the rock and leads to

slope failure; vegetation holds soil in place and slows the influx of water; tree
roots strengthen slope by holding the ground together.
f. Volcanic eruptions - produce shocks; may produce large volumes of water

from melting of glaciers during eruption, resulting to mudflows and debris
flows.
HOW LANDSLIDE HAZARD CAN BE
REDUCED?
a. Hazard zone mapping.
b. Proper land use
c. Engineering mitigation techniques
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ASSIGNMENT
• Read the article “The 17 February 2006 rock-slide-
debris avalanche at Guinsaugon, Philippines: a
synthesis” by Guthrie et. al.
• Prepare for an ORAL RECITATION next meeting!
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MASS

• Regolith is the layer of rock and

• Gravity act as the main immediate agent in mass

• This term encompasses all downslope movement whether it

• Strictly speaking, this term was not originally an "official"

D. Weak materials and structures

• As the slope increase, the INCREASES

• When shear stress > shear

2. SENSITIVE SOILS – clays in some soils rearrange themselves after

3. QUICK CLAYS – water-saturated clays that spontaneously liquefy

1. Slump – type of slide

3. Rock slide and debris slide- involves the rapid

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• This may occur as a result of

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b. Slope modification – creating artificially

c. Undercutting – due to streams eroding

e. Changes in slope strength – weathering weakens the rock and leads to

f. Volcanic eruptions - produce shocks; may produce large volumes of water

• Prepare for an ORAL RECITATION next meeting!

42 12/06/2022 Add a footer

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