154 / 2021-10-16 02:51:40

3D Analytical and Numerical Stability Analyses of Open Pit Slopes

slope stability, open pit mines, numerical modelling,

The geotechnical analysis and design of open pit mines remains a difficult challenge. Engineers have relied for decades on software tools to perform in 2D analysis of pit slope stability, and this continues to be the most widely used approach up to date. Nevertheless, open pit stability is a three-dimensional (3D) problem which cannot be adequately captured into a two-dimensional (2D) plane strain representation. This paper examines the application of the 3D limit equilibrium (LEM) and finite element (FEM) methods to analyze the stability of open pit slopes. Based on the case studies, it can be concluded that a 2D FS may be too conservative when compared to a 3D FS.  Real open pit case studies mines will demonstrate the application of 3D LEM and FEM in finding the critical slip surface.