Investigation of permanent displacements of near-fault seismic slopes by a general sliding block model

A general sliding block model for calculating permanent displacement of slope is presented. Ground shaking can be applied to base or block in a direction horizontal or parallel to the inclined plane, with or without a simultaneous vertical component of ground motion, and the azimuth of the examined slope can be considered in the model. The effects of the application of excitation, the vertical component of ground motions, and the slope azimuth on earthquake-induced permanent displacements of near-fault seismic slopes are investigated using the model. The results indicate that: (1) The application of excitation has significant influence on the permanent displacements. (2) The influence of the vertical component of ground motion on the permanent displacement depends more on the phase synchronization of the horizontal and vertical components than on the amplitude. (3) The computed displacements are found to be very sensitive to the azimuth of the slope.