Replying to LO25608 --
Hi LOers
Sorry to be such a pain about things like this, I suppose I am becauase I
have a right to, I used to work as a geotechnical engineer and soil and
rock was what I worked with and there are quite a few things more that the
Richter angle (which I actually I have never heard of). Maybe it is what
used to be called the angle of repose.
The variables are the sheer strength parameter phi angle which is the
angle of shear and c (u) the cohesion intercept. The pore pressure which
was mentioned and density.
Instability in slopes are mainly caused by seepage and gravitational
forces.
There are tons of other things like plasticity (clays), shape of grains
etc etc which would bore the hell out of most people.
The failure in soils is called the Mohr-Coulomb Failure criteria (Yes the
electrical man was a geotechnical whizz) by the following formula.
(the shear strength) T= C plus Sigma times the tan of phi
and phi is the normal stress
Kindest
gavin
--Gavin Ritz <garritz@xtra.co.nz>
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