Instability mechanism of loess-mudstone landslides under rainfall infiltration conditions

Instability mechanism of loess-mudstone landslides under rainfall infiltration conditions | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Instability mechanism of loess-mudstone landslides under rainfall infiltration conditions Xiao Liu, Jianhui Dong, Chengqian Tang, Yan Pan, Jianjun Zhao, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5906688/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 21 May, 2025 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted 7 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The evolution of seepage field in large loess-mudstone landslides is significantly influenced by rainfall infiltration, which is a critical factor affecting their stability. This paper presented a case study of the Hongya Village landslide in Huzhu County, Qinghai Province, to better understand the impact of rainfall infiltration on the triggering mechanism of loess-mudstone landslides. A combination of field investigations, high-density electrical resistivity surveys, and numerical simulations was employed to systematically analyze the temporal and spatial distribution of pore water pressure, volumetric water content, and shear strain within the landslide mass under rainfall infiltration conditions. The results indicated that the rainfall infiltration markedly alters the seepage characteristics of the landslide mass, leading to a sharp increase in pore water pressure and a significant reduction in shear strength, which consequently reduced the overall stability of the landslide. The stability analysis identified a stepwise instability process in the landslide, characterized by "shear displacement-tensile failure-pulling effect" triggered by rainfall infiltration. The findings provide a comprehensive understanding of the instability mechanisms of loess-mudstone landslides under rainfall conditions, thereby offering valuable scientific guidance and technical support for the prevention and mitigation of similar landslide hazards. Physical sciences/Engineering/Civil engineering Earth and environmental sciences/Natural hazards Rainfall infiltration Loess-mudstone landslides Instability mechanism Seepage analysis Stability evaluation Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 21 May, 2025 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 02 May, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 02 May, 2025 Reviews received at journal 11 Apr, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 10 Apr, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 10 Apr, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 24 Mar, 2025 First submitted to journal 23 Mar, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-5906688","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":441140699,"identity":"82e788f7-812e-458e-a4ba-09e74a0e711b","order_by":0,"name":"Xiao Liu","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Chengdu University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Xiao","middleName":"","lastName":"Liu","suffix":""},{"id":441140700,"identity":"351fabfd-6726-4c47-a0cd-0f1d0b0c847e","order_by":1,"name":"Jianhui 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This paper presented a case study of the Hongya Village landslide in Huzhu County, Qinghai Province, to better understand the impact of rainfall infiltration on the triggering mechanism of loess-mudstone landslides. A combination of field investigations, high-density electrical resistivity surveys, and numerical simulations was employed to systematically analyze the temporal and spatial distribution of pore water pressure, volumetric water content, and shear strain within the landslide mass under rainfall infiltration conditions. The results indicated that the rainfall infiltration markedly alters the seepage characteristics of the landslide mass, leading to a sharp increase in pore water pressure and a significant reduction in shear strength, which consequently reduced the overall stability of the landslide. 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