Analysis and Modeling of the Hydro-Mechanical Behavior of Ain El Hammam Landslide, Algeria

A detailed analysis of the slope of Ain El Hammam, located at 50 km south of Tizi-Ouzou, revealed a complex landslide mechanism. The complexity of this hydrogravity process lies in its heterogeneous operating mode over time and its location in an urbanized environment. The study of the triggering factors and parameters that control the evolution of this instability is a very important stake in understanding the process of this landslide. The analysis made it possible to evaluate the relative influence of the geological, hydrogeological and geomorphological parameters behind the triggering of this landslide. The current work included a numerical analysis of the behavior of the slope under various geotechnical and hydro-mechanical conditions. A numerical modeling of the slope was thus carried out using the FLAC 2D and OptumG2 softwares. The stability calculation provides safety factors indicating the existence of a superficial slip, a deep slip, and a very deep potential rupture. This allows for the association of the failure mechanisms with the observations made in situ. In addition, the results highlighted the important role of fluid overpressures in the triggering and amplification of the landslide, as well as the aggravation of the phenomenon by the overload due to the urbanization of the site.