Complex Slope Stability Problems, Nonlinear Finite Element Analysis

Based on the theories of the nonlinear finite element, the stability of the complex slope is discussed in this thesis. A corresponding nonlinear finite element program in FORTRAN is presented and a new stability analysis method about complex slope is proposed, using the Newton-Raphson method to solve the nonlinear equations. Since the arc-length method can be used to calculate the critical load in engineering stability analysis, the method is discussed and applied in this thesis. Four numerical examples are presented to show the good performance of the proposed numerical procedure. In the first example, the safety factor of a dam is calculated and the results are found to be in good agreement with those obtained by using the Bishop method. The other three examples prove the wide application of the method and its good convergent. It also shows that the new method is quick and simple, and suitable for use on personal computers.