Flow-type landslides Impacting V-shaped Diversions: Physical Modelling

Abstract

In rural and sparsely populated areas, government issued pamphlets often recommend the construction of V-shaped diversions to protect personal property from flow-type landslides hazards, including debris flows. V-shaped diversions are advantageous because they attract low impact forces and runup heights due to their oblique impact angle. However, current design approaches are empirical, so it is unclear what resisting forces and wall heights are required. In this extended abstract, details of a new experimental setup and some preliminary results are presented. It is envisioned that findings from this study will help to shed light on scientific-based recommendations to design V-shaped diversions to enhance the resiliency of mountain communities globally.