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Unit of study_

CIVL5453: Geotechnical Hazards

2024 unit information

Geotechnical hazards include landslides, rock falls and mud flows. They are triggered by soil/rock failure due to natural or human causes. The objective of this Unit of Study is to develop the ability to assess and mitigate the risks associated to such events. Students will learn how to estimate when and where these events are likely to occur, how to define safety zones and how to design effective protection structures. The syllabus is comprised of (i) Landslide Risk Assessment and Management procedures (ii) post-failure and out of equilibrium soil mechanics applied to prediction of rock fall, landslide and mud flow run-out distance and impact force on structures; (iii) design of geotechnical protection structures using Finite Element modelling. Senior geotechnical engineers from major companies will deliver some guest lectures presenting on practical case study involving geotechnical hazards throughout the semester.

Unit details and rules

Managing faculty or University school:

Engineering

Study level Postgraduate
Academic unit Civil Engineering
Credit points 6
Prerequisites:
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None
Corequisites:
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None
Prohibitions:
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None
Assumed knowledge:
? 
(CIVL2410 AND CIVL3411) OR (CIVL9410 AND CIVL9411). Students are assumed to have a good knowledge of fundamental soil mechanics, which is covered in the courses of soil mechanics (settlement, water flow, soil strength) and foundation engineering (soil models, stability analyses; slope stability; retaining walls; foundation capacity)

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

  • LO1. write geotechnical report with extensive consideration of theoretical and methodological issues
  • LO2. interpret and discuss uncertainty in theoretical/practical context
  • LO3. apply theories of rock and soil motion to design protection systems and building foundations
  • LO4. demonstrate proficiency in Landslide Risk Assessment and Management procedures recommended by the Australian Geomechanics Society
  • LO5. develop geotechnical solutions to mitigate rock and soil motion
  • LO6. demonstrate proficiency in computer simulations of out of equilibrium motions
  • LO7. understand physical models of rock falls, landslides and mud-flows, and their limitation.

Unit availability

This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.

The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.

Session MoA ?  Location Outline ? 
Semester 2 2024
Normal day Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Session MoA ?  Location Outline ? 
Semester 2 2020
Normal day Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Semester 2 2021
Normal day Remote
Semester 2 2022
Normal day Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Semester 2 2022
Normal day Remote
Semester 2 2023
Normal day Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

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Modes of attendance (MoA)

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