Material property and boundary condition effects on stresses in avalanche snow-packs

A linear elastic finite element computer program was applied to determine the stress distributions in multi-layered snow-packs typical of those found at Berthoud Pass, Colorado. The effect on stress distribution of wide variations in elastic material properties was examined. Also, an attempt was mad...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Glaciology
Main Authors: Curtis, J. O., Smith, F. W.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 1974
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0022143000023406
https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0022143000023406
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Summary:A linear elastic finite element computer program was applied to determine the stress distributions in multi-layered snow-packs typical of those found at Berthoud Pass, Colorado. The effect on stress distribution of wide variations in elastic material properties was examined. Also, an attempt was made to model the shear failure of a weak sub-layer in the snow-pack by relaxing the condition that the bottom snow layer be firmly attached to the ground.