The mechanical origin of snow avalanche dynamics and flow regime transitions
Snow avalanches cause fatalities and economic damage. Key to their mitigation is the understanding of snow avalanche dynamics. This study investigates the dynamic behavior of snow avalanches, using the material point method (MPM) and an elastoplastic constitutive law for porous cohesive materials. B...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:bf449b6fd4a5412b931a50dc35ae5d7a 2023-05-15T18:32:25+02:00 The mechanical origin of snow avalanche dynamics and flow regime transitions X. Li B. Sovilla C. Jiang J. Gaume 2020-10-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3381-2020 https://doaj.org/article/bf449b6fd4a5412b931a50dc35ae5d7a EN eng Copernicus Publications https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/14/3381/2020/tc-14-3381-2020.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-14-3381-2020 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/bf449b6fd4a5412b931a50dc35ae5d7a The Cryosphere, Vol 14, Pp 3381-3398 (2020) Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 article 2020 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3381-2020 2022-12-31T05:26:02Z Snow avalanches cause fatalities and economic damage. Key to their mitigation is the understanding of snow avalanche dynamics. This study investigates the dynamic behavior of snow avalanches, using the material point method (MPM) and an elastoplastic constitutive law for porous cohesive materials. By virtue of the hybrid Eulerian–Lagrangian nature of the MPM, we can handle processes involving large deformations, collisions and fractures. Meanwhile, the elastoplastic model enables us to capture the mixed-mode failure of snow, including tensile, shear and compressive failure. Using the proposed numerical approach, distinct behaviors of snow avalanches, from fluid-like to solid-like, are examined with varied snow mechanical properties. In particular, four flow regimes reported from real observations are identified, namely, cold dense, warm shear, warm plug and sliding slab regimes. Moreover, notable surges and roll waves are observed peculiarly for flows in transition from cold dense to warm shear regimes. Each of the flow regimes shows unique flow characteristics in terms of the evolution of the avalanche front, the free-surface shape, and the vertical velocity profile. We further explore the influence of slope geometry on the behavior of snow avalanches, including the effect of slope angle and path length on the maximum flow velocity, the runout angle and the deposit height. Unified trends are obtained between the normalized maximum flow velocity and the scaled runout angle as well as the scaled deposit height, reflecting analogous rules with different geometry conditions of the slope. It is found that the maximum flow velocity is mainly controlled by the friction between the bed and the flow, the geometry of the slope, and the snow properties. We reveal the crucial effect of both flow and deposition behaviors on the runout angle. Furthermore, our MPM modeling is calibrated and tested with simulations of real snow avalanches. The evolution of the avalanche front position and velocity from the MPM modeling shows ... Article in Journal/Newspaper The Cryosphere Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles The Cryosphere 14 10 3381 3398 |
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ftdoajarticles |
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English |
topic |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
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Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 X. Li B. Sovilla C. Jiang J. Gaume The mechanical origin of snow avalanche dynamics and flow regime transitions |
topic_facet |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
description |
Snow avalanches cause fatalities and economic damage. Key to their mitigation is the understanding of snow avalanche dynamics. This study investigates the dynamic behavior of snow avalanches, using the material point method (MPM) and an elastoplastic constitutive law for porous cohesive materials. By virtue of the hybrid Eulerian–Lagrangian nature of the MPM, we can handle processes involving large deformations, collisions and fractures. Meanwhile, the elastoplastic model enables us to capture the mixed-mode failure of snow, including tensile, shear and compressive failure. Using the proposed numerical approach, distinct behaviors of snow avalanches, from fluid-like to solid-like, are examined with varied snow mechanical properties. In particular, four flow regimes reported from real observations are identified, namely, cold dense, warm shear, warm plug and sliding slab regimes. Moreover, notable surges and roll waves are observed peculiarly for flows in transition from cold dense to warm shear regimes. Each of the flow regimes shows unique flow characteristics in terms of the evolution of the avalanche front, the free-surface shape, and the vertical velocity profile. We further explore the influence of slope geometry on the behavior of snow avalanches, including the effect of slope angle and path length on the maximum flow velocity, the runout angle and the deposit height. Unified trends are obtained between the normalized maximum flow velocity and the scaled runout angle as well as the scaled deposit height, reflecting analogous rules with different geometry conditions of the slope. It is found that the maximum flow velocity is mainly controlled by the friction between the bed and the flow, the geometry of the slope, and the snow properties. We reveal the crucial effect of both flow and deposition behaviors on the runout angle. Furthermore, our MPM modeling is calibrated and tested with simulations of real snow avalanches. The evolution of the avalanche front position and velocity from the MPM modeling shows ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
X. Li B. Sovilla C. Jiang J. Gaume |
author_facet |
X. Li B. Sovilla C. Jiang J. Gaume |
author_sort |
X. Li |
title |
The mechanical origin of snow avalanche dynamics and flow regime transitions |
title_short |
The mechanical origin of snow avalanche dynamics and flow regime transitions |
title_full |
The mechanical origin of snow avalanche dynamics and flow regime transitions |
title_fullStr |
The mechanical origin of snow avalanche dynamics and flow regime transitions |
title_full_unstemmed |
The mechanical origin of snow avalanche dynamics and flow regime transitions |
title_sort |
mechanical origin of snow avalanche dynamics and flow regime transitions |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3381-2020 https://doaj.org/article/bf449b6fd4a5412b931a50dc35ae5d7a |
genre |
The Cryosphere |
genre_facet |
The Cryosphere |
op_source |
The Cryosphere, Vol 14, Pp 3381-3398 (2020) |
op_relation |
https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/14/3381/2020/tc-14-3381-2020.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-14-3381-2020 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/bf449b6fd4a5412b931a50dc35ae5d7a |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-3381-2020 |
container_title |
The Cryosphere |
container_volume |
14 |
container_issue |
10 |
container_start_page |
3381 |
op_container_end_page |
3398 |
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