Objective Evaluating seismic slope stability is a critical research topic in the field of geotechnical engineering. Natural soils exhibit spatial variability, with properties varying from point to point. This characteristic significantly affects slope stability, necessitating a statistical approach to its investigation. The infinite slope model evaluates the stability of long slopes running down a hillside and analyzes the mechanics of shallow landslides. This study focuses on the reliability of infinite undrained slopes and cohesive-frictional soil slopes subjected to seismic loadings using the random field method. Methods The random field method was adopted to investigate the effects of horizontal and vertical seismic loadings on the reliability of infinite slopes. The deterministic method was also employed to verify the results obtained by the random field method. For deterministic stability analyses of infinite undrained slopes with linearly increasing strength, the infinite slope equation was utilized to evaluate the factor of safety FS and derive the analytical formula for the critical slope angle βmin, which leads to the minimum factor of safety FS. An algorithm generating 1D non-stationary random fields of undrained strength was applied to assess the probability of slope failure pf and determine the critical slope angle βmin, which corresponds to the maximum probability of slope failure pf. For deterministic analyses of infinite cohesive-frictional soil slope stability, the infinite slope equation was employed to analyze the factor of safety FS, with the critical slope angle min obtained by calculating the factor of safety FS at intervals of 0.01. The random field method was then applied to compute the probability of slope failure pf and determine the critical slope angle βmin. Results and Discussions For the infinite undrained slopes subjected to horizontal and vertical seismic loadings, the results showed that as the slope angle β increases, the factor of safety FS initially decreases and then increases, indicating the existence of a critical slope angle βmin. As the value of λ (ratio of the vertical seismic coefficient kv to the horizontal seismic coefficient kh) increases, the critical slope angle min gradually rises, and the effect of the vertical seismic loading on the critical slope angle βmin becomes more significant as the horizontal seismic coefficient kh increases. The results also indicated that as the value of λ increases, the probability of slope failure pf increases significantly, highlighting that the effect of the vertical seismic loading on the reliability of infinite undrained slopes cannot be ignored.In addition, the probability of slope failure pf decreases as the nondimensional spatial correlation length increases and eventually converges asymptotically on the first-order second moment (FOSM) solution, demonstrating that the traditional reliability method may provide unconservative results for infinite undrained slopes subjected to seismic loadings. The analysis further reveals the existence of a critical slope angle βmin, which leads to the maximum value of the probability of slope failure pf, a phenomenon that can also be verified by the deterministic method. For the infinite cohesive-frictional soil slopes subjected to horizontal and vertical seismic loadings, the results showed that as the slope angle β increases, the value of FS/tan ϕ' initially decreases and then increases, indicating the existence of a critical slope angle min. The value of FS/tan ϕ' increases as the nondimensional parameter S = c/(H tan ϕ') increases, while the critical slope angle βmin decreases as the nondimensional parameter S increases. When the horizontal seismic coefficient kh is relatively small, the effect of the vertical seismic loading on the stability of infinite cohesive-frictional soil slopes is not significant. However, as the horizontal seismic coefficient kh increases, the effect of the vertical seismic loading becomes more pronounced. In addition, the influence of the vertical seismic loading on the stability of infinite cohesive-frictional soil slopes is affected by the horizontal seismic coefficient kh, the slope angle β, and the nondimensional parameter S. The critical slope angle βmin increases as the value of λ increases, and the effect of the vertical seismic loading on the critical slope angle βmin for infinite cohesive-frictional soil slopes becomes more evident as the horizontal seismic coefficient kh increases. The critical slope angle βmin decreases as the nondimensional parameter S increases and eventually stabilizes. The critical slope angle βmin increases as the value of λ rises. As the horizontal seismic coefficient kh improves, the effect of the vertical seismic loading on the critical slope angle βmin becomes increasingly significant, particularly for higher values of the nondimensional parameter S. Some results indicate that the probability of slope failure pfincreases as the value of λ increases. In contrast, others show a decrease in the probability of slope failure pf as the value of λ increases. This phenomenon can also be confirmed by the deterministic method. There exists a critical slope angle βmin that leads to the maximum probability of slope failure pf, with the critical slope angle βmin being consistent with previous results. Conclusions For infinite slopes subjected to seismic loadings, the effect of the vertical seismic loading on the probability of slope failure pf remains significant even when the horizontal seismic coefficient kh is small. Both horizontal and vertical seismic loadings must be considered when performing seismic reliability analyses of infinite slopes. There exists a critical slope angle βmin that results in the maximum probability of slope failure pf for infinite slopes. In addition, the influence of the vertical seismic loading on the critical slope angle βmin becomes increasingly apparent as the horizontal seismic coefficient kh increases.
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