Temperature effect on the residual shear strength.

The available strength on slip surfaces in landslide after a significant displacement and at motion is the residual strength. The residual strength depends on the soil properties including both solid skeleton (mineralogy, particle shape and size, index properties) and pore fluid (chemical and rheological properties). The available strength also depends, as extensively reported in the literature, on several factors that may not remain constant in time and affect the landslide stability and dynamics: applied stress, accumulated displacement and shear strain rate. With a less extensive literature related to, the effect of temperature on the residual strength have been also observed.

This work reports on the results of a large number of ring shear tests under controlled rate and temperature performed on different types of soils. The results are interpreted in terms of the influence of mineralogy, clay content and plasticity on temperature effects on residual strength.