Numerical modelling of Alto Verde landslide using the material point method

Abstract

A huge landslide took place at Alto Verde residential complex at the end of 2008 in the city of Medellin, Colombia, claiming the lives of twelve people and destroying six houses. Landslides are characterized by large deformations in the soil mass. This study used the material point method (MPM), a particle-based method that takes advantage of a double Lagrangian-Eulerian discretization. This approach provides a robust framework that enables the numerical simulation of large strains, without mesh entanglement issues that are common with the Finite Element Method. The numerical model proposed here assumes simplifications of the geotechnical, morphological and structural buildings conditions on the site. Nevertheless, the final numerical deformed configuration described the geometric features observed in the field successfully. The result allows applications such as the design of barriers, risk assessment or determination of a minimum safe distance for a building from a slope susceptible to landslides.