Abstract
Limit equilibrium method of slices is commonly used in the analysis of the slope stability problems such as landslide, slope failure. There is a method to calculate individually the water pressures on the bottom, both sides, upper of a slice in the submerged slope. On the other hand, there is a method to calculate these water pressures as a buoyancy. The latter is very simple and convenient. However, this method cannot be applied in the steady seepage flow condition. The author proposed a modified calculating method by the inclined direction of buoyancy vector from hydraulic gradient in a slice in the steady seepage flow condition.
In this paper, it is shown that the modified method gives the same result with the former method to calculate each water pressure individually. A general limit equilibrium method of slices is proposed by the modified calculating method of a buoyancy. It is shown that the proposed method is very simple and general, and it gives the same result with another general limit equilibrium method of slices such as Morgenstern-Price, Spencer methods by calculations on a model slip section.
