Parametric Analysis of Rainfall-Induced Loess Soil Slope Due to the Rainwater Infiltration

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

The effect of climate change on the solution of geotechnical problems has won more and more attention from engineers. It is commonly believed that the annual rainfall is changing due to global warming. The slope stability needs to be evaluated by considering the effects of the variation of the rainfall condition. In addition, the response of the slope stability to the rainfall is different because of the variability in the hydro-mechanical properties of slope soil. Therefore, it is needed to consider the effects of variation of rainfall and hydro-mechanical properties of soil in the evaluation of slope stability. The topic of this manuscript is of both academic and practical interest. The reviewer would like to recommend minor revision for this manuscript before it is accepted for publication. The authors are advised to revise the manuscript by considering the following comments.

1, To be consistent, the same legend should be used for the upper bound and lower bound as shown in Figures 1 and 2.

2, It’s better to add the theory of seepage analysis in Seep/W.

3, Table 2, parameter c’, phi’, and w should be in Italic font.

4, Table 4, Ir and Hs, I and H should be in Italic font and r and s should be subscript.

5, Line 146, the format for the factor of safety Fs should be consistent with that is shown in Figures 4 to 6.

6, The font size in Figure 6 should be consistent with those shown in Figures 4 to 6.

7, The authors are advised to double-check the grammar throughout the manuscript.

 

 

  

Author Response

Please refer to attached point to point response. 

Author Response File: Author Response.doc

Reviewer 2 Report

Dear Editor:

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to revise the manuscript entitled “Parametric analysis of rainfall-induced loess soil slope due to the rainwater infiltration” by Yang Liu and his/her colleagues that was submitted to “Urban Science”. The manuscript used numerical modeling for stability analysis and investigates the rainfall-induced instability in slope based on safety factors. In general, the manuscript contains an interesting topic which is considered one of the important stages in stability assessment; but there are several clarifications that require considering by the authors. In this regard, the following comments are requested to be addressed by the authors:

Comment 1: The English of the paper is readable; however, I would suggest the authors have it checked preferably by a native English-speaking person to avoid any mistakes.

Comment 2: The concluding remarks of the abstract are not well-written. It’s merely the repetition of the objectives and title of the manuscript. Please kindly add quantitative findings, method limitations and model verification into the abstract.

Comment 3: The necessity & novelty of the manuscript should be presented and stressed in the “Introduction” section.

Comment 4: Provide literature on the methods developed/applied to stability analysis and slope modelling in “Introduction”. The use of a table to demonstrate the advantage-disadvantage of these methods can be useful. Towards the end, mention the superiority & repeat the novelty of your work.

Comment 5: The methodology section is weakly written. So, my suggestion is to reconstruct it. Using flowcharts can be useful and model verification required.

Comment 6: Please add a subsection clearly articulating the main limitations, wider applicability of your methods, and findings in the “Discussion” section. Also, the authors should deepen the discussion.

Comment 7: I noticed that the conclusion section tends to repeat abstract and results. The conclusion paragraph should be short, impactful, and direct the reader to this research’s next steps and opportunities.

Comment 8: I would suggest that the authors review and include the following studies to improve the manuscript.

1. Azarafza, M., Akgün, H., Ghazifard, A., Asghari-Kaljahi, E., Rahnamarad, J., & Derakhshani, R. (2021). Discontinuous rock slope stability analysis by limit equilibrium approaches–a review. International Journal of Digital Earth, 14(12), 1918-1941.

2. Chen, C. Y., Chen, H. W., & Wu, W. C. (2021). Numerical modeling of interactions of rainfall and earthquakes on slope stability analysis. Environmental Earth Sciences, 80(16), 1-11.

3. Zhang, Z., Fu, X., Sheng, Q., Du, Y., Zhou, Y., & Huang, J. (2021). Stability of cracking deposit slope considering parameter deterioration subjected to rainfall. International Journal of Geomechanics, 21(7), 05021001.

4. Deliveris, A. V., Theocharis, A. I., Koukouzas, N. C., & Zevgolis, I. E. (2022). Numerical Slope Stability Analysis of Deep Excavations Under Rainfall Infiltration. Geotechnical and Geological Engineering, 1-17.

5. Azadi, A., Esmatkhah Irani, A., Azarafza, M., Hajialilue Bonab, M., Sarand, F. B., & Derakhshani, R. (2022). Coupled Numerical and Analytical Stability Analysis Charts for an Earth-Fill Dam under Rapid Drawdown Conditions. Applied Sciences, 12(9), 4550.

 

Best regards,

 

 

Author Response

Please refer to the point to point response. 

Author Response File: Author Response.doc

Round 2

Reviewer 2 Report

Accepted, Congratulations.