Assessment of the effectiveness of a rockfall ditch through 3-D probabilistic rockfall simulations and automated image processing

• Published in: Engineering geology Vol. 283; p. 106001
• Main Authors: Akin, Mutluhan, Dinçer, İsmail, Ok, Ali Özgün, Orhan, Ahmet, Akin, Muge K., Topal, Tamer
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 20.03.2021
• Subjects: 3-D rockfall analysis; Automated image processing; automation; DSM; energy; residential areas; Rockfall ditch effectiveness; rockfalls; RocPro3D; UAV; watersheds; RocPro3D; 3-D rockfall analysis; Automated image processing; UAV; Rockfall ditch effectiveness; DSM
• ISSN: 0013-7952; 1872-6917
• DOI: 10.1016/j.enggeo.2021.106001

Rockfall ditches or catchment areas aim to collect falling blocks at the toe of a source zone by dissipating the energy of blocks in an excavated trench. The effectiveness of a rockfall ditch is simply expressed by its block catchment performance and can be evaluated by empirically using existing design charts as well as rockfall simulations. Although 2-dimensional (2-D) analysis has been executed to assess the catchment ditch effectiveness in engineering practice, 3-dimensional (3-D) rockfall models have not received enough attention so far. In this study, the effectiveness of a considerably long rockfall ditch to protect a settlement from falling rocks was assessed on the basis of 3-D rockfall analyses executed using high-resolution digital surface models. The rockfall ditch efficiency was found to be moderate to limited for various segments considering the percentage of blocks not trapped by the ditch. Moreover, the sensitivity of ditch efficiency to ditch depth was analyzed by automated image processing method as well. Additionally, a particular section of ditch alignment was fictitiously excavated or filled by synthetic Digital Surface Model (DSM) generation through image processing. 3-D rockfall modeling carried out using the DSMs with synthetically manipulated ditches points out that the effectiveness of a catchment ditch is highly depended upon ditch depth. Even a small volume of block accumulation inside the ditch definitely reduces the ditch performance resulting extended runout distances reaching to residential area. Finally, 3-D rockfall modeling is accepted to be an effective tool to rate the efficiency of existing rockfall ditches and synthetically generated ditches on DSMs (or DEMs) by means of automated image processing method may assist the control of current ditch dimension as well as new catchment ditch design. •3-D rockfall analysis is an effective tool to evaluate ditch effectiveness.•Rockfall accumulation can radically reduce the efficiency of a ditch.•Automated image processing may be reasonable to evaluate ditch effectiveness.•Unmanned aerial vehicles may be advantageous while scanning irregular terrain.•The rockfall ditch efficiency is apparently sensitive to ditch depth.