ABSTRACT
Physical model tests were performed in a large-scale landslide flume to investigate long and thin gravitationally accelerated granular landslides and the morphology of the resulting deposits. The effect of capillarity on landslide rheology is examined, specifically for 3 mm diameter spherical beads. Five different moisture conditions were tested covering all dry and moist combinations of the particles and the basal shear surface, and for a saturated source volume. The saturated test results in a deposit with an extraordinarily long distal reach, while observations from the dry and moist tests indicate that capillarity has a minimal influence on the deposit location and shape. This experimental evidence indicates that the beads are sufficiently large to overcome capillary forces, the drained but moist deposit can be reused as a source volume without the need to be completely dry for subsequent experiments, and can be used to trigger landslide tsunamis in future tests.
