A debris-flow impact pressure model combining material characteristics and flow dynamic parameters

Impact force is a crucial factor to be considered in debris-resisting structure design. The impact of debris flow against a structural barrier depends not only on the flow dynamics but also on the barrier material. Based on the structural vibration equation and energy conservation law, a simple model for calculating debris-flow impact pressure is proposed, which includes the mechanical impedance of the material, debris-flow velocity and Froude number. Twenty-five impact tests have been conducted using different kinds of materials: steel, black granite, white granite, marble and polyvinyl chloride(PVC) board, and the ratio of the maximum impact time to the vibration period of the structure is determined for the model. It is found that the ratio’s square root shows a linear relationship with the material solid Froude number. This indicates that the impedance of the structures plays an important role in the flow-barrier interaction. Moreover, the debrisflow impact force is found to decrease with the travel time of the elastic stress wave though the structures.