Mechanical properties of tailings with dipping interlayers under high confining pressure

Landslides are often triggered by weak interlayers initiated in tailings dam foundations, and hazards gradually occur. This is serious for landslides in high tailings dams due to their high potential energy. Tailing samples with a fine-grained interlayer at a set dip angle were prepared. Consolidated undrained (CU) triaxial shear tests were carried out by using a high-pressure triaxial apparatus. The results were compared with the results under a low confining pressure. Four reasons were summarized for high tailings dams more prone to instability than low dams. The shear strength of the samples with dipping interlayers decreases with increasing dip angle. An obvious straight drop in the stress path after the peak occurs in samples with dipping interlayers at an angle of 60. The effect of the interlayer on the mechanical behaviour of tailings is very sensitive, especially for the sample with a dipping interlayer at an angle of 60. Shear slipping along the interlayer should be given more attention in tailings dams. Compared with the results under low confining pressure, the stress decreases continuously for the samples with dipping interlayers at large angles under high confining pressure. The positive pore pressure, which reduces the effective stress, occurred in tailings samples under high confining pressure. The residual strength of tailings under high confining pressure is smaller than that under low confining pressure. These factors increase the dam break risk and the disaster impact for high tailings dams.