Characterisation of a volcanic residual soil and its implications for large landslide phenomena: application to Tenerife, Canary Islands

Large landslides are common processes during the evolution of volcanoes and individual events can exceed several cubic kilometres in volume. Volcanic slope failures are a significant risk for the neighbouring population due to their huge volumes and great runout distances. Around the Canary archipelago, a total of seventeen deposits of large landslides have been found, and on Tenerife, seven large landslides have affected the subaerial and submarine morphology during the last,6 Ma. However, the causes of such mass movements are still poorly understood. This work analyses the events around the Canary Islands and focuses on the ones that occurred on Tenerife in order to obtain new insights into the mechanisms of large volcanic landslides. The study is divided into a first part that includes site investigations examining the general features favouring large-scale failures at volcanoes. The second part describes the laboratory tests used to analyse a residual soil that may be the potential slip surface of the slides on Tenerife. The site investigation revealed that regional tectonics and the climate have a significant influence on the spatial distribution of the landslides. Moreover, morphological and geological features such as deep fluvial canyons, a high coastal cliff and persistent dike intrusion may favour the initiation of slope failure. A typical residual soil sample from the lateral scarp of the La Orotava amphitheatre on Tenerife was studied by carrying out standard laboratory tests. The microstructure was analysed using environmental scanning electron microscopy and a particular bonding was found. This bonding was also detected by the geotechnical tests. Consolidation tests and direct shear tests revealed that the mechanica