A New Tool to Quantify the Failure Probability of Rockfall Net Fences

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6463-900-1_45How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Reliability-based approach; failure probability; rockfall net fences; tool

Abstract

Rockfall is a high-energy natural hazard that poses significant threats to inhabited areas and infrastructure in mountainous regions. Rockfall net fences are widely used passive structural systems designed to mitigate this hazard by intercepting and stopping falling rocks through energy dissipation. Despite their widespread use, the design of these systems is not fully codified. Current European guidelines suggest ensuring that the system’s capacity exceeds the expected load, expressed through unique values, but this approach neglects the system’s failure probability. The authors propose a mathematical framework to compute the failure probability of rockfall net fences based on reliability considerations. This method accounts for all potential block volumes, recognizing that smaller blocks are more frequent. The framework provides design characteristics for a given failure probability or quantifies the failure probability of an existing net fence. The calculations use data on block velocity and trajectory from the site. Previously, this approach was limited to academia due to its complexity. The paper introduces a new tool that integrates with RocFall software, facilitating the reliability-based assessment of protection structures. This tool optimizes the design and performance of barriers, leading to better management of rockfall risks. Examples of applications demonstrate that this method can result in more informed management of hazardous areas, improving safety and effectiveness in mitigating rockfall hazards.

Copyright

© 2025 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

Download article (PDF)

TY  - CONF
AU  - Valerio De Biagi
AU  - Maddalena Marchelli
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/12/07
TI  - A New Tool to Quantify the Failure Probability of Rockfall Net Fences
BT  - Proceedings of the Rocscience International Conference 2025 (RIC 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 451
EP  - 459
SN  - 2589-4943
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6463-900-1_45
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6463-900-1_45
ID  - DeBiagi2025
ER  -