Seismic Stability for 3D Two-Step Slope Governed by Non-Linearity in Soils Using Modified Pseudo-Dynamic Approach

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

The presented work focuses on Seismic stability for 3D two-step slope. This study seems to be good and the proposed method and analyses are well supported. However, there are problems with the template:

-          references: you have to include citations in the right MDPI method (by putting numbers inside square brackets). The reference list at the end must follow the appearance order and not alphabetically.

-          Images: you have to include images inside the manuscript between paragraphs and not at the end.

thank you

Author Response

Reviewer #1:

Authors wish to thank the Reviewer #1 for the approval of our works and recommending the paper for publication. The enlightened suggestions are also grateful. The changes in the revised manuscript corresponding to the comments from Reviewer #1 are also highlighted point by point.

The comments from the Reviewer #1 are:

The presented work focuses on Seismic stability for 3D two-step slope. This study seems to be good and the proposed method and analyses are well supported.

Query:

References: you have to include citations in the right MDPI method (by putting numbers inside square brackets). The reference list at the end must follow the appearance order and not alphabetically.

Response:

Thanks for your comments. References have been revised again in the right MDPI method (by putting numbers inside square brackets). And the reference list has been in order of appearance.

Query:

Images: you have to include images inside the manuscript between paragraphs and not at the end.

Response:

Thanks for your comments. Images have been inserted between paragraphs in relation to the corresponding sections.

Reviewer 2 Report

applsci-1778745: “Seismic stability for 3D two-step slope governed by non-linearity in soils using modified pseudo-dynamic approach”

The seismic stability of three-dimensional (3D) two-step slopes is evaluated in this paper. The subject of paper is interesting and it may be accepted after the following corrections are made:

1.       Results and discussions (Section 4) should be reorganized. Comparisons should be enriched/extended and the validity of proposed method should be proved.

2.       The conclusion should be improved to summarize clearly the main contributions of the paper and future research efforts.

In summary, the paper has novelty and it is well-presented. It may be accepted after required corrections are made. 

Author Response

Reviewer #2:

Thanks for the Reviewer’s instructive comments #2. It is also greatly appreciated for your time and efforts on the revised manuscript. The authors have carefully revised the manuscript to incorporate all of the comments from Reviewer #2. Here below is the list of the detailed responses to Reviewer #2 point by point.

The comments from the Reviewer #2 are:

The seismic stability of three-dimensional (3D) two-step slopes is evaluated in this paper. The subject of paper is interesting and it may be accepted after the following corrections are made.

Query:

Results and discussions (Section 4) should be reorganized. Comparisons should be enriched/extended and the validity of proposed method should be proved.

Response:

Thanks for your comments. The results and discussion section has been reorganized. And the comparisons with relevant research literature have been further enriched, which once again confirms the validity of the proposed method.

By comparing with the results obtained by the original pseudo-dynamic method and the previous relevant research literature, the reliability of the proposed method has been verified, repeatedly. The results obtained from the sensitivity tests of geometric parameters, pseudo dynamic parameters and nonlinear parameters of soil have considerable significance for the design and safety evaluation of three-dimensional stepped slopes in current practical projects. (See lines 414-419)

The design mode of two-order slope can resist the negative impacts of seismic event on slope stability to a certain extent. And the greater the step width, the greater the depth of the step level and the smaller the inclination angle, the better the slope stability. (See lines 420-422)

Query:

The conclusion should be improved to summarize clearly the main contributions of the paper and future research efforts.

Response:

Thanks for your comments. The conclusions section has been further enhanced to highlight the main contributions of the paper and extend the future research directions. Also, some more summaries have been added to enrich it.

The above conclusions have certain meaning for the design, construction and stability evaluation for 3D two-step slopes subjected the seismic effects. (See lines 445-446)

In the future, this paper will further study the stability of 3D two-step slope in the following aspects: (1) the support methods of 3D slope affected by the seismic effects, such as prestressed anchor cable, anti sinking piles reinforcement, etc; (2) Special conditions of slope medium and complex engineering conditions, for instance, non-uniformity of soils, infiltration of surface water, etc. (See lines 447-451)