The stability of the breakwaters refers to the stone blocks on one side and to the stability of the works of breakwater as a whole, on the other. The stability of the walls of breakwater placed at road works must be checked against the main failure modes that can occur and that are: sliding, collapse, global stability and local stability. In addition, there are other failure modes that cause instability, as the undercutting, chemical alterations or weathering, which are not affordable with calculating conventional requiring more specific checks. The stability of the jetties in these cases are avoided with the proper selection of materials and the application of certain constructive criteria. In the works of placed rockfill each block of stone placement is performed individually, so that the set of breakwaters present minimum voids volume as possible, reaching high values of the apparent specific gravity of placed rockfill and favoring the stability of the breakwater wall. The friction between the blocks that they form the breakwater is a very important parameter for the stability of the wall and is produced by friction between stone blocks sharp edges and rough surfaces.
Behind the wall of breakwaters has a decisive influence on their behavior and of him depends greatly on its stability. In general, a batter has granular to materialize the particle transition between the natural terrain and the facing of RIPRAP. The composition of the stones to be used in breakwaters must be chemically stable and not give rise to solutions with water that may be susceptible to cause damage to structures or contamination of soil or water courses. Rocks destined for jetties should be stable against immersion in water. The corresponding test is indicated in the standard UNE 146510. Those stones are stable immersed in water for 24 hours (24 h) does not indicate that any cracking and its loss of mass is less than or equal to 2%. To study the possible effects of the breakwaters against changes in humidity, trials are made of cycles of humedad-sequedad of the stone blocks forming them, according to UNE 146511. To qualify the stability of the rock, in the essay requires a mass less than or equal to 2% loss. Original author and source of the article