Geofoam Inclusions for Reducing Passive Force on Bridge Abutments Based on Large-Scale Tests

• Published in: Geotechnical Frontiers 2017 pp. 59 - 68
• Main Authors: Rollins, Kyle M, Marsh, Aaron, Scott, Eric
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• ISBN: 9780784480465; 078448046X
• DOI: 10.1061/9780784480465.007

To decrease lateral earth pressures on structures, a zone of compressible material or an “inclusion” can be used as a barrier to decrease lateral earth pressures on structures. The compressible material is typically expanded polystyrene or geofoam. Little guidance is available on the development of passive force with an inclusion. To explore this issue, large-scale passive force tests were conducted with and without a geofoam inclusion acting as a barrier between the backfill soil and a simulated bridge abutment. The presence of the geofoam inclusion reduced the passive force by 70% relative to the sand backfill alone. Although the measured force and failure geometry appeared to conform to a log-spiral mechanism when only sand backfill was used, the geofoam inclusion transforms the failure geometry to a Rankine failure mechanism. This suggests that the geofoam acted to reduce the interface friction between the wall and the backfill sand thereby reducing the passive resistance.