Pseudo-static Analysis of Reinforced Soil Wall Based on Pasternak Model

• Published in: Indian Geotechnical Journal Vol. 50; no. 2; pp. 252 - 260
• Main Authors: Patra, Shantanu, Shahu, J. T.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New Delhi Springer India 01.04.2020; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Analysis; Backfill; Design; Direction; Earthquake loads; Engineering; Foundations; Geoengineering; Horizontal orientation; Hydraulics; Kinematics; Material properties; Mathematical models; Methods; Parameters; Reinforced soils; S.I. : Developments in Transportation Geotechnics; Seismic design; Seismic response; Seismic stability; Soil; Soil analysis; Soil stability; Soil structure; Soils; Stability analysis; Static stability; Vertical stability; Pseudo-static analysis; Geosynthetics; Reinforced soil walls; Pasternak subgrade; Oblique pullout response
• DOI: 10.1007/s40098-019-00400-7
• ISSN: 0971-9555

One of the major reasons for the popularity of reinforced soil structures is their ability to perform better under seismic loading conditions. This could be attributed to the conservatism associated with the design procedure that considers only the axial direction of the pullout force rather than an appropriate seismic design. The kinematics of failure, however, suggests that the direction of the pullout force is not axial, and it is inclined to the horizontal direction. This paper presents the pseudo-static stability analysis of a reinforced soil wall considering the obliquity of the pullout force, where the backfill soil is idealized as a two-parameter Pasternak model. The effect of various controlling parameters such as horizontal seismic coefficient, material properties of the backfill and the wall geometry on the pullout response is also studied under the seismic loading conditions. The results are compared with the conventional methods of analysis. The comparisons show that the present analysis removes the extra degree of conservatism prevailing in the conventional methods and thus gives a better estimation of the pullout capacity. A typical design of reinforced soil wall is also shown to demonstrate that the present analysis can be easily integrated with the existing methods.