The Earthquake Engineering Online Archive

Finite element analysis of geosynthetically reinforced soil walls with sloping backfill

Zornberg, Jorge G.; Mitchell, James Kenneth

UCB/GT-93-04, University of California, Berkeley, Geotechnical Engineering, 1993-05, PDF (88.2 MB)

The effect of sloping backfills on the behavior of geosynthetically reinforced soil walls was investigated using finite element analyses. The methodology involved initial interpretation of field instrumentation results, subsequent validation of the numerical model against field data, and ultimate numerical simulation of new design aspects. Since in-situ geotextile tensile stiffness may be grossly underestimated from results of unconfined tensile tests, geotextile moduli were back calculated by matching numerically obtained results with available instrumentation records. Based on conservatism observed in instrumented wall design and on the results of the parametric study, a failure surface defined by an angle of 45o+ô/2 from the horizontal is recommended for the design of geosynthetically reinforced walls with sloping backfills.

Available online: http://library.eerc.berkeley.edu/documents/GEOTECH/UCB-GT-93-04.pdf