Coupled Effect of Suction Stress and Unit Weight on the Active Earth Pressure of Unsaturated Backfills

Ganesh, R and Rajesh, S (2022) Coupled Effect of Suction Stress and Unit Weight on the Active Earth Pressure of Unsaturated Backfills. In: International Journal of Geomechanics, 22 (8).

PDF int_jou_geo_22_8_2022.pdf - Published Version Restricted to Registered users only Download (759kB) | Request a copy

Abstract

In this study, limit equilibrium-based semianalytical solution has been developed to compute the distribution of active pressure and the magnitude and point of application of the total active thrust resulting from unsaturated backfills against inclined walls. Unlike earlier studies, the coupled effects of saturation-dependent suction stress and unit weight of the unsaturated soil mass above the water table has been considered to provide a realistic solution. Two separate analyses have been carried out to examine the potential impact of steady infiltration flow rates for the no-seismic case and for pseudostatic horizontal seismic forces for the no-flow case on the active pressure of unsaturated backfills. The results of the present analyses clearly reveal the potential effects of different parameters and tensile stress on the wall resulting from cohesion and suction stress components of unsaturated soil mass. It was noted that the nature of the variation of the active soil pressure distribution is highly dependent upon the hydraulic and mechanical properties of the unsaturated soils. This paper presents a simple, yet valuable, method for assessing the service state stability and performing forensic analyses of earth retention structures with unsaturated soil backfills. © 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Publication:	International Journal of Geomechanics
Publisher:	American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
Additional Information:	The copyright for this article belongs to the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).
Keywords:	Failure (mechanical); Groundwater; Infiltration; Pressure distribution; Seismology; Soils, Active earth pressure; Coupled effect; Limit equilibrium; Semi-analytical solution; Soil mass; Steady infiltration; Suction stress; Trail failure wedge; Unit weight; Unsaturated soil, Retaining walls
Department/Centre:	Division of Mechanical Sciences > Civil Engineering
Date Deposited:	22 Jun 2022 06:59
Last Modified:	22 Jun 2022 06:59
URI:	https://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/73915

Actions (login required)

View Item