Seismic Design of Flexible Cantilevered Retaining Walls
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 136, Issue 2
Abstract
In this paper, the seismic behavior of embedded cantilevered retaining walls in a coarse-grained soil is studied with a number of numerical analyses, using a nonlinear hysteretic model coupled with a Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion. Two different seismic inputs are used, consisting of acceleration time histories recorded at rock outcrops in Italy. The numerical analyses are aimed to investigate the dynamic behavior of this class of retaining walls, and to interpret this behavior with a pseudostatic approach, in order to provide guidance for design. The role of the wall stiffness on the dynamic response of the system is investigated first. Then, the seismic performance of the retaining walls under severe seismic loading is investigated, exploring the possibility of designing the system in such a way that during the earthquake the strengths of both the soil and the retaining walls are mobilized. In this way, an economic design criterion may be developed, that relies on the ductility of the system, as it is customary in the seismic design of structures.
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Acknowledgments
The work presented in this paper is part of the ReLUIS research project, funded by the Italian Department of Civil Protection. The contribution of the Italian Ministry of University, through the research project “Effetto delle azioni sismiche sulla stabilità dei pendii e sul comportamento di scavi e gallerie (PRIN 2007)” is also acknowledged.
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Information
Published In
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 136 • Issue 2 • February 2010
Pages: 344 - 354
Copyright
© 2010 ASCE.
History
Received: Feb 19, 2009
Accepted: Aug 5, 2009
Published online: Aug 15, 2009
Published in print: Feb 2010
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