Different Failure Modes of a Clay Foundation-Embankment System Corresponding to Different Incident Seismic Waves

In recent years, damage to embankments from earthquakes has been frequently reported. In this paper, the deformation and failure behavior of an embankment constructed on a weak clay foundation during and after an earthquake is investigated using numerical analysis, GEOASIA, assuming a 40 g centrifugal field. The main conclusions obtained were as follows. 1) Although the embankment remained stable without large deformation during the earthquake, a slip plane subsequently penetrated through the embankment, resulting in delayed failure (circular arc slip). 2) The deformation behavior (failure mode) of the foundation and embankment varies greatly depending on the characteristics of the incident seismic motions.