System Reliability Analysis for Seismic Stability of the Soldier Pile Wall Using the Conditional Random Finite-Element Method
Publication: International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 22, Issue 10
Abstract
The stability of the retaining system under seismic conditions is an important aspect of safe design in earthquake-prone areas. In addition, this stability is highly dependent on soil uncertainty and failure mode contribution. On the other hand, imaging the borehole data directly into the analysis section and ignoring the known data by using unconditional simulation can lead to unrealistic results. Against this background, the current study presents a reliability analysis by incorporating geostatistical conditional simulations and a pseudostatic approach into the Finite-Element Method (FEM) MATLAB code to address the aforementioned issues. Then, the Sequential Compounding Method (SCM) is implemented to calculate the overall system reliability from a combination of the individual subsystem. Reliability analysis of a real case study reveals that compared with the Unconditional Random Finite-Element Method (URFEM), utilizing the Conditional Random Finite-Element Method (CRFEM) helps improve the mean value of the Factor of Safety (FS) against all failure modes by 7%–30%, while reducing the related standard deviation by 12%–43%. The results of system reliability show that bending moment and lateral displacement are the fundamental mechanisms in the static and seismic states. Moreover, implementing conditional simulation in seismic stability analysis offers a 16% and 43% reduction in the mean value and standard deviation of an unsafe distance from the excavation edge, accounting for less uncertainty in the slip surface location. Besides, according to the Coefficient of Variation (COV) of the failure modes, it is concluded that the FS against lateral displacement is chiefly affected by the soil heterogeneity compared with others, while shear force failure mode is less affected.
Practical Applications
Soldier piles are widely used in urban and industrial areas as a temporary or permanent retaining system for constructing underground structures. The stability of the retaining system under seismic conditions is an important aspect of safe design in earthquake-prone areas. In addition, the inherent variability of the soil properties dictates that stability problems are probabilistic rather than deterministic. In the current study, a real case with three boreholes of 22.5 m depth was considered and the soil parameters were estimated via field and laboratory tests. Then, the FS distribution and reliability indices of different failure modes were obtained for both static and seismic states by considering the seismic coefficient and efficient soil properties as stochastic parameters. These curves provided the essential data for structural design based on the target performance level. Next, the variation of the slip surface was determined, which could be used for determining the unsafe zone adjacent to the excavation. The responses of soldier piles indicated that by taking the seismic coefficient into account, the mean value of lateral displacement, maximum shear force, and maximum bending moment increased by 80%, 16%, and 37%, respectively. Moreover, considering different failure modes separately led to an overestimation of the reliability indices by three times.
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Information
Published In
International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 22 • Issue 10 • October 2022
Copyright
© 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 21, 2021
Accepted: Apr 30, 2022
Published online: Jul 20, 2022
Published in print: Oct 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Dec 20, 2022
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Analysis (by type)
- Data analysis
- Earthquake engineering
- Engineering fundamentals
- Failure analysis
- Failure modes
- Finite element method
- Forensic engineering
- Geotechnical engineering
- Methodology (by type)
- Numerical methods
- Research methods (by type)
- Seismic design
- Seismic tests
- Structural engineering
- System analysis
- System reliability
- Systems engineering
- Systems management
- Tests (by type)
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