Investigation of Deformation Characteristics of a 17-m Reinforced Earth Wall Under Seismic Conditions

This paper presents the effect of various parameters on deformation characteristics of a 17-m reinforced wall under seismic conditions with consideration of large strains. The foundation soil strength parameters (angle of internal friction and cohesion) and reinforcing elements (length and stiffness) are varied to investigate their effects on horizontal facing deformation and vertical displacement of the wall toe. The main objective of this research is to investigate the optimized performance of such (high) walls under seismic conditions. Numerical 2-D plane-strain analysis with a finite difference scheme using FLAC-2D is performed to achieve the objectives. A variable amplitude harmonic wave with a 3-Hz frequency is applied to the wall foundation. The results show that an improved foundation soil properties of suitable shear strength and steel reinforcement belts with proper length (with respect to the wall height), the wall deformations are significantly reduced and the wall performance under seismic conditions is improved.