Seismic analysis of nailed vertical excavation using pseudo-dynamic approach

An attempt has been made to study the behavior of nailed vertical excavations in medium dense to dense cohesionless soil under seismic conditions using a pseudo-dynamic approach. The effect of several parameters such as angle of internal friction of soil(Φ), horizontal(k_h) and vertical(k_v) earthquake acceleration coefficients, amplification factor(f_a), length of nails(L), angle of nail inclination(α) and vertical spacing of nails(S_v) on the stability of nailed vertical excavations has been explored. The limit equilibrium method along with a planar failure surface is used to derive the formulation involved with the pseudo-dynamic approach, considering axial pullout of the installed nails. A comparison of the pseudo-static and pseudo-dynamic approaches has been established in order to explore the effectiveness of the pseudo-dynamic approach over pseudo-static analysis, since most of the seismic stability studies on nailed vertical excavations are based on the latter. The results are expressed in terms of the global factor of safety(FOS). Seismic stability, i.e., the FOS of nailed vertical excavations is found to decrease with increase in the horizontal and vertical earthquake forces. The present values of FOS are compared with those available in the literature.     

Dynamic active thrust from c–ϕ soil backfills

This technical note presents an analytical derivation of the expression for the total dynamic active thrust on a retaining wall from the c–? soil backfill considering both horizontal and vertical seismic coefficients. The derivation is based on the Coulomb sliding wedge concept, and it considers tension cracks, wall adhesion, and surcharge in order to make the expression useful for practical applications. It is found that the special cases of the general expression result in the expressions for total static and dynamic active thrusts presented by earlier researchers for different field conditions of soil backfills with and without seismic loadings.     

Seismic active earth pressure of cohesive-frictional soil on retaining wall based on a slice analysis method

The M–O (Mononobe–Okabe) theory is used as a standard method to determine the seismic earth pressure. However, the M–O theory does not consider the influence of soil cohesion, and it cannot determine the nonlinear distribution of the seismic earth pressure. This paper presents a general solution for the nonlinear distribution of the seismic active earth pressure of cohesive-frictional soil using the slice analysis method. A new method is proposed to determine the critical failure angle of the backfill wedge under complex conditions, and an iterative calculation method is presented to determine the tension crack depth of the seismic active earth pressure. The considered parameters in the proposed method include the horizontal and vertical seismic coefficients, wall inclination angle, backfill inclination angle, soil friction angle, wall friction angle, soil cohesion, wall adhesion and uniform surcharge. The classical methods of the M–O and Rankine theories can be regarded as special cases of the proposed method. Furthermore, the proposed method is compared with the test results and previously existing solutions to validate the correctness of the results. Additionally, the parameters׳ effect on the critical failure angle, the resultant force, the application-point position, the tension crack depth and the nonlinear distribution of seismic active earth pressure are studied in graphical form.     

Pseudo-dynamic active force and pressure behind battered retaining wall supporting inclined backfill

Knowledge of seismic active earth pressure behind rigid retaining wall is very important. Commonly used Mononobe–Okabe method considers pseudo-static approach, which gives the linear distribution of seismic earth force. In this paper, the pseudo-dynamic approach, which considers the effect of primary and shear wave propagations, is adopted to calculate the seismic active force. Considering the planar rupture surface, the effect of wide range of parameters like inclination of retaining wall, inclination of backfill surface, wall friction and soil friction angle, shear wave and primary wave velocity, horizontal and vertical seismic coefficients are taken into account to evaluate the seismic active force. Results are presented in terms of seismic coefficients in tabular form and variation of pressure along the depth.     

Static and seismic limit equilibrium analysis of sliding retaining walls under different surcharge conditions

The static and seismic sliding limit equilibrium condition of retaining walls is investigated, and analytical solutions for the angle of the active slip surface, the critical acceleration coefficient and the coefficient of active earth pressure are provided for different surcharge conditions. In particular, walls retaining a horizontal backfill without surcharge, walls supporting an extended uniform surcharge applied at different distances from the wall and walls supporting a limited uniform surcharge or linear uniform surcharge parallel to the wall are considered in the analysis.The solutions have been derived in the framework of the limit equilibrium approach, considering the effect of the wall through its weight, and accounting for the shear resistance at the base of the wall and the inertia force arising in the wall under seismic conditions.For the wall without surcharge the effect of the vertical component of the seismic acceleration as well as the effects of the inclination of the wall internal face and of the soil–wall friction were also investigated.The angle of the slip plane, the critical seismic acceleration coefficient and the coefficient of active earth pressure are given as functions of dimensionless parameters and the boundary conditions for the applicability of each solution are specified. The influence of soil weight, surcharge conditions and inertia forces on the active earth pressure coefficient is analysed.     

Static and seismic bearing capacity of shallow strip footings

In this study, the evaluation of static and seismic bearing capacity factors for a shallow strip footing was carried out by using the method of characteristics, which was extended to the seismic condition by means of the pseudo-static approach. The results, for both smooth and rough foundations, were checked against those obtained through finite element analyses.Under seismic conditions the three bearing capacity problems for N_c, N_q and N_γ were solved independently and the seismic bearing capacity factors were evaluated accounting separately for the effect of horizontal and vertical inertia forces arising in the soil, in the lateral surcharge and in the superstructure.Empirical formulae approximating the extensive numerical results are proposed to compute the static values of N_γ and the corrective coefficients that can be introduced in the well-known Terzaghi׳s formula of the bearing capacity to extend its applicability to seismic design of foundations.     

地震作用下非饱和土主动土压力极限分析半解析法

地震是诱发边坡失稳的主要因素之一,重力式挡土墙作为一种广泛采用的岩土支挡结构,有必要对其地震稳定性问题进行深入的研究.为有效评估地震作用下非饱和填土的主动土压力,基于极限分析上限原理和拟动力法,提出一种半解析水平片分法,计算具有非线性分布特征的非饱和土重力和地震惯性力所做外功率,并构建功能平衡方程,得到非饱和填土主动土压力显示半解析解.通过与解析解对比,验证该方法的合理性,并通过算例分析,揭示吸力效应的强化机制和非饱和填土主动土压力的地震响应规律.结果表明:忽略吸力效应会高估填土的主动土压力,吸力的强化作用不仅取决于填土类型,还与地震动特性密切相关;水平和竖向地震动对土压力有较大影响, 土压力系数峰值随土剪切模量的增加略有增加并向负方向移动,随地震周期的增加略有增加并向正方向移动;填土倾角较大时,坡顶附加荷载的影响更加显著;对于倾角大于100°的填土,墙G土界面摩擦角较大时,土压力相对较高.     

Fragility estimation and sensitivity analysis of an idealized pile-supported wharf with batter piles

The main objective of the present study is to develop seismic fragility curves of an idealized pile-supported wharf with batter piles through a practical framework. Proposing quantitative limit states, analytical fragility curves are developed considering three engineering demand parameters (EDPs), including displacement ductility factor (µ_d), differential settlement between deck and behind land (DS) and normalized residual horizontal displacement (NRHD). Analytical fragility curves are generated using the results of a numerical model. So, the accuracy and reliability of resulted fragility curves directly depend on how accurate the seismic demand quantities are estimated. In addition, the seismic performance of pile-supported wharves is highly influenced by geotechnical properties of the soil structure system. Hence, a sensitivity analysis using the first-order second-moment (FOSM) method is performed to evaluate the effects of geotechnical parameters uncertainties in the seismic performance of the wharf.Herein, the seismic performance of the wharf structure is simulated using the representative FLAC2D model and performing nonlinear time history analyses under a suit of eight ground motion records. Incremental dynamic analysis (IDA) is used to estimate the seismic demand quantities. As a prevailing tool, adopted fragility curves are useful to seismic risk assessment. They can also be used to optimize wharf-retrofit methods. The results of sensitivity analysis demonstrate that uncertainties associated with the porosity of loose sand contribute most to the variance of both NRHD and µ_d. While in the case of differential settlement, the friction angle of loose sand contributes most to the variance.     

Seismic rotational displacement of gravity walls by pseudo-dynamic method: Passive case

Prediction of the seismic rotational displacements of retaining wall under passive condition is an important aspect of design in earthquake prone region. In this paper, the pseudo-dynamic method is used to compute the rotational displacements of rigid retaining wall supporting cohesionless backfill under seismic loading for the passive earth pressure condition. The proposed method considers time, phase difference and effect of amplification in shear and primary waves propagating through both the backfill and the retaining wall. The influence of ground motion characteristics on rotational displacement of the wall is evaluated. Also the effects of variation of parameters like wall friction angle, soil friction angle, amplification factor, shear wave velocity, primary wave velocity, period of lateral shaking, horizontal and vertical seismic accelerations on the rotational displacements are studied. The rotational displacement of the wall increases substantially with increase in amplification of both shear and primary waves, time of input motion, period of lateral shaking and decreases with increase in soil friction angle, wall friction angle. The rotational displacements of the wall also increase when the effect of wall inertia is taken into account. Results are provided in graphical form.     

地震作用下垃圾填埋场三维失稳破坏分析

在垃圾填埋场的设计和扩建阶段,二维动力稳定性分析不一定能够合理反映填埋场的稳定现状。采用三维稳定分析方法,考虑地震作用下填埋场不同高宽比、水平和竖向地震系数对其稳定性的影响,结果表明不同高宽比和水平地震系数对于填埋稳定性具有较大影响;在此基础上将三维动力稳定分析结果与二维分析做比较。该方法对于填埋场的抗震分析具有一定的参考价值。     

挡土墙地震被动土压力的拟动力分析

对地震土压力的研究是地震区挡土墙安全设计的一项重要课题。地震条件下,目前的研究主要是给出了土压力的近似拟静力解析解。本文采用可考虑动力荷载下的周期和纵波及横波效应的拟动力方法,对挡土墙后的地震被动土压力进行分析。在挡土墙后平面滑裂面假设的基础上,考虑了水平和垂直向地震加速度、纵波速度、横波速度、挡土墙摩擦角、填土内摩擦角、填土坡角对地震被动土压力的影响。与Mononobe-Okabe理论的拟静力法不同的是,用本方法得出了沿墙身地震被动土压力是非线性变化的结果,这更符合地震条件下土压力的变化规律。     

A new limit equilibrium method for the pseudostatic design of embedded cantilevered retaining walls

This paper describes a new pseudostatic limit equilibrium method for the design of cantilevered retaining walls under seismic actions. The method has been applied in a parametric study of the effects of the geometry of the wall, considering different excavated and embedded depths, of the strength of the soil, and of the contact between the soil and the wall. The pseudostatic predictions are in very good agreement, both in terms of horizontal contact stress and bending moment distributions, with the results of truly dynamic 2-D finite difference analyses and published experimental data. It is found that for increasing strengths of the soil–wall system both the critical acceleration and the maximum bending moment on the wall increase. In other words, a stronger soil–wall system will experience smaller displacements during the earthquake, but this is paid for by increasing internal forces in the wall.     

An alternative to the Mononobe–Okabe equations for seismic earth pressures

A closed-form stress plasticity solution is presented for gravitational and earthquake-induced earth pressures on retaining walls. The proposed solution is essentially an approximate yield-line approach, based on the theory of discontinuous stress fields, and takes into account the following parameters: (1) weight and friction angle of the soil material, (2) wall inclination, (3) backfill inclination, (4) wall roughness, (5) surcharge at soil surface, and (6) horizontal and vertical seismic acceleration. Both active and passive conditions are considered by means of different inclinations of the stress characteristics in the backfill. Results are presented in the form of dimensionless graphs and charts that elucidate the salient features of the problem. Comparisons with established numerical solutions, such as those of Chen and Sokolovskii, show satisfactory agreement (maximum error for active pressures about 10%). It is shown that the solution does not perfectly satisfy equilibrium at certain points in the medium, and hence cannot be classified in the context of limit analysis theorems. Nevertheless, extensive comparisons with rigorous numerical results indicate that the solution consistently overestimates active pressures and under-predicts the passive. Accordingly, it can be viewed as an approximate lower-bound solution, than a mere predictor of soil thrust. Compared to the Coulomb and Mononobe–Okabe equations, the proposed solution is simpler, more accurate (especially for passive pressures) and safe, as it overestimates active pressures and underestimates the passive. Contrary to the aforementioned solutions, the proposed solution is symmetric, as it can be expressed by a single equation—describing both active and passive pressures—using appropriate signs for friction angle and wall roughness.     

Seismic passive resistance with vertical seepage and surcharge

Present paper focuses on the computation of the seismic passive earth pressure acting on a vertical rigid retaining wall by a soil mass subjected to vertical steady-state seepage and a uniform surcharge load. Based on the basic assumptions of Coulomb's theory and a pseudo-static method of analysis, a general solution for the passive earth pressure containing two coefficients is presented. In the solution, many parameters, such as unit weight of saturated soil, soil effective internal friction angle, soil/wall friction angle, water/soil unit weight ratio, surcharge intensity coefficient, horizontal and vertical seismic acceleration coefficients, Poisson's ratio of soil mass, hydraulic gradient, and coefficients of pore water pressure, are considered. The effects of hydraulic gradient and seismic forces on passive earth pressure coefficient and passive earth pressure distribution are investigated. The results indicate that passive earth pressure increases with increasing hydraulic gradient for downward water flow case, but decreases for upward water flow case, and that the presence of seismic forces induces a reduction in passive earth pressure.     

Dynamic passive pressure from c–ϕ soil backfills

This technical note presents an analytical expression for the total passive pressure on a retaining wall from the c–? soil backfill subjected to both horizontal and vertical seismic inertial forces. The developed expression has been analysed for the special cases, and the results have been found identical to those proposed by earlier researchers on the subject. A numerical example, presented to illustrate the steps for the calculation of total dynamic passive pressure using the developed general expression, shows that the design value of total dynamic passive pressure as a resistance to the retaining wall movement should be obtained with upward vertical seismic inertial force in combination with the direction of horizontal seismic force towards the backfill.     

Development and validation of p‐y modeling approach for seismic response predictions of highway bridges

This study aims to realistically simulate the seismic responses of typical highway bridges in California with considerations of soil–structure interaction effects. The p‐y modeling approaches are developed and validated for embankments and pile foundations of bridges. The p‐y approach models the lateral and vertical foundation flexibility with distributed p‐y springs and associated t‐z and q‐z springs. Building upon the existing p‐y models for pile foundations, the study develops the nonlinear p‐y springs for embankments based on nonlinear 2D and 3D continuum finite element analysis under passive loading condition along both longitudinal and transverse directions. Closed‐form expressions are developed for two key parameters, the ultimate resistant force p_ult and the displacement y₅₀, where 0.5p_ult is reached, of embankment p‐y models as functions of abutment geometry (wall width and height, embankment fill height, etc.) and soil material properties (wall‐soil friction angle, soil friction angle, and cohesion). In order to account for the kinematic and site responses, depth‐varying ground motions are derived and applied at the free‐end of p‐y springs, which reflects the amplified embankment crest motion. The modeling approach is applied to simulate the seismic responses of the Painter Street Bridge and validated through comparisons with the recorded responses during the 1992 Petrolia earthquake. It is demonstrated that the flexibility and motion amplification at end abutments are the most crucial modeling aspects. The developed p‐y models and the modeling approach can effectively predict the seismic responses of highway bridges. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Rocking-isolated frame structures: Margins of safety against toppling collapse and simplified design approach

This paper aims to explore the limitations associated with the design of “rocking-isolated” frame structures. According to this emerging seismic design concept, instead of over-designing the isolated footings of a frame (as entrenched in current capacity–design principles), the latter are under-designed with the intention to limit the seismic loads transmitted to the superstructure. An idealized 2-storey frame is utilized as an illustrative example, to investigate the key factors affecting foundation design. Nonlinear FE analysis is employed to study the seismic performance of the rocking-isolated frame. After investigating the margins of safety against toppling collapse, a simplified procedure is developed to estimate the minimum acceptable footing width B_min, without recourse to sophisticated (and time consuming) numerical analyses. It is shown that adequate margins of safety against toppling collapse may be achieved, if the toppling displacement capacity of the frame δ_topl (i.e. the maximum horizontal displacement that does not provoke toppling) is sufficiently larger than the seismic demand δ_dem. With respect to the capacity, the use of an appropriate “equivalent” rigid-body is suggested, and shown to yield a conservative estimate of δ_topl. The demand is estimated on the basis of the displacement spectrum, and the peak spectral displacement SD_max is proposed as a conservative measure of δ_dem. The validity and limitations of such approximation are investigated for a rigid-block on rigid-base, utilizing rigorous analytical solutions from the bibliography; and for the frame structure on nonlinear soil, by conducting comprehensive nonlinear dynamic time history analyses. In all cases examined, the simplified SD_max approach is shown to yield reasonably conservative estimates.     

爆炸地震波作用下地下结构动力响应数值分析

爆炸地震波荷载类似于天然地震波荷载，但又不完全相同。基于有效应力动力分析法，运用二维显式有限差分程序FLAC对地下结构在竖向和水平爆炸地震波荷载作用下的动力响应进行数值分析。编制了周围土体介质分析模型的程序模块并与FLAC接口。考虑了水平和竖向爆炸地震波荷载对地下结构的耦合效应，得出了一些定性的结论。     

Reliability assessment of internal stability of reinforced soil structures: A pseudo-dynamic approach

A methodology for reliability based optimum design of reinforced soil structures subjected to horizontal and vertical sinusoidal excitation based on pseudo-dynamic approach is presented. The tensile strength of reinforcement required to maintain the stability is computed using logarithmic spiral failure mechanism. The backfill soil properties, geometric and strength properties of reinforcement are treated as random variables. Effects of parameters like soil friction angle, horizontal and vertical seismic accelerations, shear and primary wave velocities, amplification factors for seismic acceleration on the component and system probability of failures in relation to tension and pullout capacities of reinforcement have been discussed. In order to evaluate the validity of the present formulation, static and seismic reinforcement force coefficients computed by the present method are compared with those given by other authors. The importance of the shear wave velocity in the estimation of the reliability of the structure is highlighted. The Ditlevsen's bounds of system probability of failure are also computed by taking into account the correlations between three failure modes, which is evaluated using the direction cosines of the tangent planes at the most probable points of failure.     

Site response effects on an urban overpass

Strong ground motion variability due to rapid changes in subsoil conditions may lead to different site responses, which in turn yields to beneficial or detrimental soil–foundation–structure interaction. This technical note presents the results of a seismic soil–structure interaction analysis conducted using a 2D finite difference model, developed with the program FLAC, of a critical section of a 60 km long strategic urban overpass, which is under construction in Mexico City, for a M_w 8.7 earthquake. Initially, the response of the free field was calibrated comparing the values obtained with FLAC, with those gathered using the computer code QUAD4M. Good agreement was observed between the results generated with these programs. Accelerations and displacements were determined at the upper deck and foundation of the urban overpass. Important seismic soil–structure interaction was observed along the overpass at the supports analyzed. This numerical study helps to gain insight regarding the site response ground motion incoherence effects that influence the dynamic behavior of this kind of structures during extreme events.