Numerical modeling of cohesive-frictional soil behind inclined retaining wall under passive translation mode

Abstract

Accurate assessment of horizontal earth pressure acting upon retaining walls is crucial for the effective and secure design of these constructions. Not only active earth pressure but also the arching phenomenon plays a significant role in passive earth pressure distribution. In this study, using the finite difference method (FDM), some numerical models are simulated to examine the influence of soil strength properties and wall inclination on the earth pressure and ground deformation. The development of shear bands as well as the trajectories of principal stress inside the backfill are investigated. The results of this study show that the failure surface behind the retaining wall under passive mode is generally nonlinear and will become linear only if the wall surface is frictionless. Among the existing theories, the stress distribution provided by the classical theory of Coulomb (1776) shows a better agreement with the numerical data compared to arching-based theories and the classical theory of Rankine (1857). Considering the root mean square error (RMSE) falling within the approximate range of 0.2 to 0.5, it can be inferred that the numerical modelling results demonstrate acceptable agreement with the Coulomb theory. These findings are consistent with the experimental results of Fang et al. (2002).