Numerical evaluation of a granular column reinforced by geosynthetics using encasement and laminated disks

Structures built on soft strata may experience substantial settlement, large lateral deformation of the soft layer and global or local instability. Granular columns reinforced by geosynthetic materials reduce settlement and increase the bearing capacity of the composite ground. Reinforcement is more common in the form of geosynthetic encasement, but laminated disks can also be used. This paper compares these two forms of reinforcement by means of unit cell finite element analyses. Numerical results were initially validated using field and experimental data, and parametric studies were subsequently performed. The parametric studies varied the geosynthetic interval and the geosynthetic tensile stiffness of the laminated disks as well as the length of the reinforced column. The analyses showed that in both modes; encasement and laminated disks; the geosynthetic increases the vertical stress mobilized on the reinforced column and reduces settlement on soft soil. It was also observed that in order to achieve the same performance as with encased column, the optimum interval between laminated disks is dependent on the stiffness of the geosynthetics and the column reinforced length.     

筋箍长度及刚度对加筋碎石桩复合地基承载力影响分析

针对加筋碎石桩复合地基中桩体性能,通过有限元数值模拟与模型试验对比分析,验证了数值模型的可靠性,进而变换加筋长度,研究分析了复合基础下端承加筋单桩与群桩的极限承载能力和破坏模式。研究结果表明:筋材强度较低时,加筋长度不会对桩体破坏模式产生影响,对极限承载能力提高有限;随着筋材强度不断提高,碎石桩在加筋体以下区域发生剪切破坏,并且随着加筋长度的增加向更深土层发展,基础的极限承载能力线性增长。加筋长度对群桩复合地基不同位置处桩体的破坏模式影响不同。相较于边桩,中心桩在桩身较深位置处发生剪切破坏,筋材需达到较深的长度才发挥约束效果。     

A closed-form solution for column-supported embankments with geosynthetic reinforcement

Soil arching effect results from the non-uniform stiffness in a geosynthetic-reinforced and column-supported embankment system. However, most theoretical models ignore the impact of modulus difference on the calculation of load transfer. In this study, a generalized mathematical model is presented to investigate the soil arching effect, with consideration given to the modulus ratio between columns and the surrounding soil. For simplification, a cylindrical unit cell is drawn to study the deformation compatibility among embankment fills, geosynthetics, columns, and subsoils. A deformed shape function is introduced to describe the relationship between the column and the adjacent soil. The measured data gained from a full-scale test are applied to demonstrate the application of this model. In the parametric study, certain influencing factors, such as column spacing, column length, embankment height, modulus ratio, and tensile strength of geosynthetic reinforcement, are analyzed to investigate the performance of the embankment system. This demonstrates that the inclusion of a geosynthetic reinforcement or enlargement of the modulus ratio can increase the load transfer efficiency. When enhancing the embankment height or applying an additional loading, the height of the load transfer platform tends to be reduced. However, a relatively long column has little impact on the load transfer platform.     

竖向土工加筋体对碎石桩承载变形影响的模型试验研究

在碎石桩桩顶一定深度内包裹竖向土工加筋体形成筋箍碎石桩,能有效提高碎石桩的承载能力,控制复合地基沉降量。采用分级加载方式,设计并完成了两组较大比例室内模型试验,对比分析了筋箍碎石桩和传统碎石桩的承载变形特性,进而探讨了筋箍碎石桩的加筋机理和鼓胀变形模式,重点分析了竖向土工加筋体的应力应变特征。分析结果表明：竖向土工加筋体能有效约束碎石桩的侧向鼓胀,在微小侧向变形内提供足够的径向约束应力;筋箍碎石桩的最大鼓胀变形多发生于加筋体以下区域,其破坏模式与筋体材料、桩体、桩周土体及其相互作用和协调变形密切相关;筋箍碎石桩的桩顶和桩底桩土应力比均明显大于传统碎石桩,上部土工加筋体在提高桩体刚度的同时,可有效地将上部荷载传递至桩底较好土层。     

土工合成材料约束碎石桩承载特性研究

土工合成材料约束碎石桩作为一种新型软土地基处理技术在工程中广泛应用,其单桩承载力取决于土工合成材料抗拉强度和土的工程性质。通过对土工合成材料、碎石桩及地基土的相互作用机理进行分析,提出了考虑土工合成材料约束拉力与土体围压的桩身强度计算方法,进而推导出考虑上部荷载作用的,由桩身强度控制的单桩极限承载力计算方法,并采用MATLAB编写了计算程序,根据得出的单桩极限承载力计算了土工合成材料拉力沿深度的分布,结合一算例说明了计算所需要的参数及计算过程,成果可为土工合成材料碎石桩的设计提供计算依据。     

Geosynthetic-encased stone columns: Numerical evaluation

Stone columns (or granular piles) are increasingly being used for ground improvement, particularly for flexible structures such as road embankments, oil storage tanks, etc. When the stone columns are installed in extremely soft soils, the lateral confinement offered by the surrounding soil may not be adequate to form the stone column. Consequently, the stone columns installed in such soils will not be able to develop the required load-bearing capacity. In such soils, the required lateral confinement can be induced by encasing the stone columns with a suitable geosynthetic. The encasement, besides increasing the strength and stiffness of the stone column, prevents the lateral squeezing of stones when the column is installed even in extremely soft soils, thus enabling quicker and more economical installation. This paper investigates the qualitative and quantitative improvement in load capacity of the stone column by encasement through a comprehensive parametric study using the finite element analysis. It is found from the analyses that the encased stone columns have much higher load carrying capacities and undergo lesser compressions and lesser lateral bulging as compared to conventional stone columns. The results have shown that the lateral confining stresses developed in the stone columns are higher with encasement. The encasement at the top portion of the stone column up to twice the diameter of the column is found to be adequate in improving its load carrying capacity. As the stiffness of the encasement increases, the lateral stresses transferred to the surrounding soil are found to decrease. This phenomenon makes the load capacity of encased columns less dependent on the strength of the surrounding soil as compared to the ordinary stone columns.     

筋箍碎石桩桩–土界面摩擦特性试验研究及离散元模拟

筋箍碎石桩复合地基桩–土界面摩擦特性对其荷载传递机理极为重要。首先通过室内大型直剪试验,研究了法向应力、软土含水率、碎石料相对密实度、筋材设置等因素对筋箍碎石桩桩–土界面摩擦特性的影响。在此基础上,采用离散元方法分析了筋材设置、筋材开孔率、筋材抗拉刚度等因素对界面摩擦特性的影响。室内试验及数值分析结果表明:桩土界面抗剪强度随法向应力、碎石料相对密实度、筋材开孔率、筋材抗拉刚度的增大而增大,随软土含水率的增加而降低;界面摩擦系数则随法向应力、软土含水率的增大而减小,随碎石料相对密实度、筋材开孔率的增大而提高,筋材抗拉刚度对其影响较小。     

Study of the behavior of mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) walls subjected to differential settlements

The limit equilibrium (LE) analysis has been used to design MSE walls. Presumably, the deflection of MSE walls can be limited to an acceptable range by ensuring sufficient factors of safety (FOSs) for both external and internal stabilities. However, unexpected ground movements, such as movements induced by excavations, volume changes of expansive soils, collapse of sinkholes, and consolidations of underlying soils, can induce excessive differential settlements that may influence both the stability and the serviceability of MSE walls. In this study, a numerical model, which was calibrated by triaxial tests and further by a specially-designed MSE wall tests, investigated the behavior of an MSE wall as well as the influence of various factors on the performance of the MSE wall when the wall facing settled relatively to the reinforced zone. The numerical results showed that the differential settlement would cause substantial vertical and horizontal movements for the MSE wall, as well as an increase in lateral earth pressure and geosynthetic reinforcement strain. The maximum horizontal movement and increase of the lateral earth pressure occurred at about 1.0 m above the toe. The differential settlement resulted in a critical plane that coincided with the plane of 45°+?/2. The maximum increase of the strain for each geogrid layer occurred in that plane, and the bottom layer had the greatest strain increase among all layers of reinforcement. The study further indicated that the surcharge, backfill friction angle, tensile stiffness of geogrid, reinforcement length and MSE wall height had noticeable influences on horizontal and vertical movements, and strain in geosynthetics. According to the results, the MSE wall that had a higher factor of safety would have less movements and geosynthetic strain increase. In contrast, only the friction angle, tensile stiffness and MSE wall height showed some degree of influence on the lateral earth pressure due to differential settlements.     

3D numerical study of the performance of geosynthetic-reinforced and pile-supported embankments

Geosynthetic-reinforced and pile-supported (GRPS) systems provide an economic and effective solution for embankments. The load transfer mechanisms are tridimensional ones and depend on the interaction between linked elements, such as piles, soil, and geosynthetics. This paper presents an extensive parametric study using three-dimensional numerical calculations for geosynthetic-reinforced and pile-supported embankments. The numerical analysis is conducted for both cohesive and non-cohesive embankment soils to emphasize the fill soil cohesion effect on the load and settlement efficacy of GRPS embankments. The influence of the embankment height, soft ground elastic modulus, improvement area ratio, geosynthetic tensile stiffness and fill soil properties are also investigated on the arching efficacy, GR membrane efficacy, differential settlement, geosynthetic tension, and settlement reduction performance. The numerical results indicated that the GRPS system shows a good performance for reducing the embankment settlements. The ratio of the embankment height to the pile spacing, subsoil stiffness, and fill soil properties are the most important design parameters to be considered in a GRPS design. The results also suggested that the fill soil cohesion strengthens the soil arching effect, and increases the loading efficacy. However, the soil arching mobilization is not necessarily at the peak state but could be reached at the critical state. Finally, the geosynthetic strains are not uniform along the geosynthetic, and the maximum geosynthetic strain occurs at the pile edge. The geosynthetic deformed shape is a curve that is closer to a circular shape than a parabolic one.     

A numerical modelling technique for geosynthetics validated on a cavity model test

Numerical modelling approaches can aid in designing geotechnical constructions involving geosynthetics. However, the reliability of numerical results depends on how the model is developed, the constitutive model, and the set of parameters used. By comparing the numerical results with experiment, the present work verifies a numerical modelling technique developed to model multilayered geosynthetic lining systems for landfills. The numerical modelling technique involves strain softening at interfaces and allows the axial stiffness of the geosynthetics to evolve as a function of strain. This work focuses on a two-dimensional finite-difference model, which is used to simulate three types of experimental tests: conventional uniaxial tensile tests, direct shear tests, and a large-scale test that was used to assess the overall mechanical behaviour of a reinforced geosynthetic system that spanned over a cavity. This reinforced geosynthetic system consisted of a 50 kN/m polyvinyl alcohol geogrid reinforcement embedded in a layer of sand, a geosynthetic clay liner, a high-density polyethylene geomembrane, and a non-woven needle-punched geotextile. The uniaxial tensile tests, direct shear tests, and the large-scale test were numerically modelled and the numerical results were compared with experimental results. The results of the numerical modelling technique presented very closely match the results of the three experimental tests, which indicates that the numerical model correctly predicted the measured data.     

轴向往复荷载作用下钢管混凝土柱抗震性能试验研究

为了探究斜交网格结构体系中外筒斜柱的破坏机制,对8个钢管混凝土柱和2个钢管柱试件进行了轴向往复加载试验,研究加载路径、长径比、混凝土强度和含钢率对其抗震性能的影响,分析了钢管混凝土柱的破坏机制、破坏形态和滞回性能,并讨论了钢管与混凝土间的相互作用。结果表明：轴向往复荷载下钢管混凝土柱的破坏均由钢管断裂引起,核心混凝土整体保持完好,只在钢管屈曲处存在混凝土压碎现象;相比于空钢管柱,钢管混凝土柱受拉时混凝土对钢管的支撑作用,以及受压时钢管对混凝土的约束作用,保证了其具有更高的承载力、变形能力和耗能能力;钢管混凝土柱在轴压和轴拉荷载下的抗震性能存在显著差别,在轴拉荷载下具有更好的延性和耗能能力,而在轴压荷载下具有更高的承载力和刚度。钢管混凝土柱屈服后钢管对混凝土的约束作用持续增强,并当钢管纵向应变达到8×10^-3时,不同参数对其约束效应的影响达到最大。     

On the shear failure mode of granular column embedded unit cells subjected to static and cyclic shear loads

Since the initial conception of geosynthetic encased columns (GECs), exhaustion of column capacity due to vertical loads in bulging and punching failure modes were readily recognized. This lead to a vast majority of the available research on GECs to be about the behavior of columns under the action of vertical loads. Recently, two other likely and perhaps more dominant failure modes for granular columns namely, shear and bending failure modes, were identified. The purpose of this paper is to study the behavior of unit cells containing ordinary stone columns (OSCs) and GECs under static and cyclic lateral loads where shear failure of the column is imminent. 1-g physical tests are conducted with a novel apparatus, designated as Unit Cell Shear Device (UCSD), to model the behavior of the unit cells located close to the toe of an embankment where OSCs and GECs experience significant lateral loading. Overall failure envelope and strength parameters for GECs with varying reinforcement stiffnesses are quantified under static and cyclic lateral loading conditions. The distribution and magnitude of reinforcement strains in horizontal (hoop) and vertical direction of the columns are also considered.     

3-Dimensional numerical modeling of geosynthetic-encased granular columns

In this paper, series of three-dimensional (3-d) numerical modeling of geosynthetic-encased granular columns were performed both in model and prototype scale using FLAC^3D software to understand the lateral load carrying capacity of ordinary and geosynthetic encased granular columns (OGC and EGC). In the first part of the study, numerical modeling of direct shear tests were carried out. The soil in the direct shear box was reinforced with two different diameters of granular columns (50 mm and 100 mm) and three different patterns of arrangement (single, triangular and square) to study the effect of group confinement. The numerical simulations were carried out at four different confining pressures namely 15, 30, 45 and 75 kPa. From the numerical simulations it was observed that higher shear stresses are mobilized inside the granular column due to geosynthetic encasement and the magnitude of shear stress increases with increase in the normal pressure. It was found that the tensile forces in the geosynthetic encasement were mobilized both in circumferential and vertical directions, which helps in mobilizing additional confinement in the granular column. In the second part, the influence of the geosynthetic encasement of granular column treated soft ground was demonstrated through 3-dimensional slope stability analyses.     

A laboratory evaluation of reinforcement loads induced by rainfall infiltration in geosynthetic mechanically stabilized earth walls

A laboratory testing that simulates the mechanisms of a geosynthetic-reinforced layer was used to assess the impact of rainwater infiltration on reinforcement loads and strains in mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) walls. The testing device allows measuring loads transferred from a backfill soil subjected simultaneously to surcharge loading and controlled irrigation. Load-strain responses of geosynthetic-reinforced layers constructed with three different geosynthetics under a moderate rainfall are related to suction captured along the depth of reinforced layers. Results show infiltration leading to increases on strains and tensile loads mobilized by reinforcements. Rates of increases of both parameters were found to be dependent of global suction, geosynthetic stiffness and hydraulic properties. In addition, increases in water content at soil-geotextile interfaces due to capillary breaks also had a significant effect on mobilized loads. The loss of interaction due to the interface wetting was observed to affect the stress transference from soil to geosynthetic reinforcement. An approach suggested for calculation of lateral earth pressures in unsaturated GMSE walls under working stress conditions and subjected to rainfall infiltration demonstrated a reasonable agreement with experimental data.     

Stability analysis of stone column-supported and geosynthetic-reinforced embankments on soft ground

This study focuses on the stability of stone column-supported and geosynthetic-reinforced embankments on soft soil. An upper-bound limit state plasticity failure discretization scheme (known as discontinuity layout optimization (DLO)), which determines the embankment stability without pre-assuming a slip surface, is used. The relationships between the stability of stone column-supported and geosynthetic-reinforced embankments and various influencing parameters, including the soil strength, geometric configuration, reinforcement strength, and area replacement ratio, are analysed. It is found that geosynthetics provide a significant contribution to embankment stability. Two failure mechanisms of geosynthetics (i.e., rupture failure and bond failure) are revealed and the effect of geosynthetics on embankment stability is governed by the failure mode. The application of stone columns mitigates the risk of geosynthetic failure. To provide an analytical solution for primary design in engineering practice, an approach based on the limit equilibrium method is proposed. Validations are performed with the DLO solution to demonstrate the accuracy and reliability of the developed analytical approach.     

考虑轴压比影响时框架侧移计算的试验及理论研究

为研究轴压比对框架柱侧移的影响,以轴压比为框架柱的主要变化参数,完成了10根钢筋混凝土柱与5根钢柱压弯试验。试验结果表明:随轴压比增加,框架柱抗侧刚度增加,侧移减小;对于混凝土柱,裂缝间距和宽度都增大,裂缝越集中于柱底,压区混凝土破坏越严重,延性越差;对于钢柱,则压区屈曲越严重。随着名义偏心距的增大,二阶效应加剧,轴力对框架柱抗侧刚度的提高有所减弱;轴力对钢柱抗侧刚度的有利影响不及混凝土柱明显。结合试验数据,拟合了考虑轴压比影响的柱抗侧刚度计算公式。根据此公式计算内力侧移的框架算例表明,考虑轴压比影响时,框架结构侧移明显减小;轴力从上至下逐渐增大,轴压比对框架结构的影响愈大,结构侧移减小愈明显。考虑轴压比对框架柱抗侧刚度的影响,符合工程实际,能为现行规范对高层框架侧移计算的完善提供参考。     

土工合成物加强软土地基的极限分析(英文)

对土工合成物加强软土地基，目前仍用圆弧滑动法分析其稳定性。本文根据极限分析的原理，判定圆弧滑动不是一种可能的破坏方式，只有侧向挤出才符合真实的破坏机理，并在此基础上提出一种基于滑块平衡的简便分析方法。     

双槽钢缀板柱绕虚轴的滞回性能试验研究

为研究双槽钢缀板柱绕虚轴的抗震性能,对6个双槽钢缀板柱足尺试件进行水平往复荷载试验研究,分析了单肢长细比、缀板线刚度、轴压比、加劲肋设置等因素对试件的承载力、破坏模式、耗能能力、变形能力及延性的影响。试验结果表明：按GB 50017—2017《钢结构设计标准》设计的双槽钢缀板柱在绕虚轴往复荷载作用下不能达到设计塑性受弯承载力,减小单肢长细比,可显著提高构件塑性抗弯承载力及初始刚度,当单肢长细比为20时,构件绕虚轴受弯承载力可达到规范相关要求;在满足规范要求的情况下,缀板及其连接焊缝未发生破坏,但提高缀板线刚度对构件绕虚轴的抗震性能影响较小;轴压比对构件抗震性能影响显著,随着轴压比增大,构件抗震性能降低;在构件塑性铰区设置加劲肋,可有效防止该区域板件的局部屈曲,提高构件的承载力、延性及耗能能力,缓解承载力及刚度退化,但塑性铰区转移至第二与第三块缀板间,试件破坏模式为单肢失稳。     

Modelling of geosynthetic-reinforced column-supported embankments using 2D full-width model and modified unit cell approach

Soil-cement deep mixing (DM) columns combined with geosynthetic basal reinforcement are an accepted technique in geotechnical engineering to construct road and railway embankments over soft foundations. Both full-width and unit cell models have been used to numerically simulate the performance of geosynthetic-reinforced and column-supported (GRCS) embankments. However, the typical unit cell model with horizontally fixed side boundaries cannot simulate the lateral spreading of the embankment fill and foundation soil. As a result, the calculated reinforcement tensile loads using typical unit cell models are much less than those from matching full-width models. The paper first examines GRCS embankments using a full-width model with small- and large-strain modes in FLAC and then compares the calculated results from the full-width model with those using a typical unit cell model, a recently proposed modified unit cell model, and a closed-form solution. The paper also examines the influence of the soft foundation soil modulus, reinforcement tensile stiffness, and DM column modulus on the reinforcement tensile loads. Numerical analyses show that the reinforcement tensile loads from the modified unit cell model are in good agreement with those from the full-width model for zones under the embankment crest for all cases and conditions examined in the paper. Both the full-width model and modified unit cell model perform better than the typical unit cell model for the prediction of the reinforcement tensile load when compared to the closed-form solution. However, while the modified unit cell developed by the writers is shown to be more accurate than the typical unit cell when predictions are compared to results using full-width numerical simulations, the benefit of using this approach to reduce computation times may be limited in practice.