Evaluation of the combined effect of facing inclination and uniform surcharge on GRS walls

Abstract

Abstract In the current paper, using experimental studies and numerical analyses, the combined effect of facing inclination and uniform surcharge on the behaviour of geosynthetic-reinforced soil (GRS) walls under working stress conditions is evaluated. Data from four well-instrumented GRS walls at the end of construction and under surcharge applications were used considering different facing types, inclinations, and toe conditions. The numerical analyses were carried out considering different wall heights, facing inclinations, and surcharges. Moreover, data from the physical and numerical model studies were utilised to verify the predictability of the AASHTO simplified (2017) and Ehrlich and Mirmoradi (2016) design methods and some limitations of each method are discussed. The results clearly indicate that for better representation of the actual conditions, the uniform surcharge and facing inclination should not be independently taken into account in the design procedures.