Numerical evaluation on behavior of an integrated slope stabilization structure under seismic effect

Abstract

Abstract The issue of slope instability is common in the South Gippsland area of Victoria, Australia. To improve the current slope instability circumstance, an integrated slope stabilization structure, which involves two methods, the geogrid-reinforced soil retaining wall with gabion basket facing and the laterally loaded embedded piles, has been adopted. The I-beam, which is embedded in the laterally loaded piles, is soldered to the horizontal rail to buttress the retaining structure. To evaluate the effectiveness of this integrated structure under seismic conditions, the two-dimensional finite element limit analysis approach is adopted for pseudo-static analysis of slope stability. The behavior of the gabion basket and soil is described by the Mohr-Coulomb yield criterion. With the assistance of upper and lower bounds theorems within the limit analysis method, the highest lower bound and the lowest upper bound can be obtained to narrow the range of slope stability subjected to seismic conditions. The parametric study related to geogrid embedment length and pile embedment length has been conducted to evaluate the seismic resistance of this integrated structure. The numerical result indicates that this integrated slope stabilization structure makes a considerable improvement to the seismic resistance of the slope.