Frictional Pullout Resistance and Settlement Criteria of Reinforced Soil System

Abstract

An analytical approach was adopted to find the frictional pullout resistance and settlement of foundations resting on reinforced soil based on the test results of circular footing and site data from plate bearing tests (PLT) for in-situ testing of (PLT) with a
diameter of ( 0.75m), is summarized. The soil was reinforced using biaxial geomesh. The settlement was determined by considering the compatibility of strain (settlement) between soil and reinforcement elements underneath the foundation. Empirical equations were used to estimate the settlement either from the superstructure loads or from in-situ plate load tests on the reinforced soil system, while the frictional pullout resistance of reinforcement was calculated and compared with test results based on the new empirical equation. The study concerned two different types of geomesh(CE111 and CE121). It was found that initial horizontal and vertical movement of the reinforcement is needed to mobilize the reinforcing strength. Further, the initial settlement at small loads could be avoided when the reinforcement was placed closer to the base of the footing (U<< B/2) and there was an improvement in the bearing capacity value of the footing. When the reinforcement is placed away from the base of the footing, the initial settlement decreased with a slight improvement in the bearing capacity compared with that of unreinforced soil. Nondimensional factors were developed for the settlement and frictional pullout resistance based on the experimental site test results.