Dilation effect on 3D Passive Earth Pressure Coefficients for Retaining Wall

Abstract

The 2D passive earth pressures acting on rigid retaining walls problem has been widely treated in the literature using different approaches (limit equilibrium, limit analysis, slip line and numerical computation), however, the 3D passive earth pressures problem has received less attention. This paper is concerned with the numerical study of 3D passive earth pressures induced by the translation of a rigid rough retaining wall for associated and non-associated soils. Using the explicit finite difference code FLAC3D, the increase of the passive earth pressures due to the decrease of the wall breadth is investigated. The results given by the present numerical analysis are compared with other investigation. The influence of the angle of dilation on the coefficients is also studied.

Field Measurements of Passive Earth Forces in Steep, Shallow, Landslide‐Prone Areas

“…The main difference of this approach compared to other models is that the lateral parts are composed of a family of cone envelopes. Other studies used the explicit finite difference code FLAC 3D (Fast Lagrangian Analyses of Continua in 3 Dimensions) to investigate the 3‐D passive earth pressures induced by the translation of a rigid rough retaining wall for associative soils and an increase in the passive earth coefficient with decreasing wall width (Benmebarek et al, ; Khelifa & Benmebarek, ). More recently, Motta and Raciti () estimated 3‐D effects through a practical closed‐form solution only applicable for cohesionless soil.…”