Acceleration-Amplified Responses of Geosynthetic-Reinforced Soil Structures with a Wide Range of Input Ground Accelerations

Abstract

A series of dynamic centrifuge tests is performed to investigate the accelerationamplified and de-amplified responses within geosynthetic-reinforced soil (GRS) structures. Further, a database from various dynamic centrifuge and shaking-table tests is compiled from literature to cover a wide range of input ground accelerations in the range of 0.01-1.0g. This study demonstrates that among all factors in GRS structures (i.e., structural configuration, backfill and reinforcement material, and seismic characteristics), input ground acceleration, a g , location, z, and input motion frequency, f, have the most significant effects on acceleration-amplified responses of GRS structures. The magnitude and variation of acceleration amplification factor, A m , which is the ratio of horizontal acceleration inside GRS structures, a h , to input ground acceleration, a g , decrease as a g increases. A m is larger than 1.0 and non-uniformly distributed with height at approximately a g <0.40g; while A m is less than 1.0 and generally uniformly distributed with height at a g ≥0.40g. Experimental results show that acceleration-amplified responses are highly dependent on input frequency, f. Acceleration inside GRS structures increases markedly when the predominant and fundamental frequencies are close. Further, this study examines the A m and a max relationships (i.e., A m =1.45-a max /g) adopted in current GRS structure design guidelines. Comparison results indicate that the A m and a max relationship adopted in current design guidelines follows well the trend line (A m =-0.69lna g +0.43) regressed from complied physical data at a g ≥0.40g, but underestimates A m at a g <0.4g. The influence of location and frequency on A m , as observed from physical data, is not considered in the current design guidelines.

Seismic response of reduced-scale modular block and rigid faced reinforced walls through shaking table tests

“…Reinforced retaining walls exhibited increased acceleration amplifications and the acceleration amplification is non-uniformly distributed along the height of the wall. Through series of centrifuge tests on geosynthetic reinforced soil structures, Yang et al (2013) demonstrated that the acceleration amplification factor is larger than 1.0 and non-uniformly distributed with height when the base acceleration is less than 0.4 g. Results from the present study confirm this observation. Accelerations are amplified more at lower levels of the retaining walls by the inclusion of reinforcement and at the top most point of measurement, not much difference in the acceleration amplifications was observed between unreinforced and reinforced retaining walls for at both the backfill densities tested, as seen from Fig.…”

Evaluation of Wall Inclination Effect on the Dynamic Response of Mechanically Stabilized Earth Walls Using Shaking Table Tests

“…The result of the present study also confirms the same observation. Yang et al (2013) revealed that the AAF is greater than one for a base acceleration lower than 0.4g. The present study revealed that the AAF had been found greater than one for all studied input motions.…”

Physical and Computational Modelling of Geosynthetic-Reinforced Model Slopes in Shaking Table Tests

“…The study carried out by Matsuo et al [23] on a 1 m high, 1H:5 V reinforced slope with discrete panel facing subjected to seismic accelerations between 0.1 and 0.44 g showed failure and pullout of the lower layers of reinforcement. Significant number of studies are also available on the centrifuge testing of the reinforced soil slopes [24][25][26][27][28][29].…”