Experimental study on bearing capacity of shell strip footings near geotextile-reinforced earth slopes

Abstract

From a financial point of view, urbanization frequently enforces the clients to construct superstructures near the slopes, giving rise to increasing the risk of building instability. By conducting a series of small-scale plate load tests, this work aims to investigate the effects of installing geotextile reinforcement layers in sandy slope and reducing the apex angle of triangular shell strip footings. The results show considerable effect of using geotextile-reinforced layers and decreasing the apex angle on the ultimate bearing capacity of shell foundations. With increasing foundation distance from the slope, the adverse effect of the slope is reduced. However, as the distance decreases, the effect of reinforcement and apex angle is increased. For practical applications, empirical equations are also presented for determining the ultimate bearing capacity of the footings and scale effect as well. Finally, 3D numerical simulations are executed and compared with the experimental results.