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Investigation on Load Transfer in Geosynthetic-Reinforced Pile-Supported Embankments

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Abstract

The geosynthetic-reinforced pile-supported embankment (GRPSE) is one of the most effective and economical foundation reinforcement measures for embankment constructed over soft soils. The 3D analysis using finite element method was adopted to study the soil arching effect of GRPSEs, including load transfer between piles and soils. In this study, the numerical model has been calibrated with measured data obtained from field tests conducted along the alignment of a high-speed railway in China. The results of subsequent parametric study show significant correlations between pile efficiency and the height of the embankment, the pile spacing, the tensile strength of the geogrid, and slope of the virgin consolidation curve of the soil. Models used in previous studies have not fully represented the effects of the properties of geogrids and soils on the soil arching effect. An empirical calculation model that considers the four factors mentioned and based on multi-shell arching theory was presented. This model can be used to calculate the vertical stresses in the embankment, especially in the cushion, and the pile efficiency.

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Funding

This work was supported by the Science and Technology Development Project of China Railway Design Corporation under Grant (No. 2022A02538015).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Civil Engineering of Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing, China

    Muhan Yan & Hong Xiao

  2. China Railway Design Corporation, Tianjin, China

    Muhan Yan, Shuaijie Guo, Haiyang Zhang & Xuguo Song

  3. National Engineering Research Center for Digital Construction and Evaluation of Urban Rail Transit, Tianjin, China

    Muhan Yan, Shuaijie Guo, Haiyang Zhang & Xuguo Song

Authors
  1. Muhan Yan
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  2. Shuaijie Guo
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  3. Haiyang Zhang
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  4. Xuguo Song
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  5. Hong Xiao
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Contributions

Conceptualization was performed by MH Yan and SJ Guo; methodology by MH Yan and H Xiao; software by MH Yan and HY Zhang; validation by XG Song and H Xiao; formal analysis by MH Yan and SJ Guo; investigation by MH Yan and XG Song; resources by SJ Guo; data curation by SJ Guo; writing—original draft preparation—by MH Yan; writing—review and editing—by MH Yan; visualization by MH Yan; funding acquisition by MH Yan. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Muhan Yan.

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Yan, M., Guo, S., Zhang, H. et al. Investigation on Load Transfer in Geosynthetic-Reinforced Pile-Supported Embankments. Indian Geotech J (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40098-024-00940-7

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