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Relationship Between Temperature and Earth Pressure for a Rigidly Framed Earth Retaining Structure

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Abstract

The relationship between temperature and earth pressure acting on a rigidly framed earth-retaining structure (RFERS) subject to wide temperature variation was explored. A distressed RFERS open concrete garage that retains 11 m (36 ft) of soil was instrumented. After some repairs, movement of the building was monitored and recorded hourly for a period of four and a half years. The monitoring revealed complex temperature-dependent soil–structure interactions. The measured displacements were used to calculate the earth pressure coefficient using closed form equations that were developed by treating the structure as an equivalent cantilever beam, and calibrating the expression using a total of 42,000 FEM models. The data indicated that the coefficient of earth pressure behind the monitored RFERS had a strong linear correlation with temperature. During the cold season the building contracted, and the retained soil followed. During the hot season, the building was unable to overcome the earth pressure, thus it expanded away from the soil, resulting in a cumulative annual displacement. The coefficient of lateral earth pressure changed by approximately 0.005/°C, varying in the range of 1.25–1.5, depending on the season. The study also reveals that thermal cycles, rather than lateral earth pressure, caused some of the structural elements to fail.

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Notes

  1. The term drift in this study refers generically to lateral displacement and should not be confused with the seismic drift of structures due to earthquake loading.

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Acknowledgments

The work presented in this paper was funded by Antonucci & Associates Architects and Engineers, and an industrial matching grant to NSF CAREER grant no. CMS 9733064. Slope Indicator, Inc., provided discounted sensors and significant in kind support. The author is grateful to Dr. Walid Aboumoussa for assistance in data collection, and Saumil Parikh for assistance in analysis and presentation of the data. The author is also grateful to Mehdi Omidvar and Zhibo (Chris) Chen for their technical assistance. The author thanks Robert Antonucci, PE; Frank Calfa, PE, of Structural Contracting Services; and Pierre Gouvin, of Geo Instruments; for their assistance in equipment installation and valuable input. Continued NSF support through grants DGE-0337668 and DGE-0741714 is gratefully acknowledged.

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  1. Polytechnic Institute of NYU, Six Metrotech Center, Brooklyn, NY, 11201, USA

    Magued Iskander

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  1. Magued Iskander
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Correspondence to Magued Iskander.

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Iskander, M. Relationship Between Temperature and Earth Pressure for a Rigidly Framed Earth Retaining Structure. Geotech Geol Eng 31, 519–539 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-012-9606-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-012-9606-2

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