Numerical analysis of crack generation within embankment built on expansive soil foundation

In order to analyze the initial cracking behavior of highway embankment in the regions of expansive soil, the changes in peaks of tensile stress and their location on top of the embankment for a typical highway embankment section were simulated by ABAQUS. The simulation results indicate that the matric suction was a concave distribution on top of the expansive soil foundation and that it induced differential deformation of foundation and embankment. The peaks of tensile stress on top of the embankment are not located at a fixed site, but gradually move towards the shoulder following the evaporation duration. When the evaporation intensity is larger, the peak of tensile stress on top of embankment increases at a faster rate following the evaporation duration,and its location is closer to the shoulder. The thicker expansive soil layer helps the peaks of tensile stress to reach the critical tensile stress quickly, but the embankment cannot crack when the expansive soil layer is no more than 1.5m after 30d soil surface evaporation; the higher the embankment, the smaller the peak of tensile stress occurring on top of the highway embankment, and its location will be further away from the shoulder. Therefore, a higher embankment constructed on a thinner expansive soil layer can reduce the crack generation within the highway embankment.

Test on Muddy Soil Reinforcement by Negative Pressure and Electro-Osmosis Inside Cover-Bearing-Type Bucket Foundation for Offshore Wind Turbines

Cover-bearing-type bucket foundation for offshore wind turbines has been paid more and more attention due to its low cost and great bearing capacity. In order to ensure the cover-bearing mode, the muddy soil inside the bucket foundation should be reinforced by some soil consolidation methods, such as negative pressure and electro-osmosis. Firstly, tests were conducted to obtain the reasonable current density. Meanwhile, to improve the electro-osmotic speed and effectiveness, other factors such as intermittent power and layout of electrode, were also studied in the tests. Then, the soil reinforcing tests by negative pressure combined with electro-osmosis were performed for the muddy soil consolidation inside the bucket foundation. The results showed that soil reinforcement by negative pressure was quicker and more obvious during the early phase, and electro-osmotic method can affect more range of soil by rational arrangement of electrodes. Compared with negative pressure, the electro-osmotic method was a continuous and relatively slow process of reinforcement, which was complementary to the negative pressure method. The voltage value of electro-osmosis had little effect on the muddy soil reinforcement inside the bucket foundation, and 1.5 A was chosen as the most reasonable current value for scale model testing in the electro-osmotic method.

Long-term settlement prediction of high-speed railway bridge pile foundation

The process and characteristics of loading on high-speed railway bridge pile foundation were firstly obtained by means of field research and analysis,and the corresponding loading function was presented.One-dimensional consolidation equation of elastic multilayered soils was then established with single drainage or double drainages under multilevel loading.Moreover,the formulas for calculating effective stress and settlement were derived from the Laplace numerical inversion transform.The three-dimensional composite analysis method of bridge pile group was improved,where the actual load conditions of pile foundation could be simulated,and the consolidation characteristics of soil layers beneath pile were also taken into account.Eventually,a corresponding program named LTPGS was developed to improve the calculation efficiency.The comparison between long-term settlement obtained from the proposed method and the in-situ measurements of pile foundation was illustrated,and a close agreement is obtained.The error between computed and measured results is less than 1 mm,and it gradually reduces with time.It is shown that the proposed method can effectively simulate the long-term settlement of pile foundation and program LTPGS can provide a reliable estimation.

Characteristic Test Study on Bearing Capacity of Suction Caisson Foundation Under Vertical Load

Suction caisson foundations are often subjected to vertical uplift loads,but there are still no wide and spread engineering specifications on design and calculation method for uplift bearing capacity of suction caisson foundation.So it is important to establish an uplift failure criterion.In order to study the uplift bearing mechanism and failure mode of suction caisson foundation,a series of model tests were carried out considering the effects of aspect ratio,soil permeability and loading mode.Test results indicate that the residual negative pressure at the top of caisson is beneficial to enhance uplift bearing capacity.The smaller the permeability coefficient is,the higher the residual negative pressure will be.And the residual negative pressure is approximately equal to the water head that causes seepage in the caisson.When the load reaches the ultimate bearing capacity,both the top and bottom negative pressures are smaller than Su and both the top and bottom reverse bearing capacity factors are smaller than 1.0 in soft clay.Combined the uplift bearing characteristics of caisson in sandy soil and soft clay,the bearing capacity composition and the calculation method are proposed.It can provide a reference for the engineering design of suction caisson foundation under vertical load.

Failure envelope of a caisson foundation under combined vertical,horizontal and moment loadings

To investigate the bearing capacity of a caisson foundation under combined vertical,horizontal and moment loadings,the three-dimensional finite element analyses of a circular caisson foundation in homogenous sandy soil subjected to combined loadings are conducted.The caisson model has a depth to breadth ratio equaling one,and a soil-caisson interface friction coefficientμ=0.3.First,the responses of caisson foundations under uniaxial vertical loading V,horizontal loading H and moment loading M are examined.Moreover,the responses of caisson foundations under combined vertical-horizontal V-H,vertical-moment V-M and horizontal-moment H-M load space are studied and presented using normalized failure envelopes generated by the load-controlled method.Subsequently,the bearing behavior of caisson foundations under combined vertical-horizontal-moment V-H-M load space,as well as the kinematic mechanisms accompanying the failure under uniaxial and combined loading,are addressed and presented for different vertical load ratios V/Vu.Finally,three equations that approximate the three-dimensional shape of the failure locus are proposed,which provides a convenient means of calculating the bearing capacity of a caisson foundation subjected to uniaxial and combined vertical,horizontal and moment loadings.

Evaluation of Foundation Settlement under Various Added Loads in Different Locations of Iraq Using Finite Element

Settlement is an important criterion in the design of the foundations. It is classifying into immediate (or elastic) settlement and consolidated settlement (primary and secondary). The factors that affect the shallow foundation settlement are the applied loads, soil stiffness, and geometric shape of foundation. Calculations of settlement depend on the parameters of soil which can be obtained from field and laboratory tests. Field and laboratory tests were conducted for twenty three sites in three different regions in Iraq (Mosul, Baghdad, and Basrah). In this research, field and laboratory tests results adopted for two sites from each region depended on the maximum and minimum bearing capacity values. Settlement for each site was calculated using numerical (mathematical) calculations and PLAXIS software under different added loads. The results of settlements beneath the foundation were competing for the sites with maximum value of bearing capacity in Mosul;Baghdad and Basrah. Also, the comparison conducted for sites of minimum bearing capacity value and the results showed different settlement values of each site. The change of settlement values under different loads was linearly in the six sites using numerical (mathematical) calculations. While, the settlement values obtained from PLAXIS software for sites with maximum bearing capacity value showed that Mosul site had the highest value due to the type of soil layers and the difference models of soil used in the software. Basrah site had a settlement value higher than Baghdad site due to the soil layers of sand type only. PLAXIS results for sites with minimum bearing capacity showed that for Basrah site the soil went to failure. While, the settlement values for Mosul and Baghdad sites were close to each other due to have nearly same soil layers. Therefore, high rise buildings could not be used in some sites. Also, soil in some locations and under some added loads needed to be improved before the implementation of any constructions.

Ground treatment of sea embankment by vacuum preloading with PVDs

Vacuum provides an alternative in reducing the length of preloading period for soft soil consolidation. In this method, soft clay foundation is preloaded by reducing the pore-water pressures through the application of vacuum pressure in combination with surcharge preloading. A full scale and fully instrumented test embankment was constructed. A drainage pattern system combined with 22 m prefabricated vertical drains (PVDs) length was used with triangular pattern of 1.2 m spacing. Among the foundation instrumentation, piezometers were installed in the foundation subsoil at varying depth to measure the pore-water pressures. After 6 months of vacuum pressure application at 80 kPa, the test embankments were raised to a maximum height of 5.5 m. The effect of vacuum preloading was investigated by the field conditions, maintaining higher vacuum pressures, and unloading vacuum. The results demonstrated the efficiency of combined vacuum and surcharge preloading.

砂性土路基换填碾压地基处理抗地震液化效果分析

为掌握浅水位砂性土地基地震动力响应规律及换填处理对地震液化的控制效果,基于包银铁路某试验段,采用某典型有限差分数值计算软件进行分析。结果表明:在地震作用下砂性土地基竖向变形发生在路基填筑范围,水平位移发生在路基坡脚处,位移值随地震波加速度峰值增加而增加;在相同加速度峰值地震波作用下,随着深度的增加孔压比增长幅值随之减小,而孔隙水压力增长幅值随之增加;换填碾压处理能减少地震作用引起的变形,提升砂性土地基抗液化能力,随着换填深度的增加,孔压比与孔隙水压的增长幅度随之减小,孔压消散越容易。

软土地基土石方堆场稳定性分析

本文针对土石方堆场进行软土地基稳定性评价研究,计算地基土最终变形量,基于Fellenius理论提出分级堆载预压加塑料排水板地基处理情况下的堆载时间,依据数值计算结果,进行代表性监测点布设,由监测结果计算地基土固结度,验证堆载时间的合理性。结果表明:淤泥层容许承载力为22.12 k Pa,堆场临时边坡采用1∶1.25坡率时,场地安全系数最小达1.252,总体稳定,场地最终沉降量计算结果为1 814.21 mm,采用分级堆载预压加塑料排水板进行软土地基处理可减少94.35%的工期,数值计算结果表明,堆载过程中最大沉降位于距堆载边界内约7 m处。基于Fellenius理论提出的堆载时间,经监测数据结果反算地基土固结度,验证了分级堆载时间的合理性。该方法可以为初步设计提供参考,对类似工程具有一定的参考价值。

长期堆载预压处理软土地基效果评价

为评估某园区10 a长期堆载预压后,场地后续沉降对拟建管线的影响,通过室内试验和现场试验对堆载预压处理后的场地进行系统评价,分别采用双曲线法与有限元法对后续沉降进行预测。结果表明:场地堆载预压10 a后各地层物理力学参数明显改善,但其中淤泥层性质相对较差,是场地后续沉降发生的主要地层;经过10 a堆载,场地主固结沉降基本完成,固结度达到95.5%,说明长期堆载预压效果较好;对于堆载多年后的场地,在进行后续沉降数值计算时,采用弹性模型并选用现场试验获得的参数进行计算,计算结果与实测数据较好吻合,场地剩余平均沉降量在15.4 cm左右;园区道路管线可采取常规预防措施。

UH模型超固结状态演化分析及离心模型试验验证

本构模型是土力学求解强度变形问题的关键。研究揭示了剑桥模型在超临界侧强度过高、超固结状态下无法应力三维化、应力应变关系发生突变等存在的问题,分析了UH模型建立的超固结状态耦合演化机制及在弹塑性理论框架下实现的超固结状态与正常固结状态计算理论的统一,并基于三轴试验预测证明了UH模型能更加合理地描述超固结状态下土的应力应变关系。通过开展载荷板离心模型试验以及数值模拟验证可以发现,相较于剑桥模型,UH模型计算的地基土荷载变形曲线、侧压力系数分布更加准确,其本质是单元的应力应变关系更加科学、合理。研究证明UH模型的应用能显著提高超固结状态土体强度变形计算的准确性和实用性,对复杂岩土工程问题的计算求解具有重要理论价值和实践意义。

纤维对桥墩砂土地基的力学性能改善试验研究

研究了聚酯纤维、玄武岩纤维和甘蔗渣纤维对桥墩砂土地基的力学性能影响。通过对不同纤维质量分数(0.5%、1%和2%)以及不同纤维长度(2.5、5.0、7.5 mm)下砂土试样的加州承载比(CBR)和间接抗拉强度进行测试。结果表明:长度为7.5 mm的聚酯纤维可获得最高的CBR值,其数值比未添加纤维的砂土试样增加了约3.3倍;三种纤维中,甘蔗渣纤维具有最佳的间接抗拉强度。该研究结果为遭遇不良地质条件的桥墩砂土地基改良和设计提供了有益的指导。

大型沉井接高过程中地基抗剪强度的有限元计算

为探讨大型沉井在强度较低且具有时变效应的软土地基上产生的突沉、偏沉等问题,运用ABAQUS有限元软件对南京市龙潭大桥南锚碇沉井前3节的接高过程进行模拟,观察沉井地基中超静孔压的消散情况,并通过规范法和有效应力法计算并比较其抗剪强度的变化。结果表明,在沉井混凝土养护期间,超静孔压迅速消散,地基抗剪强度得到提升,且浅部的强度提升较大,向深部则存在衰减;沉井能否进行下一节的浇筑接高不受超静孔压消散时间的控制,而主要受控于混凝土的养护情况;规范法的抗剪强度计算结果相较于有效应力法大,在工程实践中为保守取值,可选取有效应力法计算强度增长。

基于旁压试验的常州地区典型砂土变形特性研究

常州地区地基中第⑤层超固结砂土层是对各项工程影响最为显著的关键性土层,研究该土层的变形特性对各类地下工程土体和结构变形控制的意义重大。通过对该砂土层开展不同深度土体的原位预钻式旁压加载试验和室内三轴压缩试验,将砂土层加载变形分为初始阶段、弹性阶段和弹塑性阶段。根据应力—应变值得到土体剪切模量及其随剪应变的衰减规律,在考虑超固结比为1.5(OCR=1.5)时,三轴压缩试验结果与旁压试验最为接近。基于试验数据,对Stokoe和Hardin-Drnevich(H-D)方程对比分析发现,Stokoe方程能更好地描述该砂土层的变形特征。在小应变条件下土体的剪切模量衰减很快,进入大变形阶段后剪切模量衰减趋缓。原位试验对土体的扰动程度小于室内试验,旁压试验推求土体的剪切模量随剪应变的变化规律更为合理。研究结果可以为常州地区第⑤层砂土层相关的基础工程设计和施工提供参考。

考虑变荷载和变边界的软土大应变非线性固结分析

为了准确预测实际土层的固结速率,在Gibson大应变固结理论基础之上,考虑土体的非线性压缩渗透特性和土层表面随时间改变的变排水边界条件,建立考虑变荷载和变边界的软土大应变非线性固结模型。在此基础上,获得单级加载和多级加载条件下大应变非线性固结模型的显式解析解,利用获得的解析解开展计算以分析界面参数、荷载取值对土层固结性状的影响。结果表明:外荷载对土体内部超静孔压消散的影响表现为随着荷载的增大,超静孔压消散得越快,但其不会影响土体最终完成固结的时间;参数I_(c)(α-2)取值对土体固结性状的影响表现为固结速率随着参数I_(c)(α-2)取值的变化而变化。值得注意的是,描述土体非线性特性的参数取值对固结性状的影响在变边界下显现的固结性状会出现延迟现象,不同参数下的变边界更能反映土体边界的真实透水性情况,在实际工程中可以根据超静孔压实际的消散速率反演界面参数,以便能准确预估土层的固结进程。

海上风电筒型基础沉贯阻力计算黏土强度研究

沉贯阻力的准确预测对筒型基础成功应用至关重要。单剪(DSS)试验测得的不排水抗剪强度su是沉贯安装设计中的关键土参数,DSS试验考虑了K0固结下土体的应力状态、主应力旋转以及实际工程平面应变状态,与吸力式筒型安装过程中土体的受荷状态相符。研究总结了黏土中筒型基础沉贯阻力计算方法,并分析了各种方法的特点。针对黏土强度取值问题,采用单剪仪对滨海土进行等体积单剪试验,探讨了干密度ρd、法向应力σv'及超固结比(OCR)对su的影响,并分析了su差异产生的原因。最后,提出了基于临界状态理论、强度指标、SHANSEP的3种预测su的计算方法。研究成果为黏土中筒型基础沉贯阻力计算时土体参数取值提供了依据。

层状砂土地基中静压桩贯入过程挤土效应数值模拟

为了探讨静压桩贯入层状砂土地基引起的桩周土体分层效应,基于耦合欧拉-拉格朗日法,结合考虑颗粒破碎的砂土临界状态本构模型SIMSAND-Br模型,建立层状砂土地基中静压桩贯入过程挤土效应数值模型;基于已有的三轴排水剪切试验数据校正SIMSAND-Br模型参数,并用于模拟已有的离心机桩基贯入模型试验,通过对比模拟结果与已有的离心机桩基贯入模型试验数据,验证所建立模型的可靠性;采用验证后的所建立模型模拟分析层状砂土地基中静压桩贯入阻力和土体位移。结果表明:模拟计算的静压桩贯入阻力和土体位移结果与已有的离心机桩基贯入模型试验结果一致,所建立的模型可以用于层状砂土地基中静压桩贯入过程挤土效应的模拟分析;土体分层对于靠近土体分层界面一定范围内的静压桩贯入阻力和所引起的竖向位移具有较大影响,影响区域直径约为桩直径的4~10倍,对水平位移的影响极小,该影响区域大小随着砂土相对密实度和与分层界面距离的变化而显著变化。

基于Hansbo渗流的平面应变固结分析

为了考察非Darcy渗流对二维地基固结过程的影响,引入Hansbo渗流方程描述饱和黏性土中的渗流规律,修正了Terzaghi-Rendulic平面应变固结方程,并给出了有限体积法数值求解格式;采用不同的Hansbo渗流参数,分析了条形荷载作用下有限深度地基的固结特性。结果表明:Hansbo渗流延缓了平面应变固结的过程,并且随着Hansbo渗流参数的增大,超静孔压的消散变得更为缓慢,因此,按Darcy渗流对二维地基进行的常规固结分析将会高估其固结速率;与Biot固结理论相比,在Terzaghi固结理论框架内,条形荷载下固结初期地基中局部的孔压增大现象并不明显。研究成果可为探寻更为准确的饱和黏性土地基沉降预测方法提供理论基础。

饱和砂土不同应力路径下强度及剪胀真三轴试验研究

采用全自动加载真三轴仪对饱和砂土在大主应力方向与沉积方向平行的条件下,在不同固结压力(围压)50kPa、100kPa、200kPa条件下,针对不同应力路径b值取0,0.25,0.5,0.75,1进行真三轴固结排水剪切试验。结果表明:大主应变和偏应力、大主应变和应力比、大主应变和有效应力比的关系基本上表现为光滑的硬化型、理想塑性。个别出现软化型的曲线,软化趋势很弱。在剪切过程中,随剪应力逐渐上升,变形模量逐渐上升,剪切强度也逐渐提高。b=1时曲线界于b=0.5~0.75时的曲线之间。中主应力系数在0.75左右时,曲线斜率达到峰值,且是不同中主应力系数曲线族中的最大值。在中主应力系数b处于区间0~0.5时,b值上升,饱和砂土剪胀性表现越来越显著;在b处于区间0.5~1时,剪胀呈现弱化趋势。整体上对比来看,饱和砂土剪胀特性在高围压状态下不同b值的剪胀性差异更加明显。

基于地基实际应力状态的堤防极限平衡分析

基于软土地基上筑堤对土体强度的影响,有效固结应力法以竖向附加应力计算土体的抗剪强度增量,因其简单实用已较多应用于软土地基稳定性分析中。该方法假设堤防荷载下土体处于K_(0)应力状态,与土体实际所受单向应力状态不符;基于该法的稳定性计算方法还忽略了剪应力变化及坡脚外侧区域对稳定性的影响。本文从土体抗剪强度和堤防稳定性分析两个层面改进有效固结应力法:通过应力状态分析得到基于实际应力状态的剪应力和抗剪强度变化,进而将各个区域的抗滑力矩和滑动力矩纳入稳定性分析体系。假想算例与工程实例分析表明,改进方法得到的安全系数大于有效固结应力法,更加符合工程实际。