Force analysis of pile foundation in rock slope based on upper-bound theorem of limit

Based on the characteristic that the potential sliding surfaces of rock slope are commonly in the shape of either line or fold line,analysis thought of conventional pile foundation in the flat ground under complex load condition was applied and the upper-bound theorem of limit analysis was used to compute thrust of rock layers with all possible distribution shapes. The interaction of slope and pile was considered design load in terms of slope thrust,and the finite difference method was derived to calculate inner-force and displacement of bridge pile foundation in rock slope under complex load condition. The result of example shows that the distribution model of slope thrust has certain impact on displacement and inner-force of bridge pile foundation. The maximum displacement growth rate reaches 54% and the maximum moment and shear growth rates reach only 15% and 20%,respectively,but the trends of inner-force and displacement of bridge pile foundation are basically the same as those of the conventional pile foundation in the flat ground. When the piles bear the same level lateral thrust,the distribution shapes of slope thrust have different influence on inner-force of pile foundation,especially the rectangle distribution,and the triangle thrust has the smallest displacement and inner-force of pile foundation.

Upper bound analysis of slope stability with nonlinear failure criterion based on strength reduction technique

Based on the upper bound limit analysis theorem and the shear strength reduction technique, the equation for expressing critical limit-equilibrium state was employed to define the safety factor of a given slope and its corresponding critical failure mechanism by means of the kinematical approach of limit analysis theory. The nonlinear shear strength parameters were treated as variable parameters and a kinematically admissible failure mechanism was considered for calculation schemes. The iterative optimization method was adopted to obtain the safety factors. Case study and comparative analysis show that solutions presented here agree with available predictions when nonlinear criterion reduces to linear criterion, and the validity of present method could be illuminated. From the numerical results, it can also be seen that nonlinear parameter rn, slope foot gradient ,β, height of slope H, slope top gradient a and soil bulk density γ have significant effects on the safety factor of the slope.

Stability analysis for natural slope by kinematical approach

The stability of natural slope was analyzed on the basis of limit analysis. The sliding model of a kind of natural slope was presented. A new kinematically admissible velocity field for the new sliding model was constructed. The stability factor formulation by the upper bound theorem leads to a classical nonlinear programming problem, when the external work rate and internal energy dissipation were solved, and the constraint condition of the programming problem was given. The upper bound optimization problem can be solved efficiently by applying a nonlinear SQP algorithm, and stability factor was obtained, which agrees well with previous achievements.

Construction of improved rigid blocks failure mechanism for ultimate bearing capacity calculation based on slip-line field theory

Based on the slip-line field theory, a two-dimensional slip failure mechanism with mesh-like rigid block system was constructed to analyze the ultimate bearing capacity problems of rough foundation within the framework of the upper bound limit analysis theorem. In the velocity discontinuities in transition area, the velocity changes in radial and tangent directions are allowed. The objective functions of the stability problems of geotechnical structures are obtained by equating the work rate of external force to internal dissipation along the velocity discontinuities, and then the objective functions are transformed as an upper-bound mathematic optimization model. The upper bound solutions for the objective functions are obtained by use of the nonlinear sequential quadratic programming and interior point method. From the numerical results and comparative analysis, it can be seen that the method presented in this work gives better calculation results than existing upper bound methods and can be used to establish the more accurate plastic collapse load for the ultimate bearing capacity of rough foundation.