AN APPLICATION OF THE DETERMINATION METHOD FOR SOIL PARAMETERS WITH THE DESIGN CODE FOR PORT AND HARBOUR FACILITIES IN JAPAN

This paper introduces a practical determination method for soil parameters adopted in the new performance based design code for port and harbour facilities in Japan. In the new port-design code, the depth profile of the derived values is modeled as the profile of the estimated values so as to be either the mean value or the regression line, then the correction factors are multiplied to the estimated value according to the coefficient of variation (if COV > 0.1) and the number of the data entries (if n < 10). The new port-design code is applied to the unconfined compression test results for the Hiroshima Port clay in order to evaluate the undrained shear strengths. From the discussion, it is emphasized that not only the statistic treatment but also the engineering judgment are required in the procedure of the soil parameter determination for the reliability design.