• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 1999.10a
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• pp.473-480
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• 1999

This paper presents the results of a parametric study on the behavior of mechanically stabilized earth retaining wall. It has been recognized that the currently available design guidelines, which is base on the limit equilibrium approach, cannot properly account the interaction effect between the components, construction sequence, and foundation settlement which may impose a significant influence on the wall behavior. A parametric study using finite element analysis was performed to investigate the behavior of MSE wall under different construction conditions and the applicability of the current design approach. In the parametric analysis, the effects of the construction sequence, the surcharge, and the foundation stiffness were studied and a detailed finite element modeling for various components of the system were employed. The results, such as wall displacement and earth pressure distributions, reinforcement forces, vertical stress distribution were then thoroughly analyzed to investigate the effect of construction details on the wall behavior.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.277-293
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• 2024

Shored Mechanically Stabilized Earth (SMSE) walls are types of soil retaining structures that increase soil stability under static and dynamic loads. The damage caused by an earthquake can be determined by evaluating the probabilistic seismic response of SMSE walls. This study aimed to assess the seismic performance of SMSE walls and provide fragility curves for evaluating failure levels. The generated fragility curves can help to improve the seismic performance of these walls through assessing and controlling variables like backfill surface settlement, lateral deformation of facing, and permanent relocation of the wall. A parametric study was performed based on a non-linear elastoplastic constitutive model known as the hardening soil model with small-strain stiffness, HSsmall. The analyses were conducted using PLAXIS 2D, a Finite Element Method (FEM) program, under plane-strain conditions to study the effect of the number of geogrid layers and the axial stiffness of geogrids on the performance of SMSE walls. In this study, three areas of damage (minor, moderate, and severe) were observed and, in all cases, the wall has not completely entered the stage of destruction. For the base model (Model A), at the highest ground acceleration coefficient (1 g), in the moderate damage state, the fragility probability was 76%. These values were 62%, and 54%, respectively, by increasing the number of geogrids (Model B) and increasing the geogrid stiffness (Model C). Meanwhile, the fragility values were 99%, 98%, and 97%, respectively in the case of minor damage. Notably, the probability of complete destruction was zero percent in all models.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.19 no.11
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• pp.750-757
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• 2018

The mechanically stabilized earth wall abutment is an earth structure using a mechanically stabilized earth wall and it uses in-extensional steel reinforcements having excellent friction performance. In order to analyze the pullout behavior of in-extensional steel reinforcements usually applied on the mechanically stabilized earth wall abutment, effects of stiffness and particle-size distributions of backfills and also horizontal spacings were considered in this study. As a result of parametric analyses, the highest pulling force acted on the uppermost reinforcement, and the stiffness and the particle-size distributions of the backfill significantly affected the pulling resistance of the reinforced soils. The internal friction angle of backfills should be at least 25 degrees, the coefficient uniformity factor should be at least 4, and the horizontal spacing of the uppermost steel reinforcement should be less than 25cm. Therefore, in order to secure the pullout resistance of the reinforced soil, it is necessary a properly spacing of reinforcement and more strict quality control for the backfill.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2001.10a
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• pp.337-344
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• 2001

The application of mechanically stabilized earth wall(MSEW) with segmental front panel has been increasing in highway construction due to its cost-effectiveness. However, some failures during construction have been reported and many field engineers are reluctant to select this method for important structure. One of the main reasons may be that there is no moderate specification for design and construction of MSEW yet. This paper discussed the main results of analysis on a case of block-type segmental retaining wall in highway construction. Based on the results, some recommendations on design and construction method of MSEW are presented.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.81-93
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• 2024

In Korea, numerous large-scale infrastructure construction projects and housing site developments are being undertaken. However, due to limited land availability, sourcing high-quality backfill materials that meet the standards for railroad and road embankment compaction and mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) retaining wall construction poses significant challenges. Concurrently, there has been an increase in structural failures of many MSE retaining walls, attributed primarily to reduced bearing capacity and impaired drainage performance, resulting from inadequate backfill compaction. This study aimed to analyze the structural performance and safety of an MSE retaining wall using recycled soil as backfill. We conducted small-scale model tests utilizing 3D printing technology combined with two-dimensional numerical analysis. The study quantitatively evaluated the MSE retaining wall's performance concerning the recycled soil mixing ratio and reinforcement installation methods. Furthermore, the utility of 3D printing was confirmed through the production of an experimental wall designed to facilitate easy reinforcement attachment, mirroring the conditions of actual MSE retaining wall construction.

• 도로교통
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• s.108
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• pp.38-45
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• 2007

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.601-614
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• 2018

This study presents structural and parametric analyses on the behavior of an integrated and pile-bent abutment with mechanically stabilized earth wall (IPM) bridge. The IPM bridge is an integral abutment bridge (IAB) with partially protruded piles, which excludes earth pressure by means of a mechanically stabilized earth wall developed by the authors. The results of the analysis indicate that the IPM bridge, as any other IAB, is influenced to a large extent by temperature and time-dependent loads. When these loads are applied, the stress on a pile in the IPM bridge decreases as the displacement of the pile top increases, because the piles protrude from the ground surface and no soil reaction is generated on the protruded pile. Because the length of an IAB is restricted by the forces acting on its piles, the IPM bridge is an effective alternative to extend its length.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.329-341
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• 2024

Retaining structures are one of the most important elements in the stabilization of excavations and slopes in various engineering projects. Mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) walls are widely used as retaining structures due to their flexibility, easy and economical construction. These benefits are especially prominent for projects built on soft and weak foundation soils, which have relatively low resistance and high compressibility. For high retaining walls on weak foundations, conventional design methods are not cost-effective. Therefore, two alternative solutions for different foundation weakness are proposed in this research: optimized multi-tiered MSE walls and single tier wall with foundation improvement. The cost optimization considers both the construction components and the land price. The results show that the optimal solution depends on several factors, including the foundation strength and more importantly, the land price. For low land price, the optimized multi-tiered wall is more economical, while for high land price (urban areas), the foundation improvement is preferable. As the foundation strength decreases, the foundation improvement becomes inevitable.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.36 no.12
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• pp.69-76
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• 2020

Since the mechanically stabilized earth walls have a form of retaining wall compatible with a narrow section, the geogrid overlaps according to the separation distance between the walls. There is a problem that the overall behavior may occur in the state of being integrated with the stress change due to the interaction of the geogrid. Therefore, a careful approach is required at the design stage, but there are currently no design criteria or guidelines in Korea. This study investigated the optimal reinforcement length ratio according to the retaining wall width to height ratio (width to height ratio, Wb/H) for these back-to-back mechanically stabilized earth walls. Retaining wall width ratio is 1.1H, 1.4H, 1.7H, 2.0H for Case II of the FHWA design standard, and the height is 3.0 m, 5.0 m, 7.0 m, and 10.0 m, which are most commonly applied. Through numerical analysis, the appropriateness of the FHWA design standard and the optimal reinforcement length ratio according to the height of the retaining wall and the width of the retaining wall were proposed.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.47-59
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• 2008

Application of mechanically stabilized earth wall (MSEW) abutment has been rapidly increasing in United States of America, Pennsylvania since 2002. MSEW is effective for reducing construction cost and period compared to general concrete reinforced wall. In the paper, theoretical background and conventional criterion of MSEW abutment that is widely used abroad are analyzed. Based on the results, application of suitable MSEW abutment to domestic bridge type is examined. For the application of MSEW abutment in Korea, load interacting with upper shoe in domestic bridge types and structural analyses of beam seat and pile are investigated. As a result, all applications are possible except for PSC BOX Bridge that has heavy self-weight of girder. Through two and three dimensional numerical analyses, horizontal behaviour mechanisms between pile and MSEW were analyzed and field tests are also carried out for seven piles behind earth walls. From results of field tests, it is confirmed that an angle of internal friction of backfill material needs to be greater than 34 degree to use H-Pile as foundation of MSEW.