• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.341-380
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• 2023

This study evaluates the seismic fragilities in fill slopes in South Korea through parametric finite element analyses that have been barely investigated thus far. We consider three slope geometries for a slope of height 10 m and three slope angles, and two soil types, namely frictional and frictionless, associated with two soil states, loose and dense for frictional soils and soft and stiff for frictionless soils. The input ground motions accounting for four site conditions in South Korea are obtained from one-dimensional site response analyses. By comparing the numerical modeling of slopes using PLAXIS^2D against the previous studies, we compiled suites of the maximum permanent slope displacement (D_max) against two ground motion parameters, namely, peak ground acceleration (PGA) and Arias Intensity (I_A). A probabilistic seismic demand model is adopted to compute the probabilities of exceeding three limit states (minor, moderate, and extensive). We propose multiple seismic fragility curves as functions of a single ground motion parameter and numerous seismic fragility surfaces as functions of two ground motion parameters. The results show that soil type, slope angle, and input ground motion influence these probabilities, and are expected to help regional authorities and engineers assess the seismic fragility of fill slopes in the road systems in South Korea.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Railway
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.386-393
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• 2013

In this study, the so-called repeated plate load bearing test (RPBT) used to get $E_{v2}$ values in order to check the degree of compaction of subgrade, and to get design parameters for determining the thickness of the trackbed foundation, is investigated. The test procedure of the RPBT method is scrutinized in detail. $E_{v2}$ values obtained from the field were verified in order to check the reliability of the test data. The $E_{v2}$ values obtained from high-speed rail construction sites were compared to converted modulus values obtained from resonant column (RC) test results. For these tests, medium-size samples composed of the same soils from the field were used after analyzing stress and strain levels existing in the soil below the repeated loading plates. Finite element analyses, using the PLAXIS and ABAQUS programs, were performed in order to investigate the impact of the strain influence coefficient. This was done by getting newly computed $I_z$ to get the precise strain level predicted on the subgrade surface in the full track structure; under wheel loading. It was verified that it is necessary to use precise loading steps to construct nonlinear load-settlement curves from RPBT in order to get correct $E_{v2}$ values at the proper strain levels.

• Journal of the Korean Geosynthetics Society
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.75-82
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• 2020

There have been often cases of collapse for geogrid reinforced soil (GRS) retaining wall. Hence, social interest in the reinforcement and restoration of the collapsed GRS wall is increasing day by day. However, there are only few researches. For this reason, a series of numerical analyses using the Plaxis 2D program was conducted in this study to analyze the suitable reinforcement methods that can be applied on the existing damaged GRS wall caused by overturning of the modular blocks facing and the surface settlement at the backfill as the results from the design failure. The restoration plan used in this study is composed of two cases: (Case 1) soil nailing reinforcement and reinforced concrete (RC) wall facing construction on the existing damaged GRS wall; and (Case 2) removal of the entire damaged GRS wall and then reconstruction. The results on the internal stability of the GRS wall show that Case 1 obtained a greater safety factor than Case 2 for tensile force while Case 2 had a greater safety factor than Case 1 for pullout failures. Case 1 was found to be more stable than Case 2 in terms of the global slope safety by shear strength reduction method and the external deformation behavior by numerical analysis. In this study, the existing damaged GRS wall which was reinforced using Case 1 method shows more stable external behavior.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.183-192
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• 2022

Piled raft foundations are widely used and effective in supporting high-rise buildings around the world. In this study, a piled raft system was numerically simulated using PLAXIS 3D. The settlement comparison results between the actual building measurements and the three-dimensional (3D) numerical analysis, were in good agreement, indicating the usefulness of this approach for the evaluation of the feasibility of using a piled raft foundation in Ho Chi Minh City subsoil. The effects were investigated of the number of piles based on pile spacing, pile length, raft embedment on the settlement, load sharing, bending moments, and the shear force of the piled raft foundation in Ho Chi Minh City subsoil. The results indicated that with an increased number of piles, increased pile length, and embedding raft depth, the total and differential settlement decreased. The optimal design consisted of pile numbers of 60-70, corresponding to pile spacings is 5.5-6 times the pile diameter (D_p), in conjunction with a pile length-to-pile diameter ratio of 30. Furthermore, load sharing by the raft, by locating it in the second layer of stiff clay, could achieve 66% of the building load. The proposed model of piled raft foundations could reduce the total foundation cost by 49.61% compared to the conventional design. This research can assist practicing engineers in selecting pile and raft parameters in the design of piled raft foundations to produce an economical design for high-rise buildings in Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam, and around the world.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2008.03a
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• pp.472-485
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• 2008

In this study, sand compaction pile method was adopted to improve the soft ground under the permanent dyke, namely west sea dyke of Incheon New Port. The row replacement ratio 30% was applied to consider the ground condition, environmental side and the construction cost of the site. The stability and displacement analysis was carried out by respectively SLOPE/W and PLAXIS 2D program. Based on this analysis, it is found that the safety factor and displacement is within an allowable criteria. The model experiment was carried out using the acryl soil box with $400(H){\times}1200(L){\times}250(W)mm$ to show the displacement of the dyke and behavior of soft ground. Based on this experiment results, it is found that the settlement does not occur from 1 and 2 loading phases and horizontal displacement of 0.0075% occurs from 2 phases. It is also found that the differential settlement occurs 0.05mm corresponding respectively 0.02% and 0.03% of the dyke height(15cm).

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.223-238
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• 2017

In this study, bearing capacities and settlement profiles of six irregularly shaped footings located on sand have been experimentally and analytically investigated under the effect of axial loading. The main variable considered in the study was the geometry of the footings. The axial loads were applied from the center of gravities of the test specimens. Consequently, the effect of footing shape on the variation of the bearing capacities and settlement profiles have been investigated in this paper. The three dimensional finite element analyses of the test specimens were conducted using the PLAXIS 3D software. The finite element model results are in acceptable agreement with the results obtained using experimental investigation. In addition, the usability of the finite element technique by design engineers to determine the bearing capacities and settlement profiles of irregularly shaped footings was investigated. From the results of the study, it was observed that the geometric properties of the footings significantly influenced the variation of the bearing capacities and settlement profiles.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.239-253
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• 2022

Suitable techniques to stabilize organic soil and improve its engineering behaviour are in demand. Despite various alternatives, nano-additives proved to be an effective stabilizer owing to their strength enhancing properties. The study focuses on using nano-silica as a potential stabilizer to improve organic silt. Soil was treated with four dosages of nano-silica namely 0.2%, 0.4%, 0.6% and 0.8% of dry weight of the soil. Nano-silica treated soil showed a strength increase of nearly 25% at a dosage of 0.4% after curing for two hours. Strength of the treated soil improved with age. Strength improved by nearly 62.9% after 28 days of curing and 221.4% after 180 days of curing due to formation of Calcium - Silicate - Hydrate (CSH) gel in the soil matrix. Dosage of 0.6% nano-silica is observed to be the optimum dosage. Coefficient of permeability and compression index showed an increase by 13.32 and 5.5 times respectively owing to aggregation of particles and creation of void spaces as visualized from the scanning electron micrographs. Further model foundation study and numerical parametric studies using PLAXIS 2D indicate that optimized and economic results can be obtained by varying the additive dosage with depth.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.401-411
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• 2020

The paper describes the influence of pile reinforcement on the stability of the slope behaviour, and the exploitation of the results of in situ measurements will be conducted. In the second part, a 2D numerical modelling will be conducted by using the finite element code PLAXIS2D; in order to validate the proposed modelling approach by comparing the numerical results with the measurements results carried out on the slides studied; to study the effect of positioning of piles as a function of the shear parameters of the supported soil on the behaviour of the soil. For various shear strength of the soil a row of pile position is found, at which the piles offer the maximum contribution to slope stability. The position of piles is found to influence the safety factor in granular soil whereas it shows a slight influence on the safety factor in coherent soil. The results also indicate that the ideal position for such stabilizing piles is in the middle height of the slope. Comparison of results of present study with literature from publication: indicated that to reach the maximum stability of slope, the pile must be installed with L_x/L ratio (0.37 to 0.62) and the inclination must be between 30° to 60°. Even, after a certain length of the pile, the increasing will be useless. The application of the present approach to such a problem is located at the section of PK 210+480 to 210+800 of the Algerian East-West Highway.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.391-401
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• 2014

In an attempt to make a numerical modeling of the nailed walls with a view to assess the stability has been used. A convenient modeling which can provide answers to nearly situ conditions is of particular significance and can significantly reduce operating costs and avoid the risks arising from inefficient design. In the present study, a nailing system with a excavation depth of 8 meters has been modeled and observed by using the three constitutive behavioral methods; Mohr Coulomb (MC), hardening soil (HS) and hardening soil model with Small-Strain stiffness ensued from small strains (HSS). There is a little difference between factor of safety and the forces predicted by the three models. As extremely small lateral deformations exert effect on stability and the overall deformation of a system, the application of advanced soil model is essential. Likewise, behavioral models such as HS and HSS realize lower amounts of the heave of excavation bed and lateral deformation than MC model.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2008.10a
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• pp.1167-1174
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• 2008

Vertical drain method, which is one of the soft ground improvement methods, shorten s drain path to accelerate consolidation process and is applied in many sites. At a recent, composite discharge capacity experiment that analyze discharge amount by consolidation behavior with overburden pressure of soft ground in laboratory, simulates similarly with actuality. Geotechnical engineering problems such a s soft ground improvement are solved by numerical analysis by development of computer and numerical analysis techniques. Numerical analysis does that result is contrary by user's inexperience for choice of constitution model and application of analysis method. Therefore, this thesis experiments on composite discharge capacity test and study discharge capacity of drain and consolidation behavior of soft ground installed prefabricated vertical drain boards. Also, This thesis studied reasonable input parameters and constitution model by compare results of composite discharge capacity test and numerical analysis using PLAXIS that is 2D finial element numerical analysis program.