Planar geosynthetic-reinforced soil foundations: a review

Abstract

Geosynthetics-reinforced soil (GRS) foundation can improve the bearing capacity of the foundation and reduce the settlement of the footing, which has been widely applied to the treatment and improvement of soft soil foundation. In recent years, scholars have carried out a large number of studies to reveal the influence of different factors on the load and settlement behaviors of GRS foundations. In this study, the reinforcing mechanisms of reinforced materials are first summarized, and then the literature review of planar geosynthetic-reinforced foundations from the aspects of experimental studies, numerical simulations and theoretical analyses are presented. Finally, the current research trend of reinforced foundation and the prospects in the future study are discussed. Although the researches on the performance of GRS foundations are conducted extensively, there is no unified understanding on the failure mode and reinforcing mechanism of reinforced foundation. It is necessary to propose the accurate and simple calculation method to evaluate the ultimate bearing capacity of reinforced foundations based on the reinforcing mechanism and failure mode. In addition, the dynamic response of GRS foundations under cyclic loading and earthquake needs to be studied intensively. The paper summarizes the past and present developments of the GRS foundations and provide the views for the further researches.