Seismic response of tied‐back retaining walls

Abstract

AbstractParametric studies based on finite element simulations were conducted to establish the fundamental mechanisms by which tied‐back walls respond to travelling displacement pulses. Considering first linear elastic soil behaviour, we observed that the flexural stiffness of the wall hardly affects maximum transient displacements. Rather, the transient response is determined mainly by the ratio of pulse wavelength to wall height. The maximum load carried by the anchor was found to increase with increasing anchor stiffness. For short wavelengths, on the order of less than two times the wall height, the maximum displacements and displaced shapes are affected significantly by the inclination of the anchor. The importance of the anchor stiffness suggested by the linear elastic analysis was confirmed by the non‐linear analysis. A stiff anchor suppressed permanent displacements in the vicinity of the anchor, but did not substantially reduce permanent displacements elsewhere. As peak accelerations increased from 0.1 g to 0.4 g, permanent wall displacements increased significantly.