Abstract
This paper employs Discrete Element Method (DEM) simulations to investigate the influence of relative density on soil arching within a plane-strain active trapdoor scenario. For varying relative trapdoor depths, DEM simulations illustrate the key influence of dilatancy on displacement and strain fields and on stress rotation and trapdoor pressure, confirming that shear bands develop at the trapdoor depending on the soil's dilation angle. The interplay between dilatancy and soil cover governs the arching phenomenon and the ground deformation mode; the significance of relative density is also highlighted by its effects on the principal stress rotation and ground reaction curves. To predict the minimum trapdoor pressure, we propose a Limit Equilibrium Method (LEM) solution that considers the type of failure mechanism (trapezoidal or triangular) and the lateral earth pressure as a function of the soil's dilatancy and stress arching shape; this approach coincides with Terzaghi's soil pressure concept at the critical state. LEM predictions of minimum and ultimate (or terminal) trapdoor pressure, and of shear deformation modes, are validated with our DEM results and with literature results. Finally, the impact of effective stresses and relative density on deformation patterns and design charts that quantify the minimum trapdoor pressure is discussed.
| Originalsprog | Engelsk |
|---|---|
| Artikelnummer | 106485 |
| Tidsskrift | Computers and Geotechnics |
| Vol/bind | 173 |
| ISSN | 0266-352X |
| DOI | |
| Status | Udgivet - sep. 2024 |