DESIGN OF REINFORCED EARTH

RETAINING WALL
A Project report submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of degree
of

Bachelor of Technology in Civil Engineering

Submitted by

Sl.No Name Registered No.

1. A. Raj Kumar 20335A0101
2. S. Sai Rakesh 20335A0113
3. M. Devi Prasanna 19331A0161
4. V. Abhishek 19331A0194

Under the Guidance of

Mr. B. Ramu
Assistant Professor

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

MVGR COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING (AUTONOMOUS)
VIZIANAGARAM – 535 005
(Affiliated to JNT University, Kakinada, A.P)
 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Social Relevant Project entitled “Design of

Reinforced Earth Retaining” is the bonafide work carried during
the academic year 2022-2023 by “A. Raj Kumar, S. Sai Rakesh, M.
Devi Prasanna, V. Abhishek ” under the guidance of Mr. B. Ramu,
Assistant Professor is submitted to the Department of Civil
Engineering, MVGR College of Engineering (Autonomous),
Vizianagaram.

HoD – Civil Engineering Project Guide

---------------------------- ----------------------
Dr. P. Markandeya Raju Mr. B. Ramu
Professor Assistant Professor
 CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION …………………………………….1
2. LITERATURE REVIEW ………………………….… 8
3. PROBLEM STATEMENT …………………………... 9
4. OBJECTIVES ………………………………………... 9
5. EXPECTED OUTCOMES ……………………….…. 10
 CHAPTER - 1
INTRODUCTION

RETAINING WALL :
A retaining wall is a structure that retains any material, usually earth and prevents it from
sliding or eroding away. Retaining walls provide lateral support to vertical slopes of soil.
They retain soil which would otherwise collapse. The retained soil is referred to as backfill.

WHY RETAINING WALL :

• To prevent soil from eroding and from spilling out.
• To prevent flooding in landscape.
• To keep surrounding structures safe from elements that would damage them.
• To reduce the amount of maintenance that many homeowners have to deal with
due to erosion.

TYPES OF RETAINING WALLS :

1. Gravity wall.
2. Semi gravity wall.
3. Cantilever wall.
4. Counter fort retaining wall.
5. Buttressed retaining wall.
6. Reinforced earth retaining wall.
Gravity Walls: Gravity walls are the earliest known retaining structures. They are built
from solid concrete or rock rubble mortared together. The lateral force from backfill is
resisted by weight of wall itself and due to their massive nature they develop little or no
tension. Therefore, they are usually not reinforced with steel. Gravity walls are economical
for heights up to 3 m (10ft).

Semi-gravity Walls: A specialized form of gravity walls is a semi-gravity retaining wall.

These have some tension reinforcing steel included so as to minimize the thickness of the
wall without requiring extensive reinforcement. They are a blend of the gravity wall and the
cantilever wall designs.

Cantilever Walls: Cantilever retaining walls are constructed of reinforced concrete. They
consist of a relatively thin stem and a base slab. The base is also divided into two parts, the
heel and toe. The heel is the part of the base under the backfill. The toe is the other part of the
base. Generally economical up to about 25 ft. in height. The resistance to sliding of a
cantilever type of retaining wall is sometimes increased by providing vertical projection
known as key at the base.

Counterfort retaining Walls: Counterfort retaining walls are similar to cantilever walls
except they have thin vertical concrete webs at regular intervals along the backside of the
wall. These webs are known as counterforts. Counterfort retaining walls are more economical
than cantilever walls for heights above 25 ft.
Buttressed Wails: A buttressed wall is similar to counterfort type of wall but in this case
counterforts are placed on the front of the wall and are known as buttresses rather than
counterforts. In this type of wall heel projection is small and hence backfill contributes less to
the stability of wall. Also buttress reduce clearance in front of the wall. These types of walls
are rarely used.

Reinforced earth retaining wall: An earth retaining wall is a composite structure

consisting of alternating layers of compacted backfill and soil reinforcement elements, fixed
to a wall facing. The stability of the wall system is derived from the interaction between the
backfill and soil reinforcements, involving friction and tension. The wall facing is relatively
thin, with the primary function of preventing erosion of the structural backfill. The result is a
coherent gravity structure that is flexible and can carry a variety of heavy loads. Reinforced
Earth is composite material formed by cohesion less soil and flexible metal reinforcing strips.
The earth and the reinforcement are combined through friction. The result is a monolithic
mass that acts cohesively, supporting its own weight and applied loads. Reinforcement placed
in horizontal layers throughout the height of the wall provides the tensile strength to hold the
soil together.

ADVANTAGES OF REINFORCED EARTH WALLS :

• High load carrying capacity.

• Structural flexibility.

• Less skilled labor.

• Fast track constructions.

• Long term durability.

• Cost effective.

• Aesthetic appearance.

• Earth embankments/slopes are commonly required on railways, roads, etc.

COMPONENTS OF REINFORCED EARTH RETAINING
WALL :

1. Facing panels.
2. Levelling pad.
3. Backfill.
4. Drainage layer.
5. Soil reinforcement

REINFORCEMENT USED IN RETAINING WALL :

Geosynthetics are polymeric materials used with soil, rock, earth, or other geotechnical
engineering-related material inorder to act as reinforcement, separation, drainage,
containment, barrier & for management of surface erosion.
TYPES OF GEOSYNTHETICS :

GEOGRID :
Geogrid is the major geosynthetic material made from polymers such as polyethylene or
polyester, formed by means of intersecting grids, used to reinforce soils.

APPLICATIONS OF GEOGRID :
• Retaining walls & Embankments.
• Reinforced steep slopes.
• Highway infrastructure.
• Landfill construction.
• Erosion control.
DESIGN OF REINFORCED EARTH RETAINING WALL :

Principles of design :
The reinforced soil structure must be checked with respect to two forms of stability.

1. External Stability
2. Internal Stability

External stability governs reinforced length and must have adequate safety against outward
sliding, overturning, bearing failure & deep seated failure.
Hence external stability is checked against factor of safety of :
• Outward sliding.
• Overturning.
• Bearing failure.
• Deep seated failure.

1. Outward sliding :
FOS = Resisting force / Sliding force
= μ(γwHL+wsL) / (KabγbH2/2 +KabwsH)
• A minimum value of 1.5 is specified.

2. Overtuning :
FOS = Resisting moment/Overturning moment
= 3(γwH+ws) / Kab(γbH+3ws)(H/L)2
• A minimum value of 2 is specified.

3. Bearing failure :
Vertical stress = Resisting force / (L-2e)
= (γwHL+ws)L / (L-2e)
Internal stability governs reinforced spacing & must have adequate wedge stability & pullout
resistance.
Hence the internal stability is checked for :
• Wedge Stability.
• Pullout resistance.
 CHAPTER - 2
LITERATURE REVIEW

1. J.B.Kennedy (1980): This paper is studied on analysis to estimate the maximum

tensile force in the rein-forcing elements when the reinforced earth retaining wall was
subjected to a vertical surcharge strip load. The method was based on modification of
elastic theory and use of a reduction factor to determine the tension stresses along the
wall height according to the stiffness characteristic of the soil backfill and reinforcing
elements. Since such a reduction factor depended upon a number of influencing
parameters (e.g. modulus of elasticity of the backfill), its exact evaluation is
cumbersome and not convenient in practical application.

2. J.T.Laba (1984): This is studied on structural response of a reinforced earth

retaining wall model subjected to the combined action of vertical and horizontal
surcharge strip loads aligned parallel to the wall head. The stress distribution pattern
in the reinforcing elements and in the reinforced earth medium was studied.

3. H.I.Ling (2015): In this the Seismic design procedures are proposed for
geosynthetic- reinforced soil structures. The procedures are based on a pseudo-static
limit equilibrium analysis, which considers horizontal acceleration and incorporates a
permanent displacement limit. Internal and external stability analyses are conducted
to determine the required strength and length of geosynthetic, considering different
modes of failure.

4. Izzaldin Almohd (2014): The paper explained about internal stability which is
examined by satisfying the local stability of reinforcements at each level based on the
predetermined critical slip plane (line of maximums) and the tributary area of each
reinforcing layer. Recent research aimed at incorporating the contributions of the
various elements of reinforced earth walls, some of which are mostly based on
statistical correlations.
 CHAPTER - 3
PROBLEM STATEMENT

DESIGN OF REINFORCED EARTH RETAINING

WALL

OBJECTIVES :
• To study the importance of reinforced earth retaining wall.
• To study the stability conditions of retaining wall.
• Analyze the internal and external stability of retaining wall.
• To design reinforced earth retaining wall as peer IS 8006-2010.
• Determine position & spacing requirements of geogrids.
EXPECTED OUTCOMES :
• Understand the importance of Reinforced earth retaining wall effectively.
• Able to determine the parameters of soil required for design.
• Able to evaluate the external & internal stability of Retaining wall.
• Analyze & design Reinforced earth retaining wall.

REFERENCES :

• The design procedures are lain on IS 8006-1-2010 (code of practice for

strengthened/reinforced soil and other fills)
• J.T. Laba and J.B. Kennedy (1986) Reinforced earth retaining wall analysis and
design, Windsor, Ont., Canada N9B 3P4.
• Lee, K.L., Admas, B. D., and Vagneron, J.J. 1973. Reinforced earth retaining walls.
ASCE Journal of the Soil Mechanics and Foundation Division, 99(SM10), pp. 745-
764.
• An introduction to soil reinforcement and Geosynthetics by G L Sivakumar Babu.
• MORTH Standard Data Book.
• AP SOR 2019-2020.