Footings on sloped fills : influence of a soil reinforcement layer

This research focusses on an illustrative example of the performance of a model footing which is located on a sloped fill, in particular, the sloped fill containing a geogrid type reinforcing layer. A series of experimental investigations are conducted to determine the effectiveness of the geogrid in improving the performance of the sloped fill.The results of the model studies show that the load carrying capacity of a sloped fill structure can be increased by over 5 0 % , by incorporating a Tensar SS2 Geogrid reinforcement at a depth of between 0.5 and 0.9 times the width of foundation. Certain preliminary finite element studies are also conducted using a scheme which accomodates the nonlinear response of the soil. The results of these numerical studies also show similar trends. Experimental results indicate that the use of geogrid reinforcement at the above depth can also increase the initial stiffness of the sloped fill by over 30 % . Five different types of geogrids were used in the experimental studies. The experimental studies further suggest that the strain gauge instrumentation is well suited for laboratory investigations.