Critical Accelerations for Propped Diaphragm Walls in Sand by Finite Element Limit Analysis

The paper presents the results of a parametric study aimed at determining the pseudo-static critical acceleration of a propped retaining wall in sand under seismic conditions, as a function of problem geometry, soil strength and wall strength. The critical acceleration ratio has been computed by means of a finite element formulation of the limit analysis (LA) theorems. The results obtained, presented in dimensionless form, could be used in the safety assessment of similar structures under earthquake loading by means of the classical pseudo-static approach or in simplified Newmark-based methods, where the seismic performance is evaluated in terms of permanent displacements.