Load-displacement prediction for horizontally loaded vertical plates

The load-displacement behavior of horizontally loaded vertical anchor plates as reported in 128 published held and laboratory investigations has been studied. Laboratory and held results documented in the literature have been collected for shallow anchor plates with a variety of configurations and embedded in different types of sands. A pullout capacity factor and a geometry factor were established. These factors are dimensionless and incorporate all the parameters that significantly affect the behavior of horizontally loaded vertical anchor plates. Several attempts have been made to plot the collected data in a form such that a general trend can be observed. This data was incorporated in a generalized form to predict the ultimate horizontal pullout resistance of vertical anchor plates in terms of the influencing parameters; Another formula was proposed to calculate the displacement associated with the applied load level. The proposed expressions are of good benefit to the practice since they provide an easy approximate estimation for parameters of relative complex nature, e.g., the ultimate pullout resistance and the associated displacement. The accuracy of these expressions are within reasonable limits especially since they are based on laboratory and field results obtained from tests in a wide variety of sands and conducted by several investigators under a diversity of settings and conditions.