Numerical Analysis of the Performance of Stone Columns Used for Ground Improvement

This paper describes a case history of soft ground that has high compressibility, located in Skikda, Algeria, treated by stone column technique. The case history was studied using a two-dimensional finite element model to simulate the behavior of stone columns under loads. The numerical study was carried out using the unit cell approach. The elastic-perfectly plastic behavior of Mohr-Coulomb was adopted for the soil and the column. The numerical results of settlements were compared with the field measurements collected from the case history, which showed good agreement. The equivalent area method was used and verified in this study. The equivalent area method yields similar values to field measurements. This study also investigated the effect of various parameters, including the stiffness of column material, stone column diameter, spacing between the columns and height of embankment fill. The results of the parametric study with the unit cell approach showed good agreement compared to the equivalent area method for predicting settlement.