Finite Element Modeling of the Soil-Nailing Process in Nailed-Soil Slopes

The finite element technique has been accepted as a tool for modeling geotechnical complex processes. In this study, finite element (FE) modeling of various stages of the soil-nailing process, i.e., construction stages and overburden pressure stages, is carried out considering different soil parameters, simulating with in-house developed laboratory models. The soil-nailing process built in laboratory models is idealized as a plain strain problem and modeled in PLAXIS software. The laboratory models of the soil-nailing process consist of a Perspex sheet box containing a sandy soil slope, a Perspex sheet facing, steel bars as reinforcement and a steel plate as foundation. The stress-strain relationship of the sand is represented by a Hardening-Soil model. The interface at the soil and nail is described by the Coulomb friction model. The behavior of the soil-nailing process, during the construction stage and under varying overburden pressure and varying soil density, are investigated in terms of displacements of slope and stress conditions in slope soil mass. The slope displacements and stress conditions in slope soil mass are all well presented by the FE modeling and compared with laboratory model test data. The sensitivity analysis of the laboratory models' dimensions is carried out by three-dimensional modeling of the nailed-soil slope. It can be concluded that the developed finite element model has the potential to simulate the performance of a field nailed-soil slope during construction and working stages and could provide guidance for the construction/maintenance of soil-nailed cut slopes in granular soils/weathered rocks.