Advance Researches in Civil Engineering

Advance Researches in Civil Engineering

Enhancing Load Bearing Capacity of Footings on Saturated Sand Slopes using Geocell Reinforcement

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Manesht Maleki Vasegh 1
Vahid Rostami 2
Hamidreza Rabieifar 3
1 Phd. candidate, Civil engineering department, Kish International Branch, Islamic Azad University, Kish, Iran
2 Assistant professor, Civil engineering department, Hamedan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Hamedan, Iran
3 Assistant professor, Civil engineering department, Tehran south Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
10.30469/arce.2025.519682.1085
Abstract
This study investigates the load-bearing capacity of strip footings constructed on geocell-reinforced sand slopes. It includes series of experiments to examine the behavior of geocell reinforcement when subjected to bending loads. The results indicated that as the height of the geocell increased, the deep beam behavior became more pronounced, suggesting that the geocell layer can effectively act as a deep beam. Additionally, the study revealed that when eccentric loading is applied to foundations near the crest of the sand slope, it increases the footing’s initial bearing capacity. When altering the geometry of a sand slope is not feasible, and modifying the geotechnical properties of the soil is either impractical or expensive, the implementation of appropriate soil reinforcement can prove to be beneficial. Lastly, the findings of the study suggest that an increase in the number of geocells can bring the foundation’s load-bearing capacity closer to the loading capacity of a foundation on horizontal ground.
Keywords
Load bearing capacity
Strip footing
Geocell
Reinforced slope
Saturated sand
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Advance Researches in Civil Engineering
Volume 6, Issue 2
Spring 2024
Pages 39-49