Seismic Response of Geosynthetic Reinforced Earth Embankment by Centrifuge Shaking Table Tests

Abstract

The advantages of reinforced earth structures are their flexibility and capability to absorb deformations due to poor foundation and seismic loadings. In this study, 7 centrifuge shaking table tests were performed to investigate the effect of reinforcement arrangement on seismic response of geosynthetic reinforced earth embankment. The test results show that the natural frequency of an 8 m-high GRE embankment is about 5.7Hz. The arrangement of reinforcement and the inclination of slope facing do not affect the natural frequency significantly. The amplification of acceleration increases with the increasing elevation and the increasing frequency of input motion. If the embankment has enough reinforcement strength, the reinforcement spacing and the inclination of slope facing would not affect the settlement significantly. Insufficient reinforcement strength would lead to internal instability failure and a large settlement. The external instability would occur for the embankment using too short reinforcement length.