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This paper demonstrates reliability-based design for tensile rupture and pullout limit states for mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) walls constructed with geosynthetic (geogrid) reinforcement. The general approach considers the accuracy of the load and resistance models that appear in each limit state equation plus uncertainty due to the confidence (level of understanding) of the designer at the time of design. The reliability index is computed using a closed-form solution that is easily implemented in a spreadsheet. The general approach provides a quantitative link between nominal factor of safety, which is familiar in allowable stress design practice, and reliability index used in modern civil engineering reliability-based design practice. A well-documented MSE wall case study is used to demonstrate the general approach and to compare margins of safety using different load and resistance model combinations. A practical outcome from the case study example is the observation that the pullout limit state is much less likely to control design than the ultimate tensile rupture state for walls with continuous reinforcement coverage. The more accurate "simplified stiffness method" that is used to compute tensile loads in the reinforcement under operational conditions is shown to generate a more cost-effective reinforcement option than the less accurate American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) simplified method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the numerical modelling details using the finite difference method (FDM) to simulate the performance of a well-instrumented geogrid-reinforced incremental concrete panel soil retaining wall. Two different constitutive models were investigated for the backfill soil (linear elastic-plastic model and nonlinear elastic-plastic model). Both constant stiffness and strain-dependent secant stiffness models were used for the reinforcement elements. The paper provides valuable lessons to modellers to simulate the performance of this type of earth retaining structure. For example, parametric investigation of the effect of a constant Young's modulus ranging from 40 to 120 MPa for the linear-elastic Mohr-Coulomb model had only minor influence on the wall facing displacements and reinforcement loads. However, the choice of magnitude of transient compaction pressure near the facing can result in large differences in facing displacements. The paper also demonstrates that the method of construction including the location, sequence, and stiffness of the temporary supports used to construct the wall plays an important role on measured and predicted wall performance. The physical measurements reported in this paper provide a benchmark for numerical modellers to verify other numerical models for walls of the type investigated here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

6.Databaseofloaddata Miyata and Bathurst (2019) developed a database of 113 measured steel grid loads (T max) from 11 instrumented steel grid walls constructed with cohesive-frictional soils and purely frictional soils. Reliability-based design and analysis for internal limit states of steel grid-reinforced mechanically stabilized earth walls. Thegeneralapproachdescribedin thispaperisanimportantcontributiontonext-generationanalysis and design using modern concepts of RBD for internal stability design of both steel and polymeric soil-reinforced MSE walls and is thus in alignment with the international movement towards RBD for geotechnical structures (e.g., Low and Phoon 2015;Phoon2017;PhoonandChing2015;ISSMGE2017). Allen et al. (2001, 2004) quantified the level of accuracy of the Simplified Method for steel MSE walls using bias statistics deduced from a large number of instrumented walls. 1.Introduction This paper is focused on reliability-based design (RBD) and analysis for tensile strength and pullout limit states of steel grid-reinforced mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) walls constructed with frictional soils and subjected to typical operational conditions. [Extracted from the article]