Finite element study of a geosynthetic-reinforced soil retaining wall withconcrete-block facing

This paper focuses on the results of finite element modeling of a full-scal e, concrete-block, geosynthetic-reinforced soil retaining wall constructed at the Public Works Research Institute in Japan. A nonlinear hyperbolic geo synthetic model was incorporated into a computer program that is capable of simulating soil-structure interaction behavior. The soil was simulated usi ng a hyperbolic model while the block-block and soil-block interactions wer e simulated using interface elements. Comparison of numerical and measured experimental results indicated that the finite element model is capable of simulating the construction behavior of concrete-block geosynthetic-reinfor ced soil structures.