Influence of facing batter angle on reinforcement load of reinforced soil retaining wall with modular block facing

The reinforced soil retaining walls have the advantages of good mechanical performance and high cost effectiveness. They have been widely used all over the world. However, the theoretical researches on the reinforcement load and its mechanism have lagged behind the engineering practice. Many actual experimental data have proven this point. The influence of facing batter angle on the reinforcement loads of reinforced soil retaining wall is investigated. At first, by comparing with the measured results from two Royal Military College (RMC) test walls, the suitability of numerical simulations for the reinforced soil retaining walls is validated. Then, using the numerical simulation method, the vertical earth pressures and reinforcement loads on the reinforced soil retaining wall with different batter angles under different working conditions are analyzed. It is shown that the reinforcement load decreases with an increase in the facing batter angle. Based on the numerical results, the influencing mechanism of the facing batter angle on the reinforcement load is identified by analyzing the mechanical equilibrium of potential sliding wedge and the soil stress near the potential failure surface. The vertical soil stress and base frictional resistance of the facing are two important factors contributing to the reduction of reinforcement load.