Lateral Earth Pressure

&
(Retaining walls)
Lateral Earth Pressure

Active Earth Pressure

At Rest Earth Pressure

Soil Pushes the wall but no movement (restricted) Soil Pushes the wall and the wall moves

Passive Earth Pressure

Wall Pushes the soil
Lateral Earth Pressure

IMPORTANT NOTE

Passive Earth Pressure > At Rest Earth Pressure > Active Earth Pressure
Lateral Earth Pressure
Due to Soil
σ’h= ϒ*H*K
Lateral Earth Pressure

σ’h= ϒ*H*K
K= Lateral Earth Pressure Factor

= 1-SinФ = tan2(45-Ф/2) =1/ tan2(45-Ф/2)

=1/Ka
At rest earth pressure

For fine grained normally consolidated soils, Ko may be

estimated using
Lateral Earth Pressure
Due to Water
u= ϒw*Hw
Lateral Earth Pressure
Due to soil and Water
σh= σ’h+ u
Lateral Earth Pressure
Due to loading

σh= q*Ka
Lateral Earth Pressure
Due to 2 soils

K2>K1 K2<K1
Lateral Earth Pressure
Special Case 1
Lateral Earth Pressure
Special Case 2
−𝟐𝒄 𝑲𝒂
C Soil (Clay)
Lateral Earth Pressure
Example 1
force F and its location For the shown figure below. Plot the pressure diagram and find the resultant
under active conditions. (2000 pcf)
Lateral Earth Pressure
(2000 pcf)
Example 1
Solution:
Note that the value of ϕ is differ for each layer,
so the value of Ka will differ for each layer, thus
the first step is to calculate the value of Ka for
each layer.

Calculate Ka for each layer by the same way.

Lateral Earth Pressure
(2000 pcf)
Example 1
Solution: a

at each change we calculate the lateral earth

b
pressure just before and just after the layer c
because the value of Ka is differ d
before and after the layer. e

The general formula for active lateral earth

pressure at any depth is: f
g

+ j

ϒw*Hw L
Lateral Earth Pressure
(2000 pcf)
Example 1
Solution: Due to Soil and load a

b
c
d
e

f
g

i
j

L
Lateral Earth Pressure
(2000 pcf)
Example 1
Solution: Due to Soil and load a

b
c
d
e

f
g

i
j

L
Lateral Earth Pressure
(2000 pcf)
Example 1
Solution: Due to Soil and load a

b
c
d
e

f
g

i
j

L
Lateral Earth Pressure
(2000 pcf)
Example 1
Solution: Due to Soil and load
Lateral Earth Pressure
Example 1
Solution: Due to water
Water starts at depth 6ft to the end (i.e. depth of water is 24 ft) u = 62.4 × 24 = 1497.6 psf
Now we draw the pressure diagram as following:
retaining wall is 12-ft high. The backfill weighs 120 pcf and is
saturated below 5-ft from grade. The angle of internal friction
for the back fill is 30°. The resultant active lateral force (lb) behind
the wall per unit wall length is most nearly

A. 2,880
B. 3,880
C. 4,880
D. 8,800
 Example
A 2 m high retaining wall holds up level backfill with a specific (unit) weight of 18 kN /m3
and an angle of internal friction of 30°. What is most nearly the active earth pressure
resultant on the retaining wall?
(A) 5 kN/m
(B) 6 kN/m
(C) 8 kN/m
(D) 10 kN/m
 Stability of Retaining Wall
A retaining wall may be fail in any of the following:
1. It may overturn about its toe.
2. It may slide along its base.
3. It may fail due to the loss of bearing capacity of the soil supporting the
base.
4. It may undergo deep-seated shear failure.
5. It may go through excessive settlement.
 Retaining Wall Types

1.Cantilever walls, which rely on bending strength of the wall stem to provide lateral resistance.
2. Anchored walls use cables or other stays anchored in the rock or soil behind it. Anchors are
expanded at the end of the cable, either by mechanical means or often by injecting pressurized
concrete (grout), which expands to form a bulb in the soil. Anchors must be placed behind the
potential failure plane (Rankine) in the soil.
3. Mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) systems, where the lateral forces are transmitted to the soil
using geogrids, which derive strength from the friction mobilized between the geogrid and the soil.
The designer must take into account that the geomembranes can only develop the required
resistance through the length located behind the potential failure plane (Rankine) in the soil.
4. Gravity walls rely on simply the weight of the wall to have adequate stability against sliding and
overturning against horizontal forces. Semigravity walls have a moderate amount of reinforcement.
5. Counterfort walls have ribs on the retained earth side and therefore develop lateral resistance via
tension in these ribs. Buttressed walls have ribs (buttresses) on the side opposite the retained earth
and therefore develop lateral resistance via compression.
 Typical Damage to Retaining Walls

Damage patterns commonly observed to retaining walls fall

into the following categories:
1. Tilting—typically a tilt of about 10 degrees causes a 20%
increase in lateral forces.
2. Shifting—usually caused by repeated cycles of freeze and
thaw.
3. Bowing—excessive lateral forces behind the wall, usually
due to water buildup.
4. . Water damage such as green slime, efflorescence,
mineral deposits, rust from wall tie
 Stability of Retaining Wall

The typical bending pattern for the various parts of a cantilever retaining wall is shown in. As a
result, the typical reinforcement pattern for the various parts of the wall is shown
Stability for Overturning
 Stability for Sliding along the Base
1. Adhesion between the soil (under the base)
and the base of retaining wall

Friction force due to the friction between the soil and the base
of RW: Always friction force is calculated from the following
relation

Here N is the sum of vertical forces calculated in the table of the

first check
(overturning)