EVALUATION OF EARTHQUAKE EFFECT ON WATERFRONT RETAINING STRUCTURES USING NUMERICAL MODELING

Abstract

Recent earthquakes have indicated that damages of waterfront retaining structures are are primarily due to soil liquefaction and the associated ground failures. The current standared of practice for the design and remediation of waterfront retaining structures typically utilizes traditional limit equilibruim methods. However, performance based design method is more appropriate for designing waterfront retaining structures. Changing from a limit equilibrium method of design to a performance based design method, there is a need for a better understanding for the seismic performance of waterfront retaining structures.

The objective of this research is directed towards numerically investigating the seismic behavior of waterfront retaining structures/ soil system , in relation to variables such as wall dimensions, liquefaction resistances of subsoil below and behind wall, the thickness of soil deposit below the wall as well as the levels of seismic shaking at the base layer. The investigation has also examined the effectiveness of ground