Method of Rigorous Characteristics for Seismic Bearing Capacity of Strip Footings Placed Adjacent to Homogeneous Soil Slopes

Abstract

Most studies try to establish a stress field and a compatible velocity field simultaneously to evaluate the seismic bearing capacity of strip footings placed adjacent to homogeneous soil slopes. However, the coupling of stress and velocity fields has not been addressed yet. In this study, the method of rigorous characteristics and the pseudo-dynamic approach are incorporated to resolve the issue. The failure mechanism is represented by the statically and kinematically admissible slip line field, and then the rigorous solution of the seismic bearing capacity can be achieved automatically without assuming any predefined slip surface. The results indicate that the seismic excitation leads to a remarkable decrease in the bearing capacity, especially for the effects of the initial phase difference and the soil amplification factor. Besides, the variation of the seismic failure mode is notably different from that under the static state. The seismic inertial force increases the possibility of the sliding failure, and consequently, the restraint effect of strip footings on the seismic failure mechanism diminishes.