Analytical System Reliability Analysis of a Geotextile-Reinforced Retaining Wall

Abstract

A geotextile-reinforced retaining wall is a geotechnical structure with many design parameters. Hence, the uncertainty of the input parameters considerably affects the design of these structures. On the other hand, when the number of uncertain parameters increases, the time of this analysis increases drastically. Accordingly, the current study used an analytical method, namely, jointly distributed random variables (JDRV) method, that requires less running time than the simulation methods for stochastic analysis. For this purpose, stochastic analysis of the geotextile-reinforced retaining wall was carried out based on the limit equilibrium method (LEM), with soil parameters considered as uncertain variables. To verify the results, the probability density functions (PDFs) of the wall safety factors were compared with the Monte Carlo simulation (MCS). Next, to assess the effect of the external and internal stability modes on system reliability, the system reliability index was determined using the sequential compounding method (SCM). The results of the system reliability analysis revealed that, among the reliability indices of the components, the minimum values are attributed to the bearing capacity. The correlation between the rupture and pullout safety factors exhibited the maximum correlation, indicating that they are more dependent components than others. Based on the stochastic sensitivity analysis, the internal friction angle emerged as the most influential in the external and internal safety factors.