PLAXIS FINITE ELEMENT CODE FOR SOIL AND ROCK ANALYSES PLAXIS FINITE ELEMENT CODE FOR SOIL

PLAXIS FINITE ELEMENT CODE FOR SOIL AND ROCK ANALYSES

Activities
2004 2005
29 - 30 September 2004 4 - 7 January, 2005
Plaxis 2-Day Course for Intermediate users (English) Short course on Computational Geotechnics + Dynamics
Petaling Jaya, Selangor Malaysia (English) - New York, USA

5 October 2004 17 - 19 January 2005

Funderingsdag International course Computational Geotechnics (English)
Ede, The Netherlands Noordwijkerhout, The Netherlands

18 - 20 October 2004 24 - 26 January 2005

International Course for Experienced Plaxis Users Geo-Frontiers - Austin, Texas
(English)
Trondheim, Norway February 2005
2-Day Course for Intermediate users (English) - Bali, Indonesia
19 October 2004
Norwegian Plaxis users meeting March 2005
Trondheim, Norway Finite Elementen in der Geotechnik (German)
Stuttgart, Germany
11 - 12 November 2004
European Plaxis users meeting, 21 - 25 March 2005
Karlsruhe, Germany International course for Experienced Plaxis Users (English)
Noordwijkerhout, The Netherlands
13 November 2004
Special users meeting on applications of User Defined Soil 7 - 12 May 2005
Models ITA-AITES 2005 - Istanbul, Turkey
Karlsruhe, Germany
13 – 15 May 2005
17 - 19 November 2004 Short Course for Experienced Plaxis Users (English)
Pratique éclairée des éléments finis en Géotechnique
(French)
Paris, France

22 - 26 November 2004
Istanbul, Turkey

15 - 17 June 2005
5th International Symposium on Geotechnical Aspects
of Underground Construction in Soft Ground Amsterdam,
Plaxis Bulletin issue 16 / october 2004
15th Southeast Asian Geotechnical Conference (English) The Netherlands
Bangkok, Thailand

Plaxis BV
P.O. Box 572
2600 AN Delft
The Netherlands
Tel: + 31 (0)15 2517720
Fax: + 31 (0)15 2573107
SPRING CONSTANT AND SOIL-STRUCTURE INTERACTION PROBLEMS
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.plaxis.nl

Use of Interface Element for Simulation of

Breccia Resliding on Claystone
 Colophon
Editorial 3 The Plaxis Bulletin is the combined magazine of Plaxis B.V. and the Plaxis Users
Association (NL). The Bulletin focuses on the use of the finite element method in geo-
New developments 3 technical engineering practise and includes articles on the practical application of the
Plaxis programs, case studies and backgrounds on the models implemented in Plaxis.
New developments 4 The Bulletin offers a platform where users of Plaxis can share ideas and experiences
PLAXIS AND EUROCODE 7 with each other. The editors welcome submission of papers for the Plaxis Bulletin that
fall in any of these categories.
Plaxis Benchmark No. 4 4
SINGLE PILE 1 The manuscript should preferably be submitted in an electronic format, formatted as
plain text without formatting. It should include the title of the paper, the name(s) of the
Plaxis Benchmark No. 3 5 authors and contact information (preferably email) for the corresponding author(s). The
EMBANKMENT 1 - RESULTS main body of the article should be divided into appropriate sections and, if necessary,
subsections. If any references are used, they should be listed at the end of the article.
Recent activities 7 The author should ensure that the article is written clearly for ease of reading.

Plaxis Practice 8 In case figures are used in the text, it should be indicated where they should be placed
NOTES ON THE APLICATION OF approximately in the text. The figures themselves have to be supplied separately from
THE SPRING CONSTANT AND the text in a common graphics format (e.g. tif, gif, png, jpg, wmf, cdr or eps formats
SOIL-STRUCTURE INTERACTION are all acceptable). If bitmaps or scanned figures are used the author should ensure
PROBLEMS that they have a resolution of at least 300 dpi at the size they will be printed. The use
of colour in figures is encouraged, as the Plaxis Bulletin is printed in full-colour.
Plaxis Practice 12
USE OF INTERFACE ELEMENT FOR Any correspondence regarding the Plaxis Bulletin can be sent by email to
SIMULATION OF BRECCIA RESLIDING [email protected]
ON CLAYSTONE
or by regular mail to:
Plaxis Tutorial 15
PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF Plaxis Bulletin
THE SOFT SOIL CREEP MODEL c/o Dr. W. Broere
PART II PO Box 572
2600 AN Delft
The Netherlands

The Plaxis Bulletin has a total circulation of 8000 copies and is distributed worldwide.

Editorial Board:

Dr. Wout Broere

Dr. Ronald Brinkgreve
Mr. Erwin Beernink
Mr. François Mathijssen

Cover photo: Hill slide near Kawhia, NZ

2
 Editorial

SINCE THE PREVIOUS BULLETIN WAS PUBLISHED, A LOT HAS

New Developments
Ronald Brinkgreve, Plaxis BV
BEEN HAPPENING FOR USERS OF THE THREE-DIMENSIONAL

PLAXIS PROGRAMS: THE FIRST VERSION OF 3D FOUNDATION In March this year, the Plaxis 3D Foundation program was released. Since then we have
received a lot of feedback on the performance and functionality of the product.
SAW THE LIGHT IN MARCH AND A NEW VERSION OF 3D Therefore our programmers have worked hard to improve and extend the user-interface.
Also the efficiency and speed of the calculation kernel has been improved. The improve-
TUNNEL (VERSION 2) WAS RELEASED JUST LAST MONTH. ments are now available as Update Pack 3.

AIMED AT DIFFERENT APPLICATIONS, THESE PROGRAMS Moreover, an upgrade of the 3D Tunnel program (Version 2) was recently released. In this
release missing features as compared to the Plaxis 2D Version 8 have been included,
OFFER A USER-FRIENDLY ENVIRONMENT, EASY INPUT OF 3D such as steady-state groundwater flow, consolidation and updated mesh calculations.
Moreover, to facilitate the sometimes labourous input of settings for construction
PROBLEM GEOMETRIES AND A ROBUST AND STATE-OF–THE- stages a convenient copy option has been implemented.

ART CALCULATION KERNEL. MORE INFORMATION CAN BE Regarding Plaxis 2D a start has been made with some new developments. Some of
these will be made available for Version 8, whereas others will become available in
FOUND IN THE RECENT ACTIVITIES COLUMN AND AN OUT- Version 9 (2006):

LOOK ON UPCOMING DEVELOPMENTS IS, AS ALWAYS, GIVEN A start has been made with the implementation of the Sekiguchi-Ohta model. This has
been done in cooperation with a co-worker of Professor Ohta from the Tokyo Institute of
IN THE NEW DEVELOPMENTS COLUMN. Technology. The Sekiguchi-Ohta model is a soil model that has been developed in Japan.
It has some similarities with the well-known Cam-Clay model, but it has an anisotrop-
ic hardening rule. With the implementation of this model an attempt is made to adapt
Plaxis to users in the far east.
Why such 3D finite element programs are useful is discussed in one of the Plaxis
Practise articles. It shows different approaches for calculating raft foundations In addition, the Hardening Soil model was extended with a formulation for small-strain
and concludes that for the complex foundation constructions that are needed stiffness. This development has been performed in cooperation with the German
more often nowadays, a simple spring constant approach may no longer be a BundesAnstalt für Wasserbau. The extension makes the HS model even more suitable to
safe and valid design method. Another article looks into the formation of a land- model soil in general. Examples where small-strain stiffness is particularly important
slide in Indonesia and uses interface elements to capture the local softening of are tunnelling problems and excavations. The existing models usually overpredict the
the rock-soil boundary that leads to the failure. width of the settlement trough above tunnels and behind excavations. Small-strain
stiffness can improve this situation. Last but not least, small-strain stiffness is also
This issue of the Bulletin also contains the long-awaited results of the Plaxis important for dynamic applications. However, a further development to account for
Benchmark No.3, an embankment on soft soil. Helmut Schweiger discusses the cyclic loading effects still needs to be considered.
main results and differences sent in by various Plaxis users for this exercise in
the Plaxis Benchmarking column on page 5. As not all results could be discussed Besides constitutive model developments, the Plaxis 2D user-interface has been modi-
in detail, some more results from this Benchmark can be found on the Plaxis fied internally to be able to deal with different languages. In addition to the standard
website. Also, a new benchmark case, this time simulating the behaviour of a english language a first translation has been made in Indonesian. The Indonesian
single axially loaded pile, is introduced. I encourage everyone to take part in this Plaxis version will be released soon, and some other languages will be considered in the
informal exercise and to send your results for Benchmark No. 4 to Helmut near future. Please note that a language will only be considered if a particular region
Schweiger at [email protected] before December 15. or language requires special attention to enable the use of Plaxis and there is a good
incentive to make the translation.

3
 New Developments

• In the safety phase the partial factors are applied step-wise and linearly, such that at
Plaxis and EuroCode 7 the end of the calculation the partial factors have been reached precisely (provided that
soil failure does not occur).
• If the calculation finishes succesfully and the partial factors have been reached, it can
be concluded that there is sufficient safety against geotechnical failure according to the
Ronald Brinkgreve, Plaxis BV corresponding Design Approach in Eurocode 7. Structural safety still has to be checked
on the basis of the structural forces resulting from this calculation. These can be inter-
preted as the design values of structural forces.
Plaxis is often used for geotechnical design. In this respect, many Plaxis users have to • If soil failure occurs before the factors have been reached, it can be concluded that the
deal with Plaxis results in relation to geotechnical design codes, like Eurocode 7, for design does not comply with the safety requirements of Eurocode 7.
ultimate limit states (ULS) as well as Serviceability Limit States (SLS). Eurocode 7 is The above procedure does not solve the problem of increased unfavourable permanent
based on the philosophy that the design value of resistance, Rd, must be larger or equal action in DA2. Nevertheless, it, it will definitely be an improvement compared to the cur-
to the design value of action, Ed: Rd ≥ Ed where Rd = Rc / γR and Ed = Ec γE. γR rent method of phi-c reduction.
and γE are partial factors on the resistance and action respectively. Considering the
safety of slopes and excavations, distinction is made in EC7 in three different design In the coming months details of this procedure will be discussed with experts on geotechni-
approaches: DA1, DA2 and DA3, whereas in DA1 two sets of partial factors have to be cal design codes. We also welcome comments from Plaxis users (from you!) to make sure that
considered (DA1/1 and DA1/2). Moreover, distinction is made between Actions, Soil prop- the new procedure is clear and user-friendly. In addition to the extended safety analysis pro-
erties and Resistances (see Table 1 and Reference [1]). cedure we also plan to implement a new procedure for parameter variation. This will bring
Plaxis a step further in geotechnical design. As usual, the procedures will first be imple-
Table 1: Partial factors for Actions, Soil properties and Resistances according mented in Plaxis 2D (Version 9) before the implementation in 3D versions is considered.
to Eurocode 7
Actions γF Soil properties γM Resistances [1] European Committee for Standardization (1997). EN 1997-1, 2002. Eurocode 7 – Geotechnical design,
Design Permanent part 1: General rules. Final Draft CEN/TC 250/SC7.
Variable tanϕ 2)
c cu Unit weight Passive Anchor
approach unfavourable 1)
[2] Bauduin C., De Vos M., Frank R. (2003), ULS and SLS design of embedded walls according to Eurocode 7.
γG γQ γϕ γc γ cu γγ γ R;e γa Proc. XIII Conf. on Soil Mech. and Geotech. Eng., Prague. Balkema, Lisse.
DA1/1 1.00 1.50 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.10
DA1/2 1.00 1.30 1.25 1.25 1.40 1.00 1.00 1.10
DA2 1.35 1.50 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.40 1.10
DA3
Geot.3): 1.00 1.30
Struct.4): 1.35 1.50
1.25 1.25 1.40 1.00 1.00 1.00
Plaxis Benchmark No. 4:
Favourable permanent action: γ G = 1.00
1)

2)
When unfavourable; favourable action should not be considered
3)

4)
Geotechnical action: action by the ground on the wall Helmut F. Schweiger, Graz University of Technology, Austria
Structural action: action from a supported structure applied directly to the wall

With the current option of phi-c-reduction in Plaxis it is, to a certain extend, possible to The geometry of the pile load test follows from Figure 1. The tested pile has a
prove that situations comply with DA1 or DA3. DA2 involves an increase of unfavourable diameter of 1.5 m and a length of 11.5 m. It is assumed that the groundwater
permanent action. This means for a situation of an excavation that the active soil pressure table is below the base of the pile and can be ignored in the analysis. The soil layer
behind a wall (= unfavourable permanent action) needs to be increased by a factor 1.35. is a homogeneous layer of medium dense sand and the Hardening Soil model with
However, in finite element calculations the soil pressure behind a wall is a result of the cal- parameters as given in Table 1 should be used.
culation and cannot be directly controlled without influencing the passive pressure (= The pile is loaded by hydraulic jacks supported by reaction anchors which can be
favourable permanent action). Moreover, there are some other limitations that complicate assumed to have no influence on the load displacement behaviour of the loaded
a Plaxis calculation according to Eurocode 7: pile. The specification is based on an actual
• Partial factors on c’ and tanϕ’ cannot be accomodated for. pile load test but has been simplified for this
• Factoring of load and strength properties cannot be done simultaneously. exercise. Therefore comparison will only be
• Structural safety is not properly considered. made between the numerical
analyses submitted and not
In order to improve this situation and to enable Plaxis calculations to comply with Eurocode with measured data.
7 (at least DA1 and DA3), an extension is planned with the following provisional procedure:
• An extended type of safety analysis (in addition to the existing phi-c reduction proce-
dure) will be created that is based on the ‘total multiplier’ approach in Plaxis, such that
the design value of resistance and the design value of action will both be reached pre-
cisely at the end of the phase. This calculation will also provide the design values of
forces in structural elements.
• Distinction is made between partial factors for tanϕ, c (or cu), structural strength, load
system A, load system B and soil weight, such that diffent partial factors can be applied
simultaneously. It may be needed to include a better description of non-linear behaviour
in structural elements.
• The extended safety analysis is a separate calculation phase that can start from any
serviceability state where characteristic values of strength and load have been utilized. Figure 1: Geometry of
If geometrical safety factors are required (for example considering over-digging), then the pile
such a situation should be created first as the starting point for the safety analysis. load test

4
Plaxis Benchmark No. 3: Embankment 1 - Results

Helmut F. Schweiger, Graz University of Technology, Austria

INTRODUCTION According to the rules set when this section of the Bulletin was introduced no names of
authors will be disclosed and all entries are labelled Emb_1 to Emb_9. If two different
The Benchmark Problem No. 3 has been published in Bulletin No. 13 in January 2003 analyses have been submitted by one institution the second one is named e.g. Emb_7a.
but due to a misunderstanding the specification was not complete. The correct specifi- The specification of the Benchmark example is not repeated here, please refer to the
cation has been printed in Bulletin No. 14 but here the submission deadline has been Bulletin No.14 for details.
set too tight because of some delay in printing the bulletin. Therefore the deadline for
submission has been extended as announced in Bulletin No. 15. Probably due to these REMARKS ON SUBMITTED ANALYSES
unfortunate circumstances the number of submissions was not overwhelming. However,
some Plaxis users sent results which are presented in the following. The specification given did not leave much room for personal interpretation other than
lateral extension of the mesh, element type and number of elements. However two par-
In the specification for the problem the constitutive model (Soft Soil model) and the ticipants decided to perform an "updated mesh" analysis and one participant submit-
parameters to be used have been given together with the thickness of the soft soil layer ted two analyses with different K0-values, because of the slight overconsolidation given
on which the embankment layer is placed. The initial stresses have been specified via the POP-value. Another matter, which leads to significant differences in results, was
assuming a pre-overburden pressure. the following: in the specification λ, κ and e0 have been given and not λ* and κ* as
required for the Soft Soil model. One participant was not sure about this and submitted
two analyses which enabled identification of other solutions presumably also based on
taking λ and κ for λ* and κ*.

COMPARISON OF RESULTS

Single Pile 1 Figure 1 plots the time - settlement curve for the point x=0 and y=0, i.e. the point on
the surface at the centre of the embankment. Two groups evolve, namely the ones who
interpreted λ and κ for λ* and κ* (Emb_2,3,4,5,6) and the ones who worked out λ*
and κ* from λ , κ and e0 (Emb_1,7,8,9). Emb_7 provided both results. Emb_2 and
Emb_3 performed an "updated mesh" analysis.

The following computational steps have

to be performed:
• Initial stresses with σ’v = γh and σ’h = σ’v K0
• Installation of pile
• Loading of pile

Results to be presented:
• Load-settlement curve of pile (total resistance)
• Load-settlement curve separating tip and shaft resistance

Material Properties Sand Pile

γ [kN/m3] 21.0 25.0
c’ [kPa] 1.0 Figure 1: Time vs settlement for point x=0, y=0
ϕ’ [°] 35
ψ’ [°] 5
K0nc [-] 0.426
ν ur / ν [-] 0.2 0.2
E50ref / E [kPa] 4.5E4 3.0E7
Eoedref [kPa] 4.5E4
Eurref [kPa] 1.35E5
m [-] 0.5
pref [kPa] 100
Rinter [-] 0.7
Table 1: Material parameters for soil layer and pile

All results have to be presented in Excel-sheets (Plaxis-project files optional) and

mailed to: [email protected] Deadline: December 15th, 2004 Figure 2: Surface settlement trough after construction

5
Within the group using the correct λ* and κ* only minor differences in results are
observed, a slightly wider scatter is noticed in the "other" group. Figure 2 shows the sur-
face settlement trough after construction and Figure 3 after 25 years of consolidation.
Figure 4 indicate horizontal displacements at a vertical profile at x=12 m which is at
the toe of the embankment. It follows again that in the first group of results only minor
differences are visible, whereas in the second group larger differences are observed, the
reason for which could not be identified from the information provided with the sub-
mitted analyses. They are however in general not larger than 20%. A very similar pic-
ture is obtained for time - excess pore pressure curves (Figures 5 and 6) and stress
paths in p'-q-space (Figure 7). The trend is very similar for all analyses and most of
these differences can be attributed to the fact that depending on the finite element
mesh used, the integration points will not be located exactly at the same point for all
analyses. The different stress path of Emb_8a is because of the variation in K0.

Finally it is emphasized that stress distributions along various sections are almost Figure 5: Time vs excess pore pressure for point x=0, y=10
exactly the same for all analyses indicating the negligible influence of mesh coarseness
and other modelling details for calculating stresses at working load conditions. These
diagrams are therefore not reproduced here but can be found on the Plaxis website for
the sake of completeness.

Figure 6: Time vs excess pore pressure for point x=12, y=10

Figure 3: Surface settlement trough after consolidation

Figure 7: Selected stress paths in p'-q-space

CONCLUSION

Compared to previous benchmark exercises the results submitted for the consolidation
analysis of an embankment constructed on a soft soil layer showed quite consistent
results. The only major discrepancies can be attributed to the fact that a number of par-
ticipants of this benchmark exercise took the given parameters λ and κ for λ* and κ*
as required for the Soft Soil model and thus calculated significantly larger displace-
ments.

The fourth PLAXIS Benchmark, published in this Bulletin (see page 4), is a load test of
a single pile and I hope that a number of Plaxis users take the opportunity to join the
benchmark community.
Figure 4: Horizontal displacement at vertical profile x=12 m

6
Recent activities
GEOTECHNICAL INNOVATIONS Now we are in the process to built introductory versions of both 3D products. Later this
year we will come up with a new Demo CD that includes besides Plaxis V8 also intro-
Symposium and 60th Birthday of Professor Pieter Vermeer. ductory versions of 3DFoundation v1 and 3DTunnel v2.

On June 25, a Symposium on Innovative Developments in Geotechnical engineering was In corporation with RIB Software AG we finalized the English version of FEwalls – a new
held in Stuttgart, which is a regularly organized event. This time the event was dedi- software tool for checking serviceability requirements of retaining walls using PLAXIS-
cated to the handover of a “Festschrift”, (Honorary Book) to Professor Vermeer on the technology. In the field of geotechnical engineering, the new generation of Euro Code-
occasion of his 60th birthday. Such a “Festschrift”, is customary in Germany at the based national application documents will introduce new requirements for high-tech
occasion of the 60th birthday of a university professor. and economical engineering solutions on an international standard. On this back-
For the compilation of the “Festschrift”, the colleagues of Prof Vermeer were invited to ground, several questions arise with respect to the application of standard software
contribute with a paper that reflects the common interest in their and Prof Vermeer’s work. solutions for the analysis and design of retaining wall structures. Fewalls is especially
designed to meet the requirements of the new Euro Codes in easy to use geotechnical
software solutions.

Furthermore we will release an Indonesian version of Plaxis V8 and we are in the process
of finishing a Spanish, Portuguese, Russian and Japanese Manual. These new manuals
(and online help) will become available through our website or our local agent.

COURSES AND USER MEETINGS

Until the printing of bulletin 16 already more than 300 participants learned something
new or improved their skill in 2004 at one of our courses. Besides a global geographi-
This question was well responded on and more than 80 (co)-authors in total contributed cal coverage we extended our course program also in number of languages.
to a total of 45 papers, which where assembled in the “Festschrift”
The symposium itself on the 25th of June 2004 was held at the Hotel Fontana in
Stuttgart and was well attended by over 130 persons. During the symposium different
speakers presented their contribution on topics, such as Tunneling, Excavations, Soil
improvements and Foundations.
Finally afterwards, Prof Vermeer held a short summary of the different topics that had
been discussed and thanked the speakers for the symposium and the contributors for
their part in the “Festschrift”.

The role of Prof Vermeer in the development of Plaxis is well known, which is reflected
in the fact that the Plaxis company maintains a close cooperation with the Geotechnical
Institute at the University of Stuttgart ever since he was appointed there as head of the
Institute. Therefore we participated with pleasure in his anniversary and congratulate
him and his team with this successful event.

NEW PRODUCTS

“Course participants of the 1st Italian Plaxis course”.

If you did not attend one of our courses you could also have met Plaxis people at
Geotechnical Conferences or User Meetings. On November 11-12, 2004 in Karlsruhe,
Germany we scheduled the 11th European Plaxis User Meeting. In addition to this 2-day
Since bulletin 15 Plaxis B.V. released 2 new products; 3DFoundation version 1 and session we organize a special day on the applications of User-Defined Soil Models. This
3DTunnel version 2. Although we got very positive response on the concept of the new meeting is meant for anyone who is interested in the application of user-defined soil
3DFoundation program we had to improve the robustness and efficiency up to a level as models. We hope to meet you at the European User Meeting, one of our courses or on
you may expect from Plaxis products. See also new developments for more details. Geotechnical Conferences. Please check out our presences at the Agenda.

7
 Plaxis Practice

NOTES ON THE APLICATION OF THE SPRING

AGENTS

Plaxis B.V. appointed a third agent in the U.S.A. From May 1st the company GEMSoft
(Geotechnical Engineering Modeling Software) will be an official Plaxis agent for the GOUW Tjie-Liong, PT Limara, Indonesia
U.S.A. GEMSoft is located in the Central part of the U.S.A. with offices in Chicago, IL and
Houston, TX.
INTRODUCTION
The Houston office is headed up by Kenneth E. Tand, and the Chicago office by Erik G.
Funegard. Both Erik and Kenneth have long backgrounds in geotechnical engineering The use of a spring constant for the design and analysis of raft and pile-raft founda-
with a strong focus on the petrochemical industry. tions has many limitations, related to the proper estimation of the spring constant
magnitude and the soil structure interaction. Spring constants have been used for
Kenneth holds a Master’s degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Houston and example in the design of a Mass Rapid Transit railway station in an oversea project. The
has been a practicing geotechnical engineer for over 35 years. Ken has been a Plaxis overview of soil condition on that particular site is as shown in Fig. 1 below.
user for over 10 years and has published several papers on the use of Plaxis to solve
difficult geotechnical problems. At this project the spring constant concept was adopted for designing the station raft
foundation. The structural engineer asked for the magnitude of the spring constant
Erik holds a M.Sc. in Civil Engineering from the Royal Institute of Technology in from a young geotechnical engineer, who then gave a coefficient of subgrade reaction
Stockholm Sweden, as well as an MBA from the University of Chicago. Erik was the (in kN/m3 ) derived from a plate-loading test. This parameter was later converted into
chief geotechnical engineer for a major international oil company for over 10 years with a foundation coefficient of subgrade reaction, ks, by using the following equation:
first-hand experience of the use of advanced analysis techniques to reduce construc-
tion costs.

All three agents can act, as agent for the whole U.S.A. but GemSoft will primarily work in
the central U.S.A. The Plaxis agent for mainly the West part of the U.S.A., C. Felice &
Company, LLC with its headquarter in Kirkland, Washington has been merged with LACHEL
& Associates, Inc. The new firm will be known as LACHEL FELICE & Associates, Inc.
For contact details of GemSoft, Lachel Felice and the long-term Plaxis agent in the East
of U.S.A., GeoComp see our website.

TERRASOL celebrates its 25th anniversary! This event will take place in Paris-La
Défense on September 28th 2004. TERRASOL was founded in 1979, and has regularly
grown up since (more than 30 people today) as a leading geotechnical consulting com-
pany, working in fields like foundations, tunneling, maritime works, excavations, earth-
works, infrastructures, etc.

TERRASOL has always used its geotechnical know-how and expertise to develop and sell
its own software. It became PLAXIS' agent for France in 1998, and now participates in
the PDC program and Plaxis Advisory Board. Its software department also provides serv-
ices like technical support and continuing education.

REVISED WEBSITE

A revised website is launched to disseminate information more transparently. We hope Figure 1: SPT vs Depth
we have created an informative Website that makes life easier for the Plaxis users and
others. News, product and course information is easy to find and updates are easy to 2
access. B + 0.3
ks = k
Any additional suggestions are welcome; please send them to [email protected]. 2B (1)

where B is the width of the raft foundation.

This last parameter was then applied as a spring constant by multiplying it with the
unit area under the raft foundation (the unit dimension became kN/m). A certified
Professional Engineer then approved the outcome of the raft foundation design for con-
struction. Without prejudice to blame others, it is obviously a mistake! Why it is so? For
B greater than 0.3 m, equation 1 clearly shows that the greater the value of B the small-
er the value of ks. While it is structurally correct that the wider the foundation the more
flexible the foundation is. It does not equally right for the foundation soil. The engineers
had missed the fact that the soil at that area was far from homogeneous.

8
CONSTANT AND SOIL-STRUCTURE INTERACTION PROBLEMS

The soil condition shows that, within the influence of the raft foundation, the deeper the In other words, the subgrade reaction is no other than the distribution of soil reaction, p(x),
foundation soils the harder they are. This means the deeper soils have greater rigidity beneath the raft foundation structure against the foundation load. The distribution of the
as compared to the layer right below the raft foundation (note: the width of the raft is soil reaction is not linear in shape. This is particularly true when the foundation is sub-
around 35 m). jected to uniform load. In this case, generally, the distribution of the soil reaction in clayey
soils is curving upward, as shown in Fig. 2, with the largest reaction around the edges of
The inappropriate spring constant led to an excessive settlement of the raft. As a result, the foundation and the smallest reaction around the center. In sandy soils, the reverse
in order to reduce the settlement, the center of the raft was strengthened with more reaction is seen, i.e. zero on the edges and maximum at the center point. In principle, the
than 20 number of bored piles. Upon reviewing the design, the author proved that the distribution of the soil reactions right beneath the raft foundation depend on the position
bored piles were excessive and unnecessary. However, by the time it was found, it was of the point under consideration (i.e., the distance of x), the shape of the loading and the
too late. relative rigidity (EI) of the raft foundation structure against the underlying soils.

The above case shows the application of spring constant without considering the char- The Winckler model is a simplified mathematical formulation of an elastic soil model. This
acteristics and the behavior of the underlying soils. And it is also an example of the concept does not take into account the fact that the foundation reaction or the soil stress-
existence of ignorance, gaps and weakness in the relation among the structural and es is distributed to the deeper soil layer and forming the so called ‘bulb pressure’. The soil
geotechnical engineers. This papers tries to elaborate the underlying principle the settlement beneath the foundation is the accumulation of interactions between the soil
spring constant theory, its limitation and the application of specially made geotechni- stresses and the elastic parameters of the soils at each point inside the bulb pressure zone.
cal software to solve the problem of soil structure interaction. Assuming the soils inside the bulb pressure zone posses are homogeneous, Vesic (1961)
expanded the Winckler model into elastic model and developed the following equation:
SPRING CONSTANT - THE THEORETICAL BACKGROUND AND THE
LIMITATION Es
ks =
B.Ip. (1-vs2) (3)
“What is the spring constant at this particular site?” or “What is the modulus of sub-
grade reaction at this location?” is a common question asked by a structural engineer The above Vesic’s equation clearly shows that the modulus of subgrade reaction
to a geotechnical engineer. It is a straightforward question. Unfortunately, it has no depends not only on the width of the foundation, B, but also on the elastic parameters
direct, let alone a simple answer. of soils, Es and µs, and on the shape factor of the foundation, Ip.

The concept of spring constant was first introduced by Winckler in 1867. He modeled In the earlier days, for the sake of mathematical simplicity, it is generally simplified
flexible foundation, such as raft, to stand on an independent discreet spring elements that the spring constant is not a function of the position x (see Fig.2), hence a single
or supports. In 1955, Karl Terzaghi, in his paper ‘Evaluation of coefficients of subgrade value of spring constant is applied. However, the non-linearity distribution of the soil
reaction’ proposed a method to estimate the magnitude of the spring constants. His reactions right beneath the foundation structure suggests that the so-called modulus
approach, also known as subgrade reaction model, was then became popular and com- of subgrade reaction, hence the spring constant, is not a unique value. Terzaghi him-
monly used in the design of raft foundation. self recognized the limitation of this assumption. Bowles (1997) suggested providing
higher ks at the edges of the raft and smaller ks at the center position.
Looking back into the origin of this concept (see Fig.2), one can see that the modulus
or the coefficient of subgrade reaction, ks(x), is defined as the foundation pressure, p(x), The above explanations show that there is no discrete value of modulus of subgrade
divided by the corresponding settlement of the underlying soil, d(x), i.e.: reaction for a given type of soil Therefore, it does not realistic to ask for a spring con-
stant value without the information on the type and the size of the foundation structure.

p(x) In layered soils with different elastic parameters, an equivalent model must be developed
ks (x) =
d(x) (2) in order to derive a representative modulus of subgrade reaction. To do this the elastic set-
2b tlement of the layered soils induced by the foundation pressure must first be calculated.
Slab infinitely long
in y direction
Poulos and Davis, 1974, mathematical formulation can be used to calculate the elastic
settlement of the foundation soils. In a pile raft foundation, to answer the question on the
CL (center line) magnitude of the spring constant, the geotechnical engineer also has either to calculate
the settlement of the pile foundation or derives it from a pile load test result.
x
Es, µs are elastic parameters of soil
Subgrate
Reaction z Es = Young Modulus of Soils Since the modulus of subgrade reaction (spring constant) is needed to calculate the
H p(x) µs = Poisson Ratio of Soils settlement of the foundation soils, why should one goes to the trouble in providing the
Es, µs
spring constant? The structural engineers asked the spring constant because they want
Hard Layer
to feed in the parameter into their computer software. To the author knowledge, as it is
not developed to handle geotechnical problems, the structural engineering software
Figure 2: Subgrade Reaction under a Flexible Foundation used in analyzing raft or pile raft foundation cannot handle geotechnical parameters.

9
 Plaxis Practice

Another limitation of the spring constant model is the assumption that the foundation Figure 3 shows the initial condition of the site and the subsequent soil parameters. The
soil has linear or elastic behavior. In reality, since Winckler introduced his theory (1867) center of the tunnel lines is 35 m below the ground surface. Landscaping of the site
133 years have lapsed, and the geotechnical engineering has kept on advancing. It has required a 1.5 m excavation and this was done before the tunneling. The base of the
been known that soil behavior does not elastic. raft foundation would be around 3.5 m from the ground surface. The groundwater level
It is an elastoplastic material with different behavior within each classification, and was found at about 3.75 m below the ground surface. Table 1 shows the soil data. Mohr-
many soil models have been developed. Coulomb soil model was adopted to perform the analysis.

PROPER SOIL MODEL AND SOIL STRUCTURE INTERACTION

In order to provide a relatively simple and quick solution for the analysis of raft foundation,
Winckler followed by Terzaghi, simplified the mathematical formulation into the spring
constant or modulus of subgrade reaction model. Over the time, many geotechnical experts
had gained better and better understanding on soil behavior and many soil models has
been developed. Many of them come with complex mathematical equations, which needs
more advanced computer technology and special finite element software to solve.

Until late 1980s where computer hardware, software and run time cost was still very
expensive, the spring constant model was indeed one of a good tool for engineers.
However, since mid of 1990s and especially as we enter this new millenium, advanced Table 1: The Soil Data
Personal Computer and the relevant geotechnical engineering software has become
available and affordable for most firm. So why don’t we use a specific finite element
method to solve a soil structure interaction problem? Many possible construction sequences were analyzed. The construction sequence pre-
Nowadays, finite element software, such as PLAXIS, CRISP, SIGMA, etc., which is spe- sented in this paper is as follows:
cially developed to solve geotechnical problems has been available. T • Overall excavation up to 1.5 m deep.
• Bored piles construction
CASE STUDY ON SOIL STRUCTURE INTERACTION • Tunneling (followed by volume loss)
• 2.0 m excavation for raft construction
In a densely populated city, it is not uncommon that a subway tunnel must be con- • Raft construction
structed underneath an existing building foundation or the reverse, that is to construct • Building Construction and Load Application
a building on top of an existing tunnels. In 1998, the author had a chance to evaluate
such a problem. At that time a twin tunnel subway project was on its way. These 6.3 m The results of the final stage construction are presented below.
diameter twin tunnels shall cross some 30 m underneath a land where a condominium
building was planned. The landlord was wondering when to construct his building,
before or after the tunneling?

If the building was constructed before the tunnels passed the area, he had no responsibil-
ity on the tunnel construction and it would be the tunnel contractor responsibility to take
precaution not to induce any negative impact to the building. However, at that time the
macro economy situation was not favorable for the sales of the condominium. On the other
hand, if the building was constructed later, the impact of the building construction to the
twin tunnels had to be studied. And this might lead to a more costly foundation, as there
is a requirement that any pile foundation from the ground surfaceto the spring-lines of a
subway tunnel must not bear any friction resistance. The other option available is to
strengthen the tunnel lining to anticipate the future additional stresses that come from the
building foundation. And the building owner would have to contribute on its cost.
Figure 4: Deformed Mesh

Figure 3: The Finite Element Model of The Initial Condition Figure 5: Pile Raft and Tunnels Total Displacement

10
 With the said construction sequence, the result of the analysis shows that the maximum
pile raft settlement would be in the order of 33 mm. The analysis also predicted that the
building would exert additional vertical stress of 90 kN/m2, with a corresponding 12 mm
vertical displacement, to the tunnel crown. The above example was one of the input for
project evaluation. It shows the importance of the soil structure interaction analysis,
which cannot be solved by using the spring constant model.

CONCLUSIONS

The above discussions show that there is no straightforward answer to the question of:
“What is the magnitude of the spring constant (or the modulus of subgrade reaction)
Figure 6: Pile Raft and Tunnels Vertical and Horizontal Displacement at this site?” It is inappropriate for a geotechnical engineer to provide the said param-
eters without knowing the system and the size of the foundation. The non-linearity of
soil reaction beneath a footing or raft foundation suggests that the ks value is not a
unique value. Great care must be exercised in deriving the value. It is always important
to have a good communication, understanding and cooperation between the structural
engineer and the geotechnical engineer in solving a particular foundation problem.

Since the computer technology and the relevant finite element software has become rel-
atively cheap and readily available, whenever possible, it is suggested to perform a soil
structure interaction analysis and leave behind the spring constant concept. As demon-
strated above, nowadays, the geotechnical finite element software is capable to handle
complex soil structure interaction problem, which cannot be solved by the spring con-
stant model.

Last but not least, the derivation of the input soil parameters is very important. As soil
Figure 7: Pile Raft and Tunnels Bending Moment is not manmade materials, strong theoretical knowledge and sophisticated engineering
software alone is not adequate.
A geotechnical engineer must gain plenty of practical experiences in order to come out
with a sound engineering judgment in determining the relevant soil parameters for a
particular soil model. It does not mater how sophisticated computer software is, the
adage “Garbage in Garbage out” is always prevails.

REFERENCES

• Bowles J.E. (1997), Foundation Analysis and Design, 5th ed., McGraw Hill Int.Ed.,
Singapore.

• Brinkgreve R.B.J and Vermeer (1998), PLAXIS – Finite Element Code for Soil and Rock
Analysis, A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Figure 8: Pile Raft and Tunnels Axial and Shear Forces • Poulos H.G. and Davis E.H. (1974), Elastic Solutions for Soil and Rock Mechanics,
John Willey & Sons, Inc., New York, USA.

• Terzaghi K. (1955), Evaluation of coefficients of subgrade reaction, Geotechnique,

No.4, 297-326.

• Terzaghi K., Peck R.B. and Mesri G (1996), Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice,
John Willey & Sons, Inc., New York, USA.

• Vesic A.B. (1961), Beam on Elastic Subgrade and The Winckler’s Hypothesis, Proc. 5th
Int. Conf. On Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Vol.1, p. 845-850.

Figure 9: Changes of Stress and Displacement right above Tunnel Crown

11
 Plaxis Practice

USE OF INTERFACE ELEMENT FOR SIMULATION OF BRECCIA RESLIDING ON CLAYSTONE

Author: Paulus P. Rahardjo, Parahyangan Catholic University, Bandung, Indonesia

1 INTRODUCTION

South Semarang is a hilly and mountainous area where a number of landslides or land
movement occur almost yearly. The area is well known as Jatingaleh, which in Javanese
means ‘moving trees’ since most of the trees are moving in certain direction mainly dur-
ing rains.
In the project site where new road was to be constructed, an excavation of 4.0 m depth
was conducted. This excavation was initially thought to be the cause of the landslides.
Spring water appeared at the toe of the slope and the excavation shows the severely
weathered breccia. However, this initial opinion cannot be justified due to the fact that
the building on top of the excavation still remains in good condition. No significant
damage was noticed and the steep slope looks very stable. Figure 1. shows this phe-
nomenon.

Figure 1: Excavation in the breccia layer

2 RESEARCH OBJECTIVE

This research was intended to study the mechanism of the sliding that occurred and to
recommend a solution for the landslide problem. The work was divided into a geologi-
cal investigation, including the drilling and soil laboratory tests, and the geotechnical
work, including analysis and recommendation for future development. The geological
work was conducted by Wahjono, et al (2002) and the geotechnical analysis was done
by the author and team. The use of interface elements is the main method for simula-
tion of the sliding mechanism.
Figure 2: Damages due to subsidence
3 DAMAGES OF INFRASTRUCTURES

Based on information by the residence, the land movement occurred yearly but in small
increment so that ordinary paste and rehabilitation is very common. In this particular
slide, however, the damage was so severe and large soil movement destroyed the infra-
structure as well as housing.
The movement started early in the morning when about 25 cm of sudden drop initial-
ized the whole movement. Afterward, subsidence occurred systematically reaching 3.5
m in about 10 hours. A number of cracks appeared in this area and water sprang out
through gaps in the cracking ground. This phenomenon caused several houses tilt and
crack and by the end of the day the whole infrastructure was devastated.

The subsidence was localized in the fill area where a number of infrastructure includ-
ing roads, drainage and electric towers were damaged. Since the subsidence caused
3.5 m difference in elevation, the connecting road tore out in certain patterns either lat-
erally across the road or longitudinally. Figure 2 and Figure 3 shows severe damage of
the infrastructure. Figure 3: Road damage and gabion heaves

12
 4 THOUGHT ON THE LANDLSIDES MECHANISM

It is of interest that this phenomena gives thought about a possible sliding mechanism
which seems to be movement of the breecia over the impervious layer since a water
level rise was detected the day after. Although in the east side, movement and cracks
were seen, in the west side no cracking or damages were observed.
The fact that water level increase is so rapid in the breccia layer, means that water
accumulated and was retained in this layer. Weathered breccia on the surface shows a
lot of cracking that eases water seeping into the ground. Land development hinders
water outflow which cause high lateral forces for the whole layer and subsequently
moved it in a translational direction.
It was later known that the subsidence has been caused by this lateral spreading of the
breccia. The subsiding ground consisted of fill material, which is well compacted in a
valley located between 2 hills of breccia. According to the geologist, these valleys were
formed by very old slides or volcanic activity.

5 SOIL CONDITION AND GEOLOGY

The geomorphology of the area consisted of a valley within 2 hills and was a low site
where sediment was deposited. This area was then filled with local material to increase
the elevation and to form a more or less plane area. The stratigraphy shows that 3 kinds
of materials dominated the site. The lower one is claystone over the whole area and
forming an impervious layer. The upper one is breccia with andesitic fragment and filled
with secondary material. The average thickness of the breccia layer in this area is about
15 m and this layer formed two hills as shown in the cross section.
The other material is found as alluvium, which is the minority of the material type. This
Figure 4: Ground cracking material was the result of ground erosion over time.

6 MECHANISM OF RE-SLIDING OF BRECCIA LAYER

Figure 4 shows ground cracking parallel to the road and Figure 5 shows how the land
elevation moved downwards about 3.5 m in one day. The direction of the cracking indi- After the landslides, a contour measurement was conducted as shown in Figure 6.
cated that the land experienced lateral spreading. However, at this point the real mech- The topography shows a long steep slope over the whole area except the area where the
anism was not known until re-measurement of the contour was conducted. sliding problem is being investigated. The difference in elevation over a distance of
about 500 m is about 100 m, hence on the average the slope is about 20∞. The mech-
anism of re-sliding was known from visual observation verified by contour measure-
ment. From site survey, the breccia layer is shown to have many cracks to facilitate
water seeping into the layer and causing a ground water level increase.
The cross section of this area is shown on Figure 8 where it is clearly shown that the
breccia layer is limited and sitting on top of the impervious layer. The fill and the land
development area are also shown.

Figure 5: Land subsidence causing different elevation Figure 6: Topography of the study site

13
 Based on the result of the analysis, the effect of fill material is a compression of the
sediment to about 27 cm, especially in the mid area. However, this analysis cannot be
verified since no measurement was available. The mass failed with huge displacements
when the ground water was raised to about ground surface.
Figure 10 shows the localized mass movement resulting from the finite element model-
ling.

Figure 7: The re-measurement of contour

Figure 10: Result of computer simulation

The movement was predicted to reach about 1.3 m but this is lower than measured
data, since after failure the computer simulation cannot be continued. Back analysis
for the value of R-interface yields a friction coefficient as low as 0.25.
The recommendation, which resulted from this study, is a water level decrease by use
of pumping in several areas. For the long term, several horizontal drains were installed.
Figure 8: Cross section of the weathered breccia on claystone Rows of drilled shafts were installed to protect the rest of the building.

8 CONCLUSION SUMMARY
7 SIMULATION OF RE-SLIDING
• The landslides, which occurred on February 8, 2002, were basically re-sliding in a big
This research was facilitated by use of finite element analysis (computer program PLAX- scale on the breccia layer on top of the claystone due to ground water rise.
IS) where stages of land changes are made possible. The analysis is limited to two-
dimensional. The model started with initial conditions where the breccia layer was • Fill placement and limited excavation was not the cause of the landslides, however,
assumed to be stable and hence interface elements were used in the boundary between small movement were detected.
the breccia and the claystone. The value of the interface strength was exercise by
changing the value of R-interface until movement started in the breccia. • Finite element modelling is very useful in simulating the mechanism of the slides
The model was continued by placing fill material on top of the sliding area and infil- and can also be used to back analyse the interface value between the breccia and
tration of rainwater is made possible. The effect of rain water infiltration is modelled as the claystone.
an increase of the ground water in the breccia layer. Soil model is ordinary Mohr –
Coulomb. The soil has low strength of 6 – 24 kPa and a friction angle about 8∞. • The fact that water level increase significantly affects the landslides tells the devel-
The soil system is discretized to clusters of material where geotechnical properties can oper to be cautious and minimizing rain water seeping in into the breccia.
be input. Modelling the excavation causes some movement of the breccia layer, which
is insignificant. However, the main movement occurs when modelling the ground water • Lesson learned from this landslide occurrence is that the landslide is transtational
level increase, which certainly gives lateral forces to the whole mass. and in such rock stratification, landslide could occur as a sudden mechanism due to
Figure 9 shows the discretization of the mass through the critical section where the the increase of ground water level alone.
boundary of the breccia and the claystone is characterized by a sliping plane having the
potential to slip between each other. REFERENCES

Brinkgreve, R.B.J. (2002) Plaxis 2D - Version 8. Balkema, Netherlands

Rahardjo, P. P., "Re-sliding of the Weathered Breccia on Claystone due to Ground Water
Increased, Landslides Case Histories, February 8, 2002" Geotechnical Discussion at
Soegijapranata Catholic University, Semarang.

Wahjono, "Geological Report of Landslides in Gombel Semarang”. Technical Report sub-

mitted to BIRD.

Figure 9: Discretization of the soil mass

14
 Plaxis Tutorial

PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF THE SOFT SOIL CREEP MODEL – PART II

D. Waterman, Plaxis BV & W. Broere, Delft University of Technology/Plaxis BV

UNDRAINED BEHAVIOUR Consolidation, on the other hand, deals with the dissipation of excess pore pressures
over time in soils with low permeability and has the opposite effect. The combination of
In the previous issue of the Plaxis Bulletin some basic aspects of the Soft Soil Creep consolidation and creep in a creep sensitive soil can therefore cause a wide range of
model have been discussed. For simplicity, the soil behaviour was limited to drained behaviour. The precise behaviour depends on whether creep or consolidation is domi-
behaviour, so that the influence of the overconsolidation ratio (OCR) and the initial nant.
creep velocity could be shown clearly. However, in the real world soils that exhibit creep
behaviour generally have a low permeability. These soft soils almost always show Over time, creep would tend to increase the pore pressures, causing the creep velocity
undrained behaviour under short term loading. This combination of undrained behav- to decrease and the consolidation velocity to increase. Due to consolidation the pore
iour and creep raises some additional issues that will be discussed here. pressures will drop again, which causes the consolidation rate to decrease and the
creep rate to increase. This combination of effects is illustrated below.
In the previous Plaxis Tutorial, a square block of clay was modelled using Soft Soil Creep
(SSC) material, with standard boundary conditions, initial stresses due to its own A simple 1D consolidation test has been performed on four different soil data sets, each
weight and no initial excess pore pressures. For the current example, we will change the with the same strength and stiffness parameters as listed in the previous Plaxis
material behaviour from drained to undrained, and re-examine its behaviour. Bulletin, but with permeabilities varying between 0.1 m/day and 10-4 m/day. For this
exercise closed consolidation boundaries have been added to the left and right side of
Assume first that it is possible to seal all sides of this block of soil, so that any excess the square soil block, as shown in Figure 1.
pore pressures that develop can not drain off and effectively consolidation cannot
occur, but deformation is not hindered. Common clingfoil will do this nicely, as will the Figure 2 shows the excess pore pressure in the middle of the soil sample as a function
closed consolidation boundaries that are available in Plaxis. Now leave the block of soil of time. After first loading the sample with 100 kPa over a period of 1 day, the excess
undisturbed for a considerable time period. After for example 10 years, the material will pore pressure is 109 kPa in all cases (100 kPa due to the load and 9 kPa due to creep
still be almost undeformed, but has developed significant excess pore pressures inside, during the first day). For the highest permeability (0.1 m/day) the excess pore pressures
even though no external load was applied. immediately drop when consolidation starts, whereas for lower permeabilities the excess
pore pressures first increase for a while, until consolidation really becomes the dominant
This development of excess pore pressures in the absence of external loads or defor- effect and the excess pore pressures finally decrease. Note that for a permeability of 10-4
mation is completely logical for a SSC material. Normally, creep behaviour of the soil m/day the excess pore pressures even rise to a peak value of 130 kPa after 63 days!
causes plastic deformation and, as a result, a decrease in volume. However, as the
material is undrained and there is no possibility to consolidate, volume strains are not
allowed in the model. Therefore, the plastic volume strain that is calculated due to
creep has to be compensated by an elastic volume strain of equal magnitude but oppo-
site direction. As the total volume strain is the sum of the elastic and plastic volume
strains, this results in a nett volume strain equal to zero.

According to Hooke’s law, elastic expansion, a negative elastic compression, leads to a

decrease of the effective stresses. But, since no external load was applied, the total
stresses must remain the same, and a decrease of the effective stresses is only allow-
able if the excess pore pressures increase. It is this mechanism that causes the
observed excess pore pressures. Of course, this mechanism will continuously increase
the excess pore pressures over time, but the creep that drives it will diminish rapidly.
As the creep rate depends on the effective stress level, and the excess pore pressures
decrease the effective stresses in the sample, the creep rate will decrease at an even
higher rate than in the case of a drained material. Figure 1: Geometry with closed consolidation boundaries

The shift of stress from the effective stress part of the total stress to the (excess) pore
pressures is also the cause for the very small deformation that is observed in the Plaxis
model. Even though water is often assumed to be totally incompressible, it is not, and
the increased pore pressures cause a very small volume strain of the pore water, and
thereby of the entire model.

This is, of course, a rather theoretical example. Soil is hardly ever left completely undis-
turbed for 10 years in a situation where consolidation cannot occur. But this example
still shows an important feature of the SSC model: creep behaviour of undrained soils
leads to an increase of excess pore pressures.

Figure 2: Development of excess pore pressures over time for the various cases

15
PLAXIS FINITE ELEMENT CODE FOR SOIL AND ROCK ANALYSES PLAXIS FINITE ELEMENT CODE FOR SOIL AND ROCK ANALYSES

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Use of Interface Element for Simulation of

Breccia Resliding on Claystone