Effect of the variable discharge capacity of prefabricated vertical drains on the behaviour of an embankment built on soft soils
Effect of the variable discharge capacity of prefabricated vertical drains on the behaviour of an embankment built on soft soils
In the past, the design of vertical drain systems considered an infinite discharge capacity. Although this hypothesis is suitable for sand drains with high coefficient of permeability, when prefabricated vertical drains (PVDs) are used, the decrease of the discharge capacity with elapsed time cannot be ignored. In this paper, a formula that relates the discharge capacity of PVDs to the consolidation time and the confining pressure around the drains is used to analyse the behaviour of an embankment built on a soft soil. The vertical and horizontal displacements predicted numerically considering infinite, reduced and variable discharge capacity of the PVDs are compared with one another and with field data. In general, the results show that the use of the formula proposed improves the numerical predictions of the settlement during the intermediate phases of consolidation. In terms of the horizontal displacement, the effect of the discharge capacity of the vertical drains seems to be negligible.
Paulo Jose Venda Oliveira
18th European Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ECSMGE2024)
D - Current and new construction methods
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