A nonlinear model of geosynthetic-reinforced granular fill over soft soil

This paper extends a recently developed one-dimensional foundation model for geosynthetic-reinforced granular fills over soft soil using a nonlinear constitutive model for the granular fill and a nonlinear spring model for soft soil. The mathematical form of the soil and spring models is a hyperbolic function that represents the nonlinear shear stress-shear strain behaviour of the granular fill and the nonlinear reaction of the soft soil. The foundation model is derived using the nonlinear soil and spring models, and the iterative finite difference scheme that is used to solve the nonlinear equations of the foundation model is presented. Parametric analyses of the nonlinear parameters are performed to study the effect on the foundation settlement and the mobilised tension in a geosynthetic layer. The computed results are presented and discussed.