Abstract
An induced trench installation was instrumented to monitor earth pressures and settlements during construction. Some of the unique features of this case study are as follows: (a) both contact and earth pressure cells were used; (b) part of the culvert is under a new embankment and part was installed in a wide trench within an existing embankment; (c) a large stockpile was temporarily placed over the induced trench; and (d) the compressible material was placed in two stages. The maximum vertical pressure measured in the field at the crown of the culvert was 0.24 times the overburden pressure. The maximum horizontal pressure measured on the side of the culvert at the springline was 0.45 times the overburden pressure. The column of soil directly above the compressible zone settled approximately 40% more than did the adjacent fill. The field results at the crown and springline compared reasonably with those observed with numerical modeling. However, the overall pressure distribution on the pipe was expected to be nonuniform, the average vertical pressure calculated by using numerical analysis on top of the culvert over its full width was 0.61 times the overburden pressure, and the average horizontal pressure calculated on the side of the culvert over its full height was 0.44 times the overburden pressure. When the full pressure distribution on the pipe is considered, the recommended design loads from the Marston–Spangler theory slightly underpredict the maximum loads, and the vertical loads control the design.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.