The mechanical behaviour and design concerns for a hybrid reinforced earth embankment built in limited width adjacent to a slope

This paper aims to investigate the mechanical behaviour of a hybrid reinforced earth embankment built in limited width adjacent to a slope. This embankment system incorporates reinforced earth embankments with soil nails, installed in the existing ground. Soil nails work to provide additional resisting forces to stabilize the embankment which may be unstable due to insufficient reinforcement length. Nail forces developed in the hybrid reinforced earth embankment with various geometric conditions in the fill space are analyzed. The FE method is used to simulate the construction of the hybrid reinforced earth embankment. Influence of reinforcement length, reinforcement stiffness, and slope gradient on the nail forces developed following the construction is analyzed and discussed. Additionally, design concerns for the hybrid reinforced earth embankment system are also studied. Simple charts for estimating the maximum nail force mobilized at back of the hybrid reinforced earth embankment are established in this research and can be helpful in the design of the soil nails in the system.