Module -3

Lateral Earth Pressure

 Lateral Earth Pressure

• Active and Passive earth pressures

• Earth pressure coefficient
• Earth pressure theories-Rankine’s and Coulombs theories-
Assumptions and Limitations
• Lateral Earth pressure in cohesive and cohesionless soils
• Graphical solutions for active earth pressure
• Cullman's and Rebhann’s graphical method
Lateral Earth Pressure?

• Lateral earth pressure is the pressure that soil exerts in the

horizontal direction.

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Where Earth Pressure?

• Calculating lateral earth pressure is necessary in order to design

structures such as:
 Retaining Walls
 Bridge Abutments
 Bulkheads
 Temporary Earth Support Systems
 Basement Walls

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Where Earth Pressure?

• Retaining Walls

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Where Earth Pressure?

• Bridge Abutments

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 Where Earth Pressure?
• Bulkheads

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Where Earth Pressure?

• Temporary Earth Support Systems

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Where Earth Pressure?

• Basement Walls

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Why we study Lateral Earth Pressure?

• Lateral Earth pressure is an important parameter for the design of

bridge abutment, different types of retaining walls (Such as gravity
retaining walls, cantilever walls, buttresses), sheet piles and other
retaining structures.

• It is important because it affects the consolidation behaviour and

strength of the soil also because it is considered in the design of
retaining walls, basements, tunnels etc.

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Other Forces Acting on the Wall

• Aside from the earth pressure force acting on the wall, other forces
might also act on the wall and these are superimposed onto the earth
pressure force. For example, these forces might include:
• Surcharge load
• Earthquake load
• Water Pressure

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Types of Retaining Walls

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Uses of Retaining Walls

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Uses of Retaining Walls

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Lateral Earth Pressure

The magnitude of lateral earth pressure depends on:

• Shear strength characteristics of soil
• Lateral strain condition
• Pore water pressure
• State of Equilibrium of soil
• Wall and ground surface shape

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Lateral Earth Pressure and Wall Movement

• Lateral earth pressure are the direct result of horizontal stresses in the
soil.

• In order to understand the lateral earth pressure we have to define the

Coefficient of lateral earth pressure, K.

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Coefficient (K)

• It is defined as the ratio of the horizontal effective stress, σh to the

vertical effective stress σv
• K = σh/σv

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Lateral Earth Pressure

• There are 3 states of lateral earth pressure

• Ko = At Rest
• Ka = Active Earth Pressure
• Kp= Passive Earth Pressure
(Passive is more like a resistance)

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Earth Pressure at Rest

At rest earth pressure occur when there is no wall rotation

such as in a braced wall. (for example basement wall)

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 Earth Pressure at Rest

• Ko can be calculated as follows:

Ko = 1 – sin φ for coarse grained soils

Ko = 0.44 + 0.42 [PI / 100] for NC soils

KO (OC) = KO (NC) (OCR)1/2 for OC soils

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 Active Earth Pressure

• Active earth pressure occurs when the wall tilts away from the soil.
(for example a typical free standing retaining wall)
• In Active earth pressure the value of K is minimum.

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 Active Earth Pressure

Ka can be calculated as follows:

Ka = tan2 (45 – φ/2)

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Passive Earth Pressure

• Passive earth pressure occurs when the wall is pushed into

the soil.

• And a wall pushed into the soil when a seismic load pushing
the wall into the soil or a foundation pushing into the soil.

• In Passive earth pressure the value of K is maximum.

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Passive Earth Pressure

Kp can be calculated as follows:

Kp = tan 2 (45 + φ/2)

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Comparison of Lateral Earth Pressure

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 Lateral Earth Pressure Basic Concepts
• We will consider the lateral pressure on a vertical wall that retains soil on one
side.
• First, we will consider a drained case, i.e. The shear strength of the soil is
governed by its angle of friction φ.
• In addition, we will make the following assumptions:
– The interface between the wall and the soil is frictionless.
– The soil surface is horizontal and there are no shear stresses on horizontal
and vertical planes, i.e. The horizontal and vertical stresses are principal
stresses.
– The wall is rigid and extends to an infinite depth in a dry, homogenous,
isotropic soil mass.
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Lateral Earth Pressure Theory
• There are two classical earth pressure theories. They are

1. Coulomb's earth pressure theory.

2. Rankine's earth pressure theory.

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Rankine’s Theory Assumes
• There is no adhesion or friction between the wall and soil
• Lateral pressure is limited to vertical walls
• Failure (in the backfill) occurs as a sliding wedge along an
assumed failure plane defined by φ.
• Lateral pressure varies linearly with depth and the resultant
pressure is located one-third of the height (H) above the base of the
wall.
• The resultant force is parallel to the backfill surface.

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Coulomb’s Theory
• The Coulomb Theory Is Similar To Rankine Except That:
• There is friction between the wall and soil and takes this
into account by using a soil-wall friction angle of δ.
• Note that δ ranges from φ/2 to 2φ/3 and δ = 2φ/3 is
commonly used.
• Lateral pressure is not limited to vertical walls
• The resultant force is not necessarily parallel to the backfill
surface because of the soil-wall friction value δ.
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Lateral Earth Pressure For At Rest Condition

If the wall is rigid and does not move with the pressure exerted on the
wall, the soil behind the wall will be in a state of elastic equilibrium.

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Lateral Earth Pressure For At Rest Condition

Element E is subjected to the following pressures.

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Lateral Earth Pressure For At Rest Condition

• If we consider the backfill is homogeneous then 𝛔v and 𝛔h both

increase linearly with depth z.
• In such a case, the ratio of 𝛔h to 𝛔v remains constant with respect to
depth, that is

Where, Ko is called the coefficient of earth pressure for the at rest condition or at
rest earth pressure Coefficient.
The lateral earth pressure h acting on the wall at any depth z may be expressed
as
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Lateral Earth Pressure For At Rest Condition

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Development of Active and Passive Earth Pressure

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Horizontal Stress as a function of Displacement

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Development of Earth Pressure

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Active Earth Pressure

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Active Earth Pressure

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Passive Earth Pressure

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Passive Earth Pressure

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Rankine’s Earth Pressure Theories
Rankine's Condition For Active And Passive Failures In A Semi-infinite Mass Of Cohesionless Soil

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Rankine’s Earth Pressure Theories
Rankine's Condition For Active And Passive Failures In A Semi-infinite Mass Of Cohesionless Soil

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Rankine’s Theory: Active Earth Pressure

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Smooth Vertical Wall with Cohesionless Backfill

Backfill Horizontal-Active Earth Pressure

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Smooth Vertical Wall with Cohesionless Backfill

Backfill Horizontal-Passive Earth Pressure

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Rankine’s Theory: Passive Earth Pressure

Relationship between Kp and KA

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Rankine’s Theory

Rankine's Active Pressure Under Submerged Condition In Cohesion Less Soil

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Rankine’s Theory

Rankine's Active Pressure In Cohesionless Backfill Under Partly Submerged

Condition With Surcharge Load

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Rankine’s Theory

RANKINE'S ACTIVE EARTH RESSURE WITH COHESIVE BACKFILL

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Rankine’s Theory

RANKINE'S ACTIVE EARTH RESSURE WITH COHESIVE BACKFILL

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Rankine’s Theory

ACTIVE EARTH PRESSURE ON VERTICAL SECTIONS IN COHESIVE SOILS

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Rankine’s Theory

EFFECT OF WATER TABLE ON LATERAL EARTH PRESSURE

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Rankine’s Theory: Special Cases

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Numerical Problems

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Coulomb’s Earth Pressure Theories
COULOMB'S EARTH PRESSURE THEORY FOR SAND FOR ACTIVE STATE

• Coulomb made the following assumptions in the development of his

theory:
1. The soil is isotropic and homogeneous
2. The rupture surface is a plane surface
3. The failure wedge is a rigid body
4. The pressure surface is a plane surface
5. There is wall friction on the pressure surface 6. Failure is two-
dimensional
7. The soil is cohesionless

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Coulomb’s Earth Pressure Theories

Conditions for Failure Under Active Conditions

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Coulomb’s Earth Pressure Theories

Procedure to draw ABC

2. The backfill surface BE is a plane inclined at an angle 𝛃 with the

1. AB is the pressure face

horizontal
3. 𝛂 is the angle made by the pressure face AB with the horizontal
4. H is the height of the wall
5. AC is the assumed rupture plane surface, and
6. 𝛉 is the angle made by the surface AC with the horizontal
W = yA, where A = area of wedge ABC

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Coulomb’s Earth Pressure Theories

Active Earth Pressure

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Coulomb’s Earth Pressure Theories

COULOMB'S EARTH PRESSURE THEORY FOR SAND FOR PASSIVE STATE

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Coulomb’s Earth Pressure Theories

COULOMB’S THEORY Solutions

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Culmann’s Graphical Method: Active Ep

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Culmann’s Graphical Method: Active Ep
• Draw 𝚽 -line AE at an angle 𝚽 to the horizontal.
• Lay off on AE distances, AV, A1, A2, A3, etc. to a suitable scale to
represent the weights of wedges ABV, A51, AS2, AS3, etc. respectively.
• Draw lines parallel to AD from points V, 1, 2, 3 to intersect assumed
rupture lines AV, Al, A2, A3 at points V", I',2', 3', etc. respectively.
• Join points V , 1', 2 ' 3 ' etc. by a smooth curve which is the pressure
locus.
• Select point C’ on the pressure locus such that the tangent to the curve at
this point is parallel to the 𝚽-line AE.
• Draw C'C parallel to the pressure line AD. The magnitude of C'C in its
natural units gives the active pressure Pa.
• Join AC" and produce to meet the surface of the backfill at C. AC is the69
rupture line.
Culmann’s Graphical Method: Active Ep

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Culmann’s Graphical Method: Active Ep

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Culmann’s Graphical Method: Active Ep

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Modes of Geotechnical Failures of Retaining Walls

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Thank You

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