Behavior Study of Shallowly Buried Large-Span Steel Culverts by Inclusion of Geotextile Reinforcements

Applied live loads on the ground surface cause excessive deformations on the buried culverts. In cases with small thickness soil covers, development of large stresses in culvert profiles leads to extra deformation and subsequent failure. On reduce transmitted pressure on soil mass and embedded structures, geosynthetics have been effectively used in several geotechnical applications. However, the effect of geotextiles on the behavior of large, shallowly buried culverts is of particular attention. Conducted numerical analysis focuses on the performance evaluation of different geotextile arrangements to protect buried culverts subjected to surface traffic loads. First, an extensively documented experimental test was used to validate the numerical model. As a result, models were built using reinforcing sheets to examine the impacts of mitigation on culvert deformations and bending moments. Results indicate that the application of live loads causes asymmetric deformation of the buried arch culvert. The amplitude of the culvert crown deflection grows considerably as the vehicle gets closer to the crown location. While the use of geotextile greatly regulates culvert behavior, the application of reinforcing layers around the culvert profile might have negative consequences.