Examining Active Earth Pressure: Translational Mode Impacts on Cantilever Retaining Walls with Relief Shelves

A cantilever retaining wall that includes a relief shelf represents a unique embodiment within the realm of retaining walls. Semi-infinite non-cohesive soil’s translational mode failure mechanism can be probed utilizing the adaptive finite element elastoplastic analysis (AFEEA). This methodology indicates that such walls exhibit dual failure surfaces, one originating at the wall heel and another at the shelf’s end when the shelf is sufficiently extended. To summarize, comprehension of the interrelation can be achieved by classifying walls into those with long and short relief shelves. This study applied equilibrium limit analysis on the horizontal differential layer to determine the active earth pressure of cantilever retaining walls with the relief shelf in semi-infinite non-cohesive backfilled soil. The investigation of four key parameters—relief shelf length, position, wall heel length, and soil internal friction angle—highlights their significant roles in altering active earth pressure. As a result, when the relief shelf aligns at 0.4 times the wall’s height from its pinnacle, it presents minimal total active earth pressure (E_a). The conclusion drawn is that within a specific range: The active earth pressure decreases as the length of the relief shelf increases and the length of the wall heel decreases.