Theoretical and Numerical Studies on Strip Footing Resting on Encapsulated Soil Mass

In the present study, an analytical model, based on the limit equilibrium method, was developed to evaluate the ultimate bearing capacity of strip footing resting on soil mass encapsulated with geosynthetic reinforcement. The failure mechanism of the encapsulated soil mass was proposed based on literature studies. Additionally, a 3D finite element model was created using hardening constitutive law to analyze the load-settlement behavior of the strip footing, the strain profile of the reinforced soil mass, and the mobilized tension of the encapsulated reinforcement layers. In the numerical study, the ratio l/B was varied while u/B and h/B were kept constant. The results from the analytical model were compared with those from the developed finite element model and both were further validated with published literature data, showing good agreement. The numerical studies identified the optimal reinforcement configuration of the encapsulated soil mass at l/B = 2, u/B = 0.3, and h/B = 0.6. The study demonstrated that the encapsulated soil mass provides an 11–12% increase in ultimate bearing capacity over the traditional horizontal reinforcing method.

Graphical abstract of the present study