Ec7 Wallap
Ec7 Wallap
Ec7 Wallap
WALLAP version 6 (June 2012) introduces a new feature to simplify the preparation of data in
accordance with the different Limit State analyses required by EC7. Separate data sets (SLS and ULS
parameters) can be generated in order to fully investigate the various Limit States. There are also options
for user-defined Limit States for those who wish to design according to codes other than EC7.
WALLAP carries out Limit Equilibrium and Soil-Structure Interaction analyses at each stage of the
construction sequence. This allows the user to investigate both stability and structural forces at all stages
of construction. Seismic and Accidental situations after the end of construction can also be investigated.
The purpose of this note is to summarise the requirements of EC7 as they relate to embedded retaining
walls and the use of WALLAP in their design. . The note does not describe the operational aspects of
WALLAP which are set out in the WALLAP Help system
The requirements of EC7 are not always easy to understand or implement and in practice one encounters
a variety of interpretations. This note endeavours to set out and justify some of the choices which must be
made during the design process so that the WALLAP user can
a) arrive at a rational design.
b) justify it to the wider world.
Notation
aULS, aSLS ULS and SLS seismic accelerations SLS Serviceability Limit State
agR Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA) ULS Ultimate Limit State
A Accidental action X Generic material property
c' Drained shear strength Xk Characteristic value of a material property
c'k Characteristic value of c' Xd Design value of a material property
cU Undrained shear strength a , p Angle of wall friction (active, passive)
cUk Characteristic value of cU ' Drained angle of shearing resistance
cSOFT Undrained shear strength of softened cv = cs Constant Volume ( = Critical State)
soil at excavation level angle of shearing resistance
cSOFTk Characteristic value of CSOFT d Design angle of shearing resistance
DA1 Design Approach 1 k Characteristic angle of shearing resistance
EU Young's modulus of soil - undrained
peak Peak angle of shearing resistance
E' Young's modulus of soil - drained
F Partial factor on an action
F Generic action
Cu Partial factor on undrained shear strength
Fk Characteristic value of an action
G Partial factor on a permanent action
Frep Representative value of an action
M Partial factor on a material property
Fd Design value of an action
G Permanent action Mw Partial factor on bending strength of wall
CIRIA Report 104, Design of retaining walls embedded in stiff clays CIRIA 104
C.J.Padfield and R.J.Mair CIRIA, 1984
The predecessor of C580. Now superseded.
CIRIA Report C580, Embedded retaining walls - guidance for economic design C580
A.R.Gaba, B.Simpson, W.Powrie, D.R.Beadman.
CIRIA, 2003.
The UK National Annex to Eurocode 7 lists C580 as a source of
Non-contradictory, complementary information. (B+H pp.402-403)
An invaluable source of guidance and information.
nd
Bridge Manual 2 Edition 2003 Document Code SP/M/022
New Zealand Transport Agency (Transit NZ), PO Box 5084, Wellington
http://www.transit.govt.nz/technical
Serviceability Limit State is concerned with functioning of the structure (and adjacent structures),
the comfort of people and the appearance of the works. B+H p.35 2.8
Ultimate Limit State is concerned with collapse or instability of the works which may
affect the safety of people or the structure, or cause major economic
loss. EC7 identifies several different ULSs which must be verified.
Each is denoted by an acronym: B+H p.32 2.7
Failure of structural
members by excessive Yes. Bending failure of walls.
Bending moments and
STR deformation, formation Tensile or pull-out failure of
strut forces
of a mechanism or anchors. Strut failure
rupture
Warning issued in
Loss of equilibrium due
extreme cases. Uplift
UPL to uplift by water Yes
pressures must be
pressure
assessed separately
Table 1
Resistance of a structural member is its capacity to withstand actions without failing e.g. the moment
resistance of a wall, passive resistance of a soil mass. The resistance of a member is a function of its
geometry and the strength of the material(s) of which it is made.
Generic values of actions, effects, resistances and material properties are denoted by the symbols:
Actions F
Effects E
Resistances R
Material properties X
A safe design is achieved by applying partial factors to some or all of the above. For a simple structure
e.g. a cable supporting a single tensile load, the Effect (tensile force in the cable) is proportional to the
Action (the tensile load) and the Resistance (load capacity of the cable) is proportional to the Material
strength (tensile strength of the cable). In such a simple case we would achieve the same margin of safety
and the same design whether we apply our partial factor to the Action, Effect, Resistance or Material
property. However, for retaining walls there are significant choices to be made in the application of partial
factors. Traditional methods of retaining wall design have usually balanced Effects (active pressures)
against factored Resistances (passive pressures). EC7, by contrast, prescribes the use of partial factors
on Actions and Material properties.
2.3 Actions
2.3.1 Types of actions B+H p.37 2.9.1
Actions are classified according to their variability over time.
Table 2
2.3.2 Design situations B+H p.30 2.6
Eurocode defines four design situations, Persistent, Transient, Accidental and Seismic. Table 3
summarises the actions and limit states to be considered for each design situation.
Where several variable actions may occur independently one considers each action to take the "Lead" in
turn. In each combination the Lead action has its full characteristic value ( = 1.0) while all the other
variable actions are scaled down ( < 1.0).
Unfavourable variable loads applied to a retaining wall are often a relatively small part of the total loading
and to simplify matters they can all be assigned a combination factor, = 1 without loss of economy of
design. In other cases, e.g. bridge abutments, variable actions can be very significant and it will be
important to consider the full range of combinations with their respective values. See B+H 2.9.2, p.42
for details
For permanent, accidental and seismic actions, = 1.0
For favourable variable actions, = 0
Fd = F.Frep
Characterisation
Derivation
Derived Characteristic
Test results (reduction of many
(e.g. cU from SPT values, X values Xk
test values to a
N value)
single value)
Material properties e.g. soil strength, are introduced into the calculation as characteristic values (Xk). For
non-geotechnical materials (e.g. steel and concrete) characteristic strengths are taken as the value which
would be expected to be exceeded by 95% of samples. Due to the great variability of geotechnical
materials and the difficulties in obtaining representative samples, EC7 redefines the characteristic value
as
a cautious estimate of the value affecting the occurrence of the limit state. B+H 5.3.2
Bond and Harris (p.138) propose that "cautious estimates" can be equated with the "representative
values" defined in BS8002 as
conservative estimates of the properties of the soil as it exists in situ B+H 5.3.3
properly applicable to the part of the design for which it is intended
Note. The use of the term "representative" in BS 8002 is quite different from that in EC7 - see
Section 2.3.3 above.
The Eurocode "cautious estimate" can also be equated with the definition in C580 of the term
"moderately conservative"
A cautious estimate of soil parameters.. Worse than the probabilistic
mean but not as severe as a worst credible parameter value. Sometimes
termed a conservative best estimate.
To summarise: Characteristic values / Cautious estimates (EC7)
= Representative values (BS 8002)
= Moderately conservative values (C580)
C580 (Design Approach B) requires the use of "worst credible" parameters i.e. the worst value of soil
parameters that the designer realistically believes might occur. These may be regarded as comparable to
Eurocode design values (ULS case) i.e. the characteristic value divided by its (ULS) partial factor.
Strictly (according to EC7) one must explore both Combinations and take the worse case for design. This
note suggests that a simpler approach is appropriate and that in most cases a safe and economical
design will be achieved by considering Combination 2 alone.
Caution should be exercised when allowing concrete walls to mobilise their full characteristic strength in
SLS analyses as cracking may impair the durability of the wall
The value of Ko affects the displacement required to mobilise the fully active and passive condition. Thus
high values of Ko can have a significant effect on calculated bending moments and displacements in the
SLS case. As it is often difficult to assess Ko precisely it is not uncommon to explore a range of values so
that one is aware of the implications of errors in Ko.
ULS analyses should be carried out (at least initially) using the characteristic values used for the SLS
analysis. ULS bending moments will generally be less sensitive to Ko and there is normally no need to
explore a range of values.
The estimation of "most unfavourable" water pressures during Normal Circumstances and Design Lifetime
is strongly influenced by the type of soil being retained as described in the following sections.
The decision on whether to carry out a drained or undrained analysis at any particular stage of the
construction sequence is discussed in the WALLAP User Guide, in C580 and in any standard text on
retaining wall design. It is not a matter which is addressed by EC7.
in soils which exhibit brittle behaviour or marked strain softening e.g. highly
overconsolidated clays and very dense granular soils (SPT N value > 40).
where it is impossible to obtain reliable estimates of peak strength from in
situ tests or undisturbed samples.
where wall installation or other construction activities have reduced the
strength below its peak value
where pre-existing shear surfaces make the use of in situ or laboratory
measurements inapplicable.
where a progressive failure mechanism means that peak strength is not
mobilised simultaneously throughout the soil mass.
For most situations, characteristic values of ' can safely be based on peak . Any concerns about brittle
behaviour will be addressed by the use of critical state values in the ULS analysis.
The next question is how to derive the ULS design value from the characteristic value. One could simply
apply the prescribed factor (1.25) in Table 4. However for very dense granular soils, peak ' may be much
greater than cv and it might be prudent to use cv as the ULS design value.
To summarise, it is recommended that SLS calculations are normally based on characteristic values of
peak and that ULS calculations are based on either factored values of peak or unfactored values of cv
where this is less than factored peak .
Design values for ULS analysis are obtained by applying the partial factors in Table 4 to the characteristic
values.
The softened strength should be regarded as the characteristic strength since it represents a moderately
cautious view of conditions which will actually pertain during in construction. The softened soil will in most
cases be removed by excavation before completion of the works. Nevertheless the softened strength will
feature in the SLS analysis of the permanent works. Any movements and bending moments which
develop as a result of softening will form part of the cumulative bending moments and displacements.
The ULS strength should, in principle, be obtained by factoring the characteristic strength. There is no
clear guidance on this point and it must therefore remain a matter of judgement as to whether the
application of the usual partial factor (1.4) would lead to unreasonably conservative strength values.
Note that cv is already a conservative estimate of strength relative to the characteristic value and no
further factor is required for the ULS case. In terms of actual design, this does not represent a radical
departure from CIRIA 104 and BS8002 since the earth pressures (or the moments derived from them) in
those calculations were then factored to achieve a suitable margin of safety.
An allowance for wall friction is not always appropriate e.g. where there are large bearing or pull-out loads
on the wall. See C580 (4.1.4) for further discussion of these situations.
SLS values of tan are not explicitly mentioned in C580 or EC7 but we can achieve a consistent approach
by substituting k for cv in Table 5.
Note that one can no longer make direct use of traditional earth pressure tables to find ULS values of Ka
and Kp in terms of /cv and d since the values are not the same. To use such tables you have to work
out your value from Table 6, calculate /d, and look that up in your Ka or Kp tables. To avoid this
cumbersome procedure the WALLAP help facility has been modified to provide values of Ka and Kp
directly in terms of and .
You can still use traditional earth pressure tables to find SLS values of Ka and Kp in terms of /k and k
since the values are the same.
This nominal surcharge is regarded as an "unfavourable variable" surcharge. 10kPa is its characteristic
value. For Combination 2 (see Section 3.1) apply a partial factor of 1.3 and for Combination 1 (if
considered) apply a partial factor of 1.5.
Other unfavourable variable surcharges e.g. traffic and cranes, are treated similarly.
Unfavourable permanent surcharges e.g. self weight of building, are only factored in DA1 Combination 1.
The WALLAP analysis does not automatically take account of the effect of the earthquake on soil
properties or water pressures (e.g. liquefaction). These effects must be calculated separately and
introduced into the construction sequence as additional stages (see Section 4.10.3).
4.10.1 ULS analysis
The first step is to determine the Reference Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA, or agR) for the required
return period (usually 475 years) at the relevant location. This will usually be obtained from a seismic
hazard map.
Two modifications need to be made to the PGA before it can be used in design
A response factor to take account of the geometry of the structure and
amplification of the vibrations by the soil
An importance factor related to the purpose of the building.
The resulting acceleration is taken as the design value for ULS calculations. A PGA of less than 0.05g lies
outside the provisions of EC8 and no special design measures are required.
One does not combine seismic forces with factored loads and soil strengths as this would be
unreasonably pessimistic (B+H 2.13.2 p.52). Thus although the soil strengths are at their characteristic
values the resulting analysis is, in effect, a ULS analysis as it is believed that the combination of
characteristic strengths with seismic load represents a worst conceivable scenario.
Kramer (1996) discusses the effects of cyclic loading in great detail. Particular care must be taken in
respect of water pressure as this is likely to be the single most significant contributor to loss of stability.
The properties of the affected layers and the new water pressure profiles should be implemented as
additional construction stages before applying the seismic loading stage.
Local yield of the wall can be an important feature of seismic design. The characteristic (un-factored) yield
strength of the wall is entered in the "Wall properties" section of the WALLAP data.
One could consider more than one seismic event e.g. separate or combined vertical and horizontal
accelerations and these can be placed in sequence.
WALLAP offers a variety of methods for calculating factors of safety for cantilever walls and single
propped walls. The Strength Factor method is the only method which is consistent with the limit state
approach of EC7. The Strength Factor method should be used for all calculations but please note that the
Strength Factor method used in conjunction with the Wedge Analysis option (for active and passive limits)
increases computing times significantly.
Wall friction values are the maximum permitted and may need to be
4 reduced having regard to the direction and amount of movement of the
wall relative to the ground.
A Partial Factor of 2.0 on Soil Modulus is specified by C580 for the ULS
case but not by EC7. The basis for this approach is that modulus at the
5
large strains associated with ULS calculations is expected to be lower.
Note: Subscript k denotes a Characteristic value
Density of soil k k
Lesser of tan cv
Drained soil friction angle tan ' tan k
or (tan k) / 1.25
cU of softened soil at
cSOFT cSOFTk cSOFTk / 1.40
excav. level (see C580, 5.9.1)
Poisson's ratio k k
Table 6a
Density of soil k k
cU of softened soil at
cSOFT cSOFTk cSOFTk
excav. level (see C580, 5.9.1)
Poisson's ratio k k
Table 6b
One construction sequence occupies one WALLAP data file. So generally you will need to create at least
two versions of the data file, one with SLS values and one with ULS values (DA1 Combination 2)
according to the values in Table 6. Details of data entry for Limit State analysis are given in the WALLAP
Help System and the User Guide.
For Accidental situations one can add extra stages to an SLS analysis or implement one of the User
Defined Limit States with partial factors of ones own choice.
Table 7
It is the responsibility of the WALLAP user to verify the design by ensuring that values of these
parameters do not exceed their permitted maximum value for the relevant Limit State. If initial results
show that limiting values are exceeded then the design should be modified and re-analysed. Excessive
bending moments and displacements can be accommodated by increasing the wall thickness or reducing
strut spacings.
Type of analysis
Equilibrium BM solution
FoS > 1
Design information indicates stability.
indicates stability
obtained with
(for cantilever and
ULS parameters ULS bending moments.
single prop cases)
ULS strut forces.
Table 8
7.1 Verification of Ultimate Limit State
7.1.1 Bending moment
C580 ( 6.6.2) states the ULS verification procedure as follows:
The ULS wall bending moments (MWd) and shear forces for use in the structural
design of the wall should be obtained as the greater of:
the maximum bending moment from the ULS analyses (MULS)
1.35 times the maximum bending moment from the SLS analyses (MSLS)
What is being said here is that we have two versions of the design bending moment (MWd). One is derived
directly from the ULS analysis. The other is derived by considering the bending moment from the SLS
analysis to be the characteristic value of a permanent action (the bending moment) which is multiplied by
1.35 (Table 4, Column A1) to obtain the design bending moment. To summarise:
MWd is the greater of MULS or 1.35MSLS
The ultimate bending resistance of the wall, MWult, is related to the design bending moment, MWd, by:
MWd MWult / Mw.
For steel walls Mw = 1.0 i.e. subject to the provisos below you can use the Ultimate Moment Capacities
straight out of the "Table of steel pile moment capacities" in the WALLAP help system. There is no
distinction between moment capacities for temporary and permanent situations.
For reinforced concrete walls a proper design must be carried out for the concrete and steel section.
Eurocode 2 specifies
M = c = 1.5 for concrete
M = s = 1.15 for reinforcing bars
Bear in mind that:
Bending and shear resistance are influenced by vertical loads in the wall.
the characteristic bending strength of the wall may reduce with time e.g.
due to corrosion.
Anchor strength depends on the strength of the tendon and resistance to pull-out.
Pull-out resistance falls off rapidly after its peak value i.e. pull-out failure is brittle.
Tendon strength falls off gradually after peak. Therefore anchors should be designed
so that anchorage strength is greater than tendon strength as this gives a less brittle
design.
Anchors can be designed by calculation or on the basis of pull-out tests.
7.1.3 Displacements
Calculated displacements in ULS analyses are likely to very large as the structure is on the verge of
failure. There is no prescribed maximum displacement in the ULS condition.
The allowable stress criterion for steel is not relevant to EC7 as that is taken care of by the ULS bending
moment check (see Section 7.1.1).
7.2.3 Displacements
Maximum permitted displacements vary greatly according to circumstances. Criteria may relate to
Acceptable displacements of the new structure.
Damage to neighbouring services or foundations
Damage to finishes of neighbouring structures
Unacceptable differential settlement of neighbouring structures
in relation to performance of services or machinery.
In the absence of any specific criteria, maximum wall displacements should normally be limited to 0.5% of
the excavated height.
Note to the reader: When quoting or referring to this document please acknowledge the author and Geosolve