Pile-supported geogrid-reinforced embankments are an exciting new foundation system that is utilized when sites are limited by a soft soil or clay. In this system, an embankment is supported by a bridging layer, consisting of granular fill and one or multiple layers of geogrid reinforcement. The bridging layer transfers the load to piles that have been driven into the soft soil or clay. The load from the embankment induces large deformations in the geogrid reinforcement, causing tensile forces in the ribs of the geogrid. Many of the current methods used to design geogrid reinforcement for this system simplify the approach by assuming that the reinforcement has a parabolic deformed shape. The purpose of this thesis is to thoroughly examine the behavior of the geogrid in a pile-supported embankment system, in an effort to determine the accuracy of the parabolic deformed shape, and identify the most important parameters that affect reinforcement design. The geogrid was analyzed using a three-dimensional model that included a cable net to represent the geogrid and linear springs to represent the soil underneath the geogrid. A larger pressure was applied to the geogrid regions that are directly above the pile caps so that arching effects could be considered, and the stiffness of the springs on top of the pile were stiffer to account for the thin layer of soil between the geogrid and the pile cap. A Mathematica algorithm was used to solve this model using the minimization of energy method. The results were compared to another model of this system that used a membrane to represent the geosynthetic reinforcement. Additionally, the maximum strain was compared to the strain obtained from a geosynthetic reinforcement design formula. A parametric study was performed using the Mathematica algorithm by varying the pile width, embankment pressure applied to the soil, embankment pressure applied to the pile, stiffness of the soil, stiffness of the soil on top of the pile, stiffness of the geogrid, geogrid orientation, rotational stiffness of the geogrid, and the layers of geogrid reinforcement. / Master of Science

Made available in DSpace on 2016-12-12T20:15:50Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Alex Kraisch.pdf: 2282404 bytes, checksum: 128e624fc8b71f2bc7d95efb2b375527 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-03-21 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / There is a relevant potential for multilayered films in many areas of technological interest once they may combine in just one sample convenient mechanical, optical, electrical and magnetic properties, resulting in an upgrade of the original monolayer films. However, it is quite important to take into account that its production evolves chemical and crystallographic compatibility of the materials and a correct understanding of the stresses and deformations that result from the contact between different materials with quite different characteristics. The objective of this work is to build a three-dimensional model that may describe the relation between the stress in a multilayered film deposed on a thick substrate and the curvature of the sample. It is used the minimization of the deformation energy of the sample in elastic regime. This method is quite simple which is a advantage when compared with tensor procedures, allowing an easier identification of the terms as well as the reduction of the complexity of the calculations. The work starts by the motivation for the study of the stress in monolayer and multilayered films, followed by a presentation of the theoretical and experimental implications of the theme. Then, a more complete description of the methodology used and of the model itself is presented, including the identification of the corrections terms for the well-known Stoney equation. Finally, it is presented a validation of the model, by means of a comparison between its results and the values obtained by other theoretical models, taking as standard results obtained by finite element simulation that favors the model presented in this work. / Filmes compostos por múltiplas camadas de diferentes materiais possuem um potencial considerável para aplicações de interesse tecnológico, na medida em que a combinação dos materiais pode produzir coberturas com propriedades mecânicas, ópticas ou magnéticas superiores às obtidas com uma única camada de um único material. Também é evidente que sua produção envolve questões importantes como a compatibilidade cristalográfica e química, bem como uma correta caracterização das tensões e deformações em cada camada, evitando assim fissuras e delaminação entre as camadas. O objetivo desse trabalho é a construção de um modelo tridimensional que descreva a relação entre tensões e deformações em filmes finos depositados em multicamadas sobre substratos espessos. O método utilizado é o da minimização de energia de deformação da amostra em regime elástico. Esse método possui como vantagem significativa sua maior simplicidade em relação a abordagem tensorial, o que reduz a complexidade dos cálculos e permite uma mais fácil identificação dos termos envolvidos. Após a apresentação da motivação ao estudo do problema, bem como das diversas questões que envolvem a análise experimental e teórica do mesmo, é feita uma descrição mais completa da metodologia utilizada e do modelo teórico que é o foco deste trabalho. A seguir, é feita aplicação do modelo para amostras que se deformam como uma casca esférica e cilíndrica, com a identificação dos termos de correção à equação de Stoney. Finalmente, é feita uma comparação entre os valores obtidos pelo modelo e outros modelos teóricos, tomando-se como padrão os valores obtidos segundo uma simulação por elementos finitos, com um resultado favorável ao modelo proposto neste trabalho.

Confidentiel / Confidential