ABSTRACT
Two large-scale geosynthetic-reinforced soil (GRS) walls were constructed at the COPPE/UFRJ Geotechnical Laboratory to evaluate the effect of facing type and toe resistance on the performance of the walls. The walls, identified as Walls 1 and 2, were similar apart from the facing type. Walls with block and wrap facing were considered in this study. After the end of construction, a surcharge was applied to the entire surface of the top of the walls up to 100 kPa. During construction and surcharge application, the toe of Wall 1 (block-face wall) was restricted. After applying the surcharge up to 100 kPa, in Wall 1, the surcharge was kept constant at 100 kPa while the toe of the wall was gradually released. In the wall with wrap facing (Wall 2), there was no toe restriction during surcharge application. The walls were well-instrumented in order to monitor the values of the reinforcement load, toe load, and horizontal facing displacement. The results clearly call attention to the importance of the combined effect of facing stiffness and toe resistance on the behaviour of GRS walls.
