ABSTRACT
The construction of an industrial unit required a 10-meter-deep excavation at the toe of a steep natural slope with signs of previous instabilities. The adopted solution was a soldier pile wall with several levels of ground anchors. On the other hand, the upper natural slope was reinforced using horizontal drains, driven steel piles (rail segments) and ground anchors. Bolted steel meshes were also used to avoid shallow instabilities. Limit equilibrium and finite element analyses were performed for the design of those remediation measures. Finite element analyses provided useful information about bending moments in the piles and anchor forces. Detailed instrumentation, namely inclinometers, anchor load cells and topographical surveying, was used to monitor the performance of the wall and the slope. The field measurements were compared with the finite element predictions along all the construction period, showing a general good agreement.
