ABSTRACT
Field evidence of the behaviour of retaining walls in recent earthquakes has continued to show a wide range of performance, implying that despite widespread adoption of force-based (threshold) design approaches, techniques for the prediction of seismically induced wall displacement are less well developed. The background and limitations of force-based and displacement approaches are discussed in the light of the Japanese experience following the Hyogoken-Nambu (Kobe) earthquake in 1995, where a large proportion of caisson walls throughout the port of Kobe were severely damaged. The nature of seismically induced wall displacement is described and techniques are outlined for use in design.
