ABSTRACT
In recent decades, an exponential growth in the area of digital computers and computational mechanics has resulted in the application of the non-linear finite element method to almost all areas of geotechnical engineering, including shallow foundations.The finite element method (FEM) has also become a highly useful tool, and has been widely used for the numerical analysis of soil structures (Abdel-Baki and Raymond 1994; Yetimoglu et al. 1994; Ismail and Raymond 1995; Ismael, 1996; Ohri et al, 1997; Kurian et al. 1997; Chandrashekhara et al. 1998; Otani et al. 1998; Yoo 2001, Boushehrian and Hataf 2003; Laman and Yildiz, 2003; Zhao and Wang 2007, Laman and Yildiz 2007). It provides the advantage of idealising the material behaviour of soil, which is non-linear with plastic deformations and stress path dependent, in a more rational manner. The FEM can also be particularly useful for identifying the patterns of deformations and stress distribution in and around the reinforcing elements, during deformation and at ultimate state.
