ABSTRACT
In the present study, laboratory tests are conducted to determine the effect of pre-compression levels (66, 50, & 30%) on the stress-strain behavior of elasticized geofoam and the results are compared with the virgin geofoam. The elastic modulus reduces from 2845 kPa for virgin geofoam to around 10% value for 66.6% pre-compressed samples. The numerical modeling is carried out by selecting proper constitutive model for virgin and elasticized geofoam and the performance of elasticized and virgin geofoam inclusions behind a 6 m high cantilever retaining wall is evaluated. The lateral earth pressure, wall deflection, and geofoam compression results are compared with the control case without inclusion. A 250 mm thick elasticized geofoam achieves 30% isolation efficiency and reduces wall deflection by 37%, outperforming the 500 mm thick virgin geofoam, which offers 23% efficiency and 32% deflection reduction—making the elasti-cized geofoam a more economical and effective inclusion.
