Study on the limit height of embankment filling on the expansive soil foundations

The maximum filling height of embankment (ie, the limit filling) is an imprtant problem of the design and construction when embankment filling on a certain slope of expansion soil. Currently, some disposal of non-expansion soil foundation are often applied to the engineering design and construction of expansion soil foundation. However, because of the complicated nature of expansive soil, some engineering will failure due to the deterioration of expansive soil under construction or after construction. In this paper, finite element limit analysis method is used to calculate the limit height of inclined expansive soil embankment by the APDL statement and the method of bisection. The results showed that the relationships between the embankment limit height and the horizontal angle (α)are linear. In practice, the corresponding embankment limit height will be worked out according to the ratio of slope. The results is of a clear guiding significance to the engineering design and construction, and the calculation method of embankment limit height could provide a reference for revising and perfecting the “Specifications for Design of Highway Subgrades” (JTGD30-2004).