Assessing passive earth pressure is fundamental in geotechnical engineering practice. Mineral dissolution in the soil can reduce the soil strength, causing an overestimation of passive earth pressure in design. In this study, the effect of dissolution on passive earth pressure on retaining walls is investigated by using discrete element method, taking into account three modes of motion: translation (mode T), rotation around the wall bottom (mode RB), and rotation around the wall top (mode RT). The simulations show that the particle dissolution results in a significant reduction in the passive earth pressure on retaining walls. The largest reductions of resultant force are about 73.5 % and 78.5 % in modes T and RT when wall displacement is minor. Nevertheless, when the wall displacement is large, the largest reduction in resultant force is approximately 74.7 % in mode RB. A detailed analysis is provided to explain this phenomenon. Dissolution also leads to weak force chains and an increase in soil porosity, thereby weakening wall-soil interactions. Dissolution has a significant effect on passive earth pressure of lower part's soil. This study suggests that reinforcing the lower part's soil and preventing seepage in this area can help mitigate the effects of dissolution on retaining walls.

中文翻译：

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颗粒溶解对挡土墙被动土压力影响的 DEM 模拟


评估被动土压力是岩土工程实践的基础。矿物在土壤中的溶解会降低土壤强度，导致设计中高估被动土压力。本研究采用离散元方法研究了溶蚀对挡土墙被动土压力的影响，考虑了三种运动模式：平移（T 模式）、绕墙底旋转（RB 模式）和绕墙顶旋转（RT 模式）。模拟表明，颗粒溶解导致挡土墙上的被动土压力显著降低。当壁位移较小时，在 T 和 RT 模式下，合力的最大减少约为 73.5 % 和 78.5 %。然而，当壁位移较大时，在 RB 模式下，合力的最大减少约为 74.7 %。提供了详细的分析来解释这种现象。溶解还会导致力链变弱和土壤孔隙度增加，从而削弱墙体与土壤的相互作用。溶蚀对下部土体的被动土压力有显著影响。这项研究表明，加固下部的土壤并防止该区域的渗漏有助于减轻溶解对挡土墙的影响。