Retaining Wall Design · v1.1

Lateral Earth Pressure

Layered soil · water table · surcharge — active & passive pressure, sand and clay · overturning (ODF) check

Method: Rankine (smooth, vertical wall, level ground)
Sand & drained clay → effective stress + water pressure · Undrained clay → total stress

01 · Wall Geometry

De is measured from the back (retained) ground surface down to the front (excavated / dredge) ground surface. The embedment below the front ground is (H − De).

02 · Surcharge

03 · Water Table

One water table, same physical level on both sides — with no seepage/flow-net modelled, a static level cannot differ front-to-back without flow occurring.

04 · Options

Applies to active pressure only (clay and low-surcharge sand near the top). Uncheck to see the theoretical negative pressure.

04b · EC7 Partial Factor Design (SS EN 1997-1, DA1)

Combination 1 = A1 "+" M1 "+" R1 (factor actions, keep soil strength characteristic). Combination 2 = A2 "+" M2 "+" R1 (lower action factor, but soil strength reduced). Both must be checked — the more onerous governs for a given verification (structural vs geotechnical). Front-side surcharge is treated as favourable and left unfactored, per EC7 principle. These are the standard EN 1997-1 Annex A recommended values — verify against your copy of the Singapore NA to SS EN 1997-1 for any project-specific deviation.

Active 05 · Back (Retained) Soil Profile

Passive 06 · Front (Embedment) Soil Profile

Section & Pressure Envelope

Soil layer (hatch, with γ / φ' / c') Active pressure (line + fill) Passive pressure (line + fill) Water pressure (uw)

Pressure Component Breakdown — Active (Back)

Due to surcharge Due to soil self-weight Water pressure Total (sum)
Components are shown unclipped; the Total column reflects the tension-crack clipping setting, same as the main envelope.

Pressure Component Breakdown — Passive (Front)

Due to surcharge Due to soil self-weight Water pressure Total (sum)
Components are shown unclipped; the Total column reflects the tension-crack clipping setting, same as the main envelope.
Active — Back side
Passive — Front side

07 · Worked Calculation — at the wall toe

Depth · stress · pressure breakdown