Reliability of sheet pile walls and the influence of corrosion. Structural reliability analysis with finite elements
conference paper
The Finite Element Method is well accepted in design practice nowadays. It can be used for
modeling complex structures and systems. The constitutive models are improving, which enables us to make
more accurate predictions ofthe real world behavior. On the other hand, especially in the field ofgeotechnical
engineering, the uncertainties in the input variables, namely the soil properties, are relatively high. Therefore,
the use ofprobabilistic techniques is attractive. In this paper we present an approach that combines efficient
reliability methods with FEM. A sheet pile wall serves as example. The structural reliability of this structure will
be determined accounting for the uncertainties in the soil properties and the groundwater levels as well as the
strength reduction ofthe structural elements due to corrosion. It is demonstrated that reliability techniques can
be combined in combination with FEM and that reliability analysis can be carried out with reasonable effort
modeling complex structures and systems. The constitutive models are improving, which enables us to make
more accurate predictions ofthe real world behavior. On the other hand, especially in the field ofgeotechnical
engineering, the uncertainties in the input variables, namely the soil properties, are relatively high. Therefore,
the use ofprobabilistic techniques is attractive. In this paper we present an approach that combines efficient
reliability methods with FEM. A sheet pile wall serves as example. The structural reliability of this structure will
be determined accounting for the uncertainties in the soil properties and the groundwater levels as well as the
strength reduction ofthe structural elements due to corrosion. It is demonstrated that reliability techniques can
be combined in combination with FEM and that reliability analysis can be carried out with reasonable effort
TNO Identifier
331344
Source title
Proceedings van ESREL 2007, Safety and Reliability Conference, 25-27 June 2007, Stavanger Norway
Pages
1791-1799
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