‫ﻣﺆﺗﻤﺮ اﻷزھﺮ اﻟﮭﻨﺪﺳﻲ اﻟﺪوﻟﻲ اﻟﺜﺎﻟﺚ ﻋﺸﺮ‬

AL-AZHAR ENGINEERING
THIRTEENTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
December 23-25, 2014

Code: C 19

FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF SOIL NAILS FOR

SLOPE STABILITY

Tarek M. F. 1, Bahr M. A.1, Hassn A. A. 1, Ahmed K. I. 2

1
soil mechanics and foundation, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt.
2
M.Sc. Student, AL Azhar University, Cairo. Egypt.
‫ﻤﻠﺨﺹ ﺍﻟﺒﺤﺙ‬
‫ ﺘﻡ ﻋﻤل ﺩﺭﺍﺴﺔ ﻋﺩﺩﻴﺔ‬.‫ﺘﻌﺩ ﺘﻘﻨﻴﺔ ﻤﺴﺎﻤﻴﺭ ﺍﻟﺘﺭﺒﺔ ﺍﻟﺘﻲ ﻗﺩ ﺘﺯﺍﻴﺩ ﺍﻨﺘﺸﺎﺭﻫﺎ ﻤﺅﺨﺭﺍ ﺒﺴﺒﺏ ﺘﻜﻠﻔﺘﻬﺎ ﺍﻟﻤﻨﺨﻔﻀﺔ ﻟﻤﺨﺘﻠﻑ ﺍﻨﻭﺍﻉ ﺍﻟﺘﺭﺒﺔ‬
‫ ﻁﺒﻴﻌﺔ ﺍﻟﻤﻴل ﻭﺨﺼﺎﺌﺹ‬،‫ﺯﺍﻭﻴﺔ ﻤﻴﻠﻪ‬،‫ﺒﺎﺴﺘﺨﺩﺍﻡ ﻨﻤﻭﺫﺝ ﺘﻡ ﻤﺤﺎﻜﺎﺘﻪ ﺒﻨﺎﺀ ﻋﻠﻰ ﻨﺘﺎﺌﺞ ﻤﻘﺎﺴﺔ ﺤﻘﻠﻴﺎ ﻟﺩﺭﺍﺴﺔ ﺘﺄﺜﻴﺭ ﻁﻭل ﺍﻟﻤﺴﻤﺎﺭ‬
‫ ﺍﻟﻲ‬٠،٦٠ ‫ ﺤﻴﺙ ﺍﻭﻀﺤﺕ ﻫﺫﻩ ﺍﻟﺩﺭﺍﺴﺔ ﺍﻥ ﺍﻟﺘﺼﻤﻴﻡ ﺍﻻﻤﺜل ﻟﻁﻭل ﺍﻟﻤﺴﻤﺎﺭ ﺒﺎﻟﻨﺴﺒﺔ ﺍﻟﻲ ﺍﺭﺘﻔﺎﻉ ﺍﻟﻤﻴل ﻴﺘﺭﺍﻭﺡ ﻤﻥ‬.‫ﺍﻟﺘﺭﺒﺔ‬
‫ ﺍﻟﻲ‬°١٤ ‫◦ ﻭﺠﺩ ﺍﻥ ﺯﺍﻭﻴﺔ ﻤﻴل ﺍﻟﻤﺴﻤﺎﺭ ﺘﺘﺭﺍﻭﺡ ﻤﻥ‬٤٠ ‫◦ ﺍﻟﻲ‬٩٠ ‫ ﻭﻤﻥ ﻨﺎﺤﻴﺔ ﺍﺨﺭﻱ ﻟﻤﺨﺘﻠﻑ ﺯﻭﺍﻴﺎ ﻤﻴل ﺍﻟﺘﺭﺒﺔ ﻤﻥ‬. ٠،٧٥
‫ ﻭﺘﻌﺘﺒﺭ‬.‫ ﻭﺘﻠﻌﺏ ﺯﺍﻭﻴﺔ ﺍﻻﺤﺘﻜﺎﻙ ﺍﻟﺩﺍﺨﻠﻲ ﻟﻠﺘﺭﺒﺔ ﺩﻭﺭﺍ ﻫﺎﻤﺎ ﻓﻲ ﺍﺘﺯﺍﻥ ﺍﻟﻤﻴﻭل ﺍﻟﻤﺜﺒﺘﺔ ﺒﺎﺴﺘﺨﺩﺍﻡ ﺒﻨﻅﺎﻡ ﻤﺴﺎﻤﻴﺭ ﺍﻟﺘﺭﺒﺔ‬.°٥٠
‫ﺍﻟﻨﺘﺎﺌﺞ ﺍﻟﺘﻰ ﺘﻡ ﺍﻟﺘﻭﺼل ﺍﻟﻴﻬﺎ ﻤﻥ ﻫﺫﻩ ﺍﻟﺩﺭﺍﺴﺔ ﺨﻁﻭﺓ ﻤﻔﻴﺩﺓ ﺍﻟﻲ ﺍﻟﺘﺼﻤﻴﻡ ﺍﻻﻤﺜل ﻓﻲ ﺘﺩﻋﻴﻡ ﺠﻭﺍﻨﺏ ﺍﻟﺤﻔﺭ ﺒﺎﺴﺘﺨﺩﺍﻡ ﺘﻘﻨﻴﺔ‬
.‫ﻤﺴﺎﻤﻴﺭ ﺍﻟﺘﺭﺒﺔ‬
ABSTRACT
The popularity of soil nailing technique has been increased because it offers cost-effective
retaining system for a variety of ground conditions. A parametric study using a simulated
numerical model based on actual filed observation was used to investigate the effect of nail
length; orientation; slope geometry; and soil characteristics. The output of this study reveals that,
for most type of soils used in this research the global factor of safety is acceptable and
economical for nail length to slope height ratio (L\H) in the range of 0.60 and 0.75. On the other
hand, for earth cuts with slope from 90◦ to 40◦, the optimum nail orientation is found to be in the
range of 14° to 50°. The soil angle of internal friction plays significant role on the stability of
soil-nailed system. The findings of this study will be helpful step to the optimum design of soil-
nailed slopes.
© 2014 Faculty of Engineering, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt. All rights reserved.

KEYWORDS: Soil Nailing, Earth slope, Finite element modeling, Overall stability

1 INTRODUCTION
Soil nails are often designed with uniform nail length and equal spacing, as shown in Figure (1).
The main factors affecting the stability of soil–nailed slopes include nail orientation; property of
nail material; nail length; and nail spacing, as well as, slope geometry and soil parameters.
Contribution of nails to the stability of slopes is closely relevant to the geometric layout of nails
in slopes. Most of the resistance mobilized in nails against shearing in soil mass is governed by
nail’s orientation in relation to the shear plane (Jewell and Pedley, 1992). Shearing resistance
provided by nails at various elevations of a slope may be different because orientation of nails in
relation to the potential failure surface at various elevations is different.

Al-Azhar University Engineering Journal, JAUES

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 FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF SOIL NAILS FOR SLOPE STABILITY

PERMANENTFACING

Sv TEMPORARYFACING

L
PERMANENT
FACING REINFORCEMENT
GEOCOMPOSITE STRIP
STUODED DRAIN
H TEMPORARY HEAD
STEEL BAR
FACING
GROUT
DRAINGE SYSTEM

NAIL HEAD

WASHERS

Soil Nail WELDED WIRE MESH

BEARING
(TYP)
PLATE)

Figure 1: Cross-Section of a Soil Nail Wall (after Lazarte and Sabatini, 2003)
The shearing resistance mobilized by nails against shear displacement in soil mass plays an
important role on overall stability of soil–nailed slopes (Fan and luo 2008).
Figure (2-a) shows the cross-section of a typical soil–nailed slope with a potential slip surface
interacting with nails. Nails at different elevations of a slope illustrate various orientations in
relation to the potential slip surface. Figure (2-b) show the orientation of a nail at given elevation
of slope with respect to the potential slip surface.
D

Potential slip surface

Potential slip surface

Pv
T
Nails develop primarily
C Compressive forces

Soil Nail
Slip surface Nails develop primarily
B Shear forces

Tc
Soil Nail

Nails develop primarily

T Tensile forces
A
(a) (b)

Figure 2: Relation between soil nails and the potential slip Figure 3: Mobilized forces for nails a-t different elevations
surface (after Calladine1985) in relation to the potential slip surface (after Fan and luo
2008)
Contribution of nails to the additional shear resistance in a soil mass is primarily governed by
the mobilization of tensile forces in nails based on the mechanism of soil–nail interactions
(Jewell and Pedley, 1992, Fan, 2004). Axial forces developed in nails rely significantly on its
orientation with respect to the slip surface.
Figure (3) shows a schematic diagram of distribution of axial forces in nails that may likely
mobilize at different elevations of a soil–nailed slope. Nails located at the lower level of the
slope, e.g., point (A) to point (B), may develop primarily tensile forces along with minor shear
forces. On the other hand, nails located at the middle level of the slope, e.g., point (B) to point
(C), may primarily mobilize shear forces along with minor axial forces, and the nails located at
the upper level of the slope, e.g., point (C) to point (D), may develop primarily compressive
forces along with minor shear forces. Therefore, the function of nails on the overall stability of
soil–nailed slopes depends on its elevation with respect to surface failure (Fan and luo; 2008).
In this paper the effect of nail length to slop height ratio (L\H); soil parameters (γ, C, φ); slope
angle (β); nail inclination (δ); and surcharge load on the overall stability will be analyzed
numerically and discussed.

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2 Adopted Finite Element Modelling and Considered Paramter

In this study, a software package 2D- PLAXIS program Version 8.2, was used to investigate the
behavior of the proposed soil nailing system. “Plaxis” is finite element software program for the
two and three-dimensional analysis of Geo-structures and Geotechnical Engineering problems.
(Briaud and Lim, 1997, Zhou et al. 2009). A simulated model was developed based on field case
study based on CLOUTERRE project 1991 (FHWA 1993), and the accuracy of the numerical
model was verified by comparing the measured deformations with those predicted results by the
model (Tarek et al, 2014). The stability of the soil-nailed system was evaluated based on the
global factor of safety. Typical geometry of the soil–nailed slope analyzed in this study is shown
in Figure (4).
L

H=10 m

β
Figure 4: Geometric profile of soil–nailed slopes used in this study.

In this study, the height of slope is 10 m, and back slope angle (α) = 0°, i.e. the back of slope is
horizontal. Nail length (L) was with values of 5.0, 7.50, and 10 m, and orientation (δ) of the nail
is in the range of 0° to 50° to investigate their influence on the performance of soil–nailed
slopes. Vertical and horizontal spacing of 1 m between nails were used in the analyses. The
slope angle (β) of soil–nailed slopes is in the range from 90° to 40°. Table (1) shows the soil
types used in study; and Table (2) shows the properties of nails, and shotcrete facing.
Table 1: Soil parameters used in the FE analyses
Soil Type γ C ϕ
Type 1 Medium Stiff Clay 18 kN/m3 50 kPa 15°
Type 2 Cemented Sand 17 kN/m3 20 kPa 40°
Type 3 Dense Sand with trace of Clay 19 kN/m3 10 kPa 40°
Type 4 Clayey Sand 17 kN/m3 20 kPa 30°
Type 5 Medium dense Sand with trace of clay 17 kN/m3 10 kPa 30°
Type 6 Medium Sand with trace of Clay 17 kN/m3 5 kPa 30°

Table 2: Properties of nails, and facing used in the FE analyses

Nails (Grouted diameter=100 mm Shotcrete facing (thickness d= 15cm )
Length L 5m to 10m Shotcrete thickness d 0.15 m
Steel diameter ϕ 25mm Axial stiffness EA 3.6×106 kN/m
Axial stiffness EA 6.30×104 kN/m Bending stiffness EI 6750 kN m2/m
Bending stiffness EI 1.57 kN m2 /m Poisson’s ratio ν 0.2

3 Results and Discussions

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 FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF SOIL NAILS FOR SLOPE STABILITY

The results of the parametric study are divided into five parts: (i) effect of nail length to slope
height (L\H) ratio; (ii) effect of the soil parameters (γ, C, φ); (iii) effect of slope angle (β); (v)
effect of nail inclination (δ); (iv) effect of surcharge load on the overall stability. Taking into
account the soil-nailed system will be unstable if the global factor of safety less than 1.50; and
cohesion of soil not less than 5 kPa as recommended by (FHWA 2003).

3.1 Effects of L\H ratio on the Overall Stability of Reinforced Nailed Slopes
The effect of nail length to slope height (L\H) ratio = 0.50, 0.75 and 1.00 for various nail
inclination (δ) = 0° to 50°, and various slope angle (β) = 40° to 90° which the effect of surcharge
load of 20 kN\m2\m\ on the overall stability. Figure (5) and Figure (6) show the effect of these
parameters on cemented sand (soil type 2) and clayey sand (soil type 4) respectively.
Figures (5-a to 5-c) show the factors of saftey for reinforced cemented sand without surcharge
load, it can be observed that, for (L\H) = 0.50 the system will be unstable for in case of (β) = 90°
and 80° with (δ) > 20° and with (δ) > 40° respectively. While for (L\H) = 0.75 and 1.00 the
system will be unstable in case of (β) = 90° if (δ) > 30°.
Figures (5-d to 5-f) show the factors of saftey for reinforced cemented sand with surcharge load,
it can be observed that, for (L\H) = 0.50 the system will be unstable for in case of (β) = 90° and
80° with (δ) > 20° and with (δ) > 30◦ respectively. While for (L\H) = 0.75 and 1.00 the system
will be unstable in case of (β) = 90° and 80° if (δ) > 30° and if (δ) > 40° respectively. These
observations are summarized in Table (3).

Without surcharge load With surcharge load 20kN/m

(a) (d)

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 FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF SOIL NAILS FOR SLOPE STABILITY

(b) (e)

(c) (f)
Figure 5: Effect of L\H ratio on the stability for Soil type 2 (Cemented Sand)
γ= 17 kN/m3- C= 20 kpa - ϕ= 40°- β=40°:90° - δ=0°:50° - L\H = 0.5:1.00

Table (3) Cemented sand–nailed system and parameters limit for unsalable cases
Soil (L\H) Case of System becomes unstable
Type ratio Without surcharge With surcharge
for (β) = 90° and (δ) > 20° for (β) = 90° and (δ) > 20°
0.50
for (β) = 80° and (δ) > 40° for (β) = 80° and (δ) > 30°
Cemented sand
for (β) = 90° and (δ) > 30° for (β) = 90° and (δ) > 30°
0.75 & 1.00
for (β) = 80° and (δ) > 40°
The results of Table (3) indicate that, for cemented sand (soil type 2) with vertical cut, L\H
= 0.50, and top surface surcharge nail orientation angle (δ) should not exceed 20°, while for
semi vertical cuts (δ) should not exceed 30°. Increasing nail length with respect to slope height
more than 0.50 may allow increasing nail orientation angle to 30° or 40° for vertical and semi
vertical cuts respectively.
Figure (6-a to c) shows the factors of safety for reinforced clayey sand without surcharge
load, it can be observed that, for (L\H) = 0.50 and 0.75 the system will be unstable for in case of
(β) = 90° and 80° with (δ) > 20° and with (δ) > 30° respectively. While for (L\H) = 1.00 the
system will be unstable in case of (β) = 90° and 80° if (δ) > 20° and 40° respectively.

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 FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF SOIL NAILS FOR SLOPE STABILITY

Figure (6-d to f) shows the factors of saftey for reinforced clayey sand with surcharge load,
it can be observed that, for (L\H) = 0.50 and 0.75 the system will be unstable for in case of (β) =
90° and 80° with (δ) > 10° and with (δ) > 30° respectively. While for (L\H) = 1.00 the system
will be unstable in case of (β) = 90° and 80° if (δ) > 20° and if (δ) > 40° respectively. These
observations are summarized in Table (4).
Table (4) Clayey sand–nailed system and parameters limit for unsalable cases
Soil Type (L\H) ratio Case of System becomes unstable
Without surcharge With surcharge
0.50 for (β) = 90° and (δ) > 20° for (β) = 90° and (δ) > 10°
for (β) = 80° and (δ) > 30° for (β) = 80° and (δ) > 30°
Clayey Sand 0.75 for (β) = 90° and (δ) > 20° for (β) = 90° and (δ) > 20°
for (β) = 80° and (δ) > 40° for (β) = 80° and (δ) > 30°
1.00 for (β) = 90° and (δ) > 20° for (β) = 90° and (δ) > 20°
for (β) = 80° and (δ) > 40° for (β) = 80° and (δ) > 40°
The results of Table (4) indicate that, for clayey sand soil (soil type 2) with vertical cut and top
surface surcharge, for L\H up =0.50 nail orientation angle (δ) should not exceed10°, while for
L\H = 0.75 & 1.00 δ should not exceed 20°. On the other hand for semi vertical cut (β= 80°)
nail orientation angle (δ) should not exceed 30° for L\H = 0.5 and 0.75, and L\H = 1.00 (δ)
should not exceed 40°. For clayey sandy soil with vertical or semi vertical earth cuts with L\H
=1.00, top surface surcharge slightly decreased the factor of safety compared the case of without
surcharge.
Comparison between the results of figures (5 and 6) indicate that, for the same L\H ratio
the global factor of safety values for cemented sand is higher than those for clayey sand, this
observation lead to the conclusion that the higher the angle of internal friction (φ), the higher
factor of safety.

Without surcharge load With surcharge load 20 kN/m

(a) (d)

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 FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF SOIL NAILS FOR SLOPE STABILITY

(b) (e)

(c) (f)
Figure 6: Effect of L\H ratio on the stability of soil type 4 (Clayey sand)
γ= 17 kN/m3 - C= 20 kpa - ϕ = 30°- β=40°:90° - δ=0°:50° - L\H = 0.5:1.00
3.2 Effects of Nail inclination (δ) on the overall stability
The effect of slope angle (δ) on the overall stability of soil-nailed soil was investigated for two
types of soil have nearly close properties, cemented sand (soil type 2) and sand with trace of clay
(soil type 4).
Table 5: The optimum nail orientations for soil –nailed slopes with various geometric conditions for
Cemented Sand (soil type 2)
β° Optimum nail orientations (δopt)
L\H= 0.50 F.O.S L\H= 0.75 F.O.S L\H= 1.00 F.O.S
90° 9° 2.06 12° 2.37 13° 2.73
80° 21° 2.20 23° 2.79 20° 3.13
70° 31° 2.35 30° 3.00 31° 3.3
60° 40° 2.67 37° 3.10 38° 3.48
50° 41° 2.72 43° 3.20 42° 3.6
40° 50° 2.96 50° 3.35 50° 4

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 FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF SOIL NAILS FOR SLOPE STABILITY

Table 6: The optimal nail orientations for soil –nailed slopes with various geometric conditions for Clayey
Sand (soil type 4)
β° optimum nail orientations (δopt)
L\H= 0.50 F.O.S L\H= 0.75 F.O.S L\H= 1.00 F.O.S
90° 9° 1.62 10° 1.82 11° 2.12
80° 22° 1.80 24° 2.1 20° 2.15
70° 30° 1.97 29° 2.25 30° 2.4
60° 36° 2.04 35° 2.3 35° 2.61
50° 38° 2.10 40° 2.42 37° 2.76
40° 50° 2.30 50° 2.7 50° 2.96
The results listed in Tables (5) and (6) represent the optimum nail orientation (δopt) for reinforced earth
slope angel (β) for soil types (2 and 4) under surcharge loading of 20 kN\m2. From these tables the
following observation can be noted:
• The optimum nail orientation (δopt) corresponding to the maximum factor of safety decrease with the
increase of the earth cut slope (β). Nails placed nearly horizontal in slopes leads to the optimal
performance in overall stability of soil–nailed slopes.
• Additionally for the type of soil under study, the optimum nail orientations for earth with slopes of
90°, 80°, 70°, 60°, 50°, and 40° are 10°, 22°, 30°, 35°, 38°, and 50° respectively.
• For the same nailed earth slope angel (β), (L/H) ratio has minor effect on the optimum nail
orientation (δopt).
• For the same type of soil, with increasing of nailed earth slope angel (β), the variation of optimum
nail orientation (δopt) with various (L\H) ratios is within about 5%.
It worth noting that, (FHWA 2003) recommended that, soil nails are typically installed at an
inclination of 15°, this recommended for soil nail inclination to assure that the grout will flow readily
from the bottom of the hole toward the nail head for typical borehole and soil nail dimensions and
conventional grout mixtures.
3.3 Effects of soil parameters (γ, C, φ) on the overall stability
The effect of the soil parameters (γ, C, φ) on the overall stability for a moderated layout geometry
case (β =80°, δ = 20°). Figure (7) to Figure (9) shows influence of soil parameters (γ, C, φ) on the overall
stability respectively.
3.3.1 Effect of Soil Unit Weight (γ)

Figure 7: Effect of unite weight (γ) of soil on the overall stability

Figure (7) shows that, the factor of safety decreases with the increase of soil unit weight. This
may be related to the increase of the over burden pressure and active earth pressure, on the other
hand for unite weight (γ) = 19 kN/m3 (Soil Type 3) the factor of safety is increase which is
related to higher value of the angle of internal friction (ϕ = 40°).
3.3.2 Effect of Soil Cohesion (C)

Figure 8: Effect of cohesion (C) of soil on the overall stability

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 FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF SOIL NAILS FOR SLOPE STABILITY

The factor of safety as shown in Figure (8) increased by the increase of soil cohesion. It worth
noting that, (FHWA 2003) recommended a cohesion of at least 5 kPa for soil to be stabilized by
soil nailing, in this study medium sand with trace of clay and has C= 5 kPa was unstable for
complete stage construction (soil body collapse stage 1). On the other hand, in spite of soil type
(1) has the highest cohesion (C= 50 kPa) the factor of safety decreased because it has the
smallest value of angle of internal friction (ϕ = 15°). This observation may confirm that the
angle of internal friction is more effective than soil cohesion in the stability of nailed-soil
system.
3.3.3 Effect of Angle of Internal Friction (φ)

Figure 9: Effect of angle of internal friction (ϕ) of soil on the overall stability

Figure (9) indicate that, factor of safety increases with the increase of the angle of internal
friction (ϕ) of soil in spite of less angle of internal friction may has higher soil cohesion. This
is related to the govern effect of friction resistance increase between nails and soil.
3.3 Effects of Slope angle (β) on the overall stability

Minimum Factor of safety

Figure 10: Effect of slope angle (β) on the overall stability

The effect of slope angle (β) on the overall stability of soil-nailed soil was investigated for two
types of nailed soil have nearly close properties, cemented sand (soil type 2) and sand with trace
of clay (soil type 4). The stability of both types of soil was chosen for a moderate case with L\H
= 0.75 and δ = 20◦. Figure (10) shows that, the factor of safety on overall stability of soil
decreases with the increase of slope angle (β).
Cemented sandy soil upon wetting may partially losses its temporary strength and may behave
as soil type (4), and the factor of safety may reduce by 20% or more.

3.5 Effects of surcharge load on the overall stability

The effect of surcharge load on the overall stability soil nailed system was investigated for a
moderated layout geometry with β =80°, δ = 20° for various soil type. Figure (12) show the
influence of surcharge load on the overall stability.

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 FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF SOIL NAILS FOR SLOPE STABILITY

Figure 12: Effect of surcharge load on the overall stability

From Figure (12) indicates that, top surface surcharge load (20 kN\m2) decreased the factor of
safety by about 7% to 10% or more. This observation emphasizes to check the stability of
nailed –soil system with worst case of top surface surcharge load.
4. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
The following conclusion are based on parametric study using a 2D - Plaxis program for 6
types of soils cover wide range of soils to be stabilized by nail system. Effect of earth slope cut
(β), nail orientation (δ), nail length to cut height (L\H), and surface surcharge load, as well as,
soil properties. From this study, the following conclusions can be deduced:
1. The factor of safety on overall stability of soil decreases with the increase of slope
angle (β). While factor of safety increases by the increase of nail inclination (δ) to reach
the peak point, after which the factor of safety decreases according to the nail
orientation relative to the plane of failure.
2. The optimum nail orientations for soil–nailed slopes with a slope of 90°, 80°, 70°, 60°,
50°, and 40° are 40° are 10°, 22°, 30°, 35°, 38°, and 50° respectively
3. The factor of safety on overall stability of soil increases with the increase soil cohesion
of soil (C), however, the angle of internal friction (ϕ) is more effective. On the other
hand, soil to be stabilized by soil nail with C = 5 kPa may yield collapse, and it is
recommended to let C to be with minimum of 10 kPa.
4. The stability of soil-nailed system decreases with the increase of soil unit weigh, that
may be related to the increase of the over burden pressure and active earth pressure.
5. The factor of safety on overall stability of soil increases with the increase of nail length
with respect height of slope (L\H) ratio. However, it has been noted that (L\H) for the
range of 0.60 to 0.75 is an economical ratio for most type of soil investigated in this
research. For soils with cohesion more than 20 kPa or angle of internal friction more
than 30° the L\H =0.50 may be accepted.
6. Top surface surcharge load may decrease the factor of safety by about 7 to 10% or
more. This observation emphasizes to check the stability of nailed –soil system with
worst case of top surface loading conditions.

REFERENCES
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 FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF SOIL NAILS FOR SLOPE STABILITY

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