A numerical study of factors affecting the performance of stone columns supporting rigid footings on soft clay

Abstract

The Vibro Replacement technique is now frequently used as a means of improving the bearing capacity and settlement performance of soft cohesive soils. In this paper, a parametric study using the finite element method is presented which examines the influence of some key variables on the behaviour of small groups of stone columns supporting rigid footings. There is great potential to use the finite element method in an applied sense, as analytical approaches have many shortcomings and high quality field data is scarce.