A landscaping company was asked to construct a retaining wall along a pathway on

Question

A landscaping company was asked to construct a retaining wall along a pathway on the bank of a river. The wall was constructed with limestone boulders (density ? = 2500 kg/m3). The wall is subjected to the horizontal distributed load shown in the figure. Unfortunately, the wall has tipped over and collapsed immediately after it was constructed. Consider a section of the wall, which is 1 m long normal to the paper, and determine:

a)  the weight of the wall (W) in kN,

b)  the magnitude and line of action of the

single force equivalent to the distributed

load,

c)  the point of intersection with the x-axis of

the resultant of all the forces acting on the wall above the base AB.

From the result obtained in c) explain briefly why you think the wall has collapsed.

Explanation / Answer

a)

given that

density ? = 2500 kg/m3

section of the wall = 1 m,

long normal to the paper

weight = density x volume

= 2500 * 1*1*1

= 2500 kgN

b) The magnitude and line of action of the single force equivalent to the distributed load,

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