A.

Tituaña / Drainage Systems in Retaining Walls 1

Instituto Politécnico de Leiria

Support Structures and Improvement

of Soils

Fig. 1. Construction time analysis of Traditional Construction and Modular

DRAINAGE SYSTEMS IN RETAINING WALLS
Construction (Kamali & Hewage, 2016)
Álex Darío Tituaña Ugsha. N° 2162329
Escola Superior de Tecnologia e Gestão, Instituto Politécnico de Leiria, Leiria, Portugal.

ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT

Article history:
Received: Many times it has been observed that the retaining walls can fail due to poor
Received in revised form: condition of the foundation soil and a poor drainage system. Poor drainage in
a retaining wall is one of the main causes for a wall to collapse, since the
hydrostatic pressure generated by the water table accumulated during or after
Keywords: torrential rains increases the thrust on the wall; also in climates with ice
Drainage System pressures of considerable magnitude can develop.
Retaining Walls
Therefore, it is of utmost importance to provide adequate drainage behind a
Backfill
retaining wall and to take proper account of the appropriate water pressures in
design.

The present paper describes various types of drainage systems for retaining
walls as well as their basic schemes for their construction.

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Content

ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................................................................... 1
1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................................ 2
1.1 Retaining walls........................................................................................................................................................ 2
1.2 Drainage Essential................................................................................................................................................... 2
2. Importance of Drainage ................................................................................................................................................ 3
3. Wall Drainage Systems ................................................................................................................................................. 5
3.1 Types of drainage in walls ...................................................................................................................................... 5
3.1.1 Vertical drainage with granular material.......................................................................................................... 5
 A. Tituaña / Drainage Systems in Retaining Walls 2

3.1.2 Longitudinal drains at the base or filling slope ................................................................................................ 5

3.1.3 Evacuation holes in direct contact with the filling ........................................................................................... 5
3.2 Drainage System for Fill Walls ............................................................................................................................... 6
3.3 Drainage System for Cut Walls .............................................................................................................................. 6
3.4 Drainage System for Gravity Retaining Walls........................................................................................................ 7
3.5 Drainage System for Reinforced Concrete Retaining Walls ................................................................................... 8
4. Drainage Materials ........................................................................................................................................................ 9
4.1 Types of Backfills ................................................................................................................................................... 9
5. Conclusions and Recommendations ............................................................................................................................. 9
References ......................................................................................................................................................................... 9

Improper drainage causing water seepage into the

1. INTRODUCTION backfill is the leading cause of retaining wall problems.
Lateral earth pressure design is usually based upon
1.1 Retaining walls drained soil. Saturated soil can substantially increase
pressures.
A retaining wall is any constructed wall that restrains soil
or other material at locations having an abrupt change in Preventing water from entering the backfill is critical
elevation. important because it changes the soil characteristics and
increases lateral pressures. (Brooks & Nielsen, 2013)
There are different types of retaining walls, and not all
require a building consent. A retaining wall must be The main faults in retaining walls are caused by the
designed to: following causes:

 Support the lateral load or pressure of the earth

or fill behind it and any applied loads, such as Causes of failure in retaining
cars or structures, so the wall does not tip over. walls
 Prevent water build-up behind or below the wall,
which will increase the lateral pressure as well Inadequate
as reduce the wall’s bearing capacity and drainage
resistance to sliding. (Elkink, 2010)
25% 33% Unknown
1.2 Drainage Essential
19% Bad construction
The proper management of water in engineering has 10%
always been a very important factor for the good 10% 3%
performance of structures in general, as it is the main
Defective filler
cause of problems in geotechnical engineering, greatly
affecting the behavior of soil masses especially fine-
grained soils. For this reason it is essential in any civil
work to design and construct appropriate drainage
systems for each case. (PAVCO S.A, 2001) Figure 1. Causes of failure in retaining walls (Aguilar, 2008)
 A. Tituaña / Drainage Systems in Retaining Walls
2. Importance of Drainage
An adequate drainage system should remove water that
could be in contact with the materials that make up the
structure and most importantly, reduce the total active
thrust to which the retaining wall is subjected. The total
active thrust acting on a retaining structure. (Berry,
1993)
𝐸𝑎 = 𝐸𝑎1 + 𝐸𝑤 + 𝐸𝑠
Nomenclature:
Ea1: is the thrust generated by the ground behind the
retaining structure.
Ew: is the thrust generated by the presence of water or
hydrostatic pressure.
Es: corresponds to the thrust generated by seismic forces
to which it can be subjected.
What is intended is to eliminate as far as possible the
thrust generated by the hydrostatic pressure (Ew) and
consequently to partially reduce the pressures that a
structure of this type has to endure. (Berry, 1993)
Figure 2. Flows-net around retaining walls (Ortigao & Sayao, 2004)
3
The water pressure acting behind a retaining wall
structure represents a significant amount of horizontal
thrust acting on it. The internal drainage system must
reduce water pressure, in order minimize the external
forces and, consequently, reduce the costs associated
with the design of the retaining structure. Depending on
the drainage system design, the collected flow and water
pressures may be different, as shown by the flow-net
plots in the Fig. 2.
The effects of water pressure must be considered with
great care in retaining wall design. The lack of a draining
system or an inadequate internal drainage design has
caused the occurrence of several earth slides. For walls
retaining a granular soil with a high permeability, the
provision of additional drainage materials is not
required.
The design water pressures should be based on worst-
case conditions, which includes severe rainfall, flooding
and bursting of water mains. Figure 3, shows examples
of the complete saturation of the slope after a period of
heavy rainfall and how lines can be developed. When the
drains is placed against the back face of the wall (Fig.
3a.), the flow lines produce pore water pressures (due to
infiltration) which must be as added to the total
horizontal thrust. (Ortigao & Sayao, 2004)
 A. Tituaña / Drainage Systems in Retaining Walls 4

Figure 3. Flows-net around retaining walls due to surface infiltration (Ortigao & Sayao, 2004)

These pore pressures can be graphically computed by the
construction of flow nets or by the use seepage computer
programs, based on the finite difference method (FMD)
or finite element method (FEM). The most effective way
of preventing the development of these pressures is to
provide an inclined drain between the in-situ soil and the
backfill (Fig. 4); in which case the flow lines are
essentially vertical and no destabilizing forces are
generated. (Ortigao & Sayao, 2004)

Figure 4. Drainage details for retaining walls - inclined drains (Ortigao & Sayao, 2004)
 A. Tituaña / Drainage Systems in Retaining Walls 5

In engineering practice, for retaining walls less than 2m b) Drainage sheets

high, drainage is usually vertically positioned against the c) Sloping drains
back face of the wall. In the absence of a draining layer, d) Horizontal drains through the filling
due to the high costs of transportation of granular or e) Longitudinal drains at the base or filling slope
geosynthetic material, it may be worthwhile to design the f) Evacuation holes in direct contact with the
retaining wall assuming a hydrostatic pore water filling
distribution.

For higher retaining walls (>2m) an internal drainage An important factor to consider in a drainage system is
system must always be included in the design, since the the filler material to be contained behind the retaining
hydrostatic thrust leads to an expensive engineering wall.
alternative.
3.1.1 Vertical drainage with granular material
The flow discharge trough the draining layer depends on
the coefficient of permeability of the backfill, which can
be determined with in-situ permeability tests. As a
general rule, it is recommended to use a 102 minimum
permeability contrast between draining material and the
backfill, which should assure a free draining condition.

Drain thickness can be evaluated by Darcy’s law or by a

flow net construction. Based on Darcy´s approach, the
cross section (Ad) can be computed by the following Figure 5. Vertical drainage (Aguilar, 2008)

equation: 3.1.2 Longitudinal drains at the base or filling slope

𝑞
𝐴𝑑 =
𝑘𝑑 𝑖

Where q is the total discharge; kd is the drain

permeability and i is the maximum hydraulic gradient
within the drain. For inclined drains, the hydraulic
gradient can be roughly computed by:

𝑖 = sin⁡(𝛽𝑑 )
Figure 6. Longitudinal drains at the base or filling slope (Aguilar,
Where ⁡(𝛽𝑑 ) is the angle of the drain with the horizontal 2008)

line. In most cases, the final draining layer width is

greater than that computed by Darcy´s law and
dependent on construction considerations, which result 3.1.3 Evacuation holes in direct contact with the
in a minimum width of 0.30 m. (Ortigao & Sayao, 2004) filling

3. Wall Drainage Systems

3.1 Types of drainage in walls

The drainage system should be designed in such a way

that it anticipates capturing the water before it affects the
wall, so the following drainage systems are considered:

a) Vertical drainage with granular material or Figure 7. Evacuation holes in direct contact with the filling
(Aguilar, 2008)
porous concrete throughout the height of the
wall.
 A. Tituaña / Drainage Systems in Retaining Walls 6

3.2 Drainage System for Fill Walls 3.3 Drainage System for Cut Walls

Appropriate drainage measures to prevent surface water
from infiltrating into the wall backfill should be included
in the design of a wall system. During construction, the
backfill surface should be graded away from the wall at
the end of each day of construction to prevent water from
ponding behind the wall and saturating the soil. (Tenesse
Department of Transportation Earth, 2012)
The need for drainage in cut wall system applications
varies with project requirements. Drainage systems may
be omitted in cases where ground-water draw down in
the retained soil is prohibited or undesirable. In other
cases, drainage is used as a means to control surface-
water infiltration and ground-water seepage. (Tenesse
Department of Transportation Earth, 2012)

Figure 8. Drainage System for Fill Walls (Tenesse Department of Transportation Earth, 2012)
 A. Tituaña / Drainage Systems in Retaining Walls 7

3.4 Drainage System for Gravity Retaining Walls

Figure 9. Typical Drainage Schemes for Gravity Retaining Walls (GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING OFFICE, 1993)

Notes: 3) The vertical and horizontal filter/drainage layers

1) For the preferred drainage scheme A, the extent
of the inclined drain is dependent on the design
groundwater level behind the retaining wall. To
intercept infiltration, the inclined drain should
be installed to a level of at least two-thirds of the
height of the wall.
2) The filter/drainage layers may be omitted if a
free-draining granular backfill is used. However,
a drainage pipe should be provided to discharge
water safely.
may be replaced by suitable prefabricated
drainage composites.
4) For a retaining wall with level backfill, the top
1.5 m layer of the fill should be a suitable
material of relatively low permeability. For
sloping backfill, the same provision should be
made for a vertical thickness of at least 3 m.
(GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING OFFICE,
1993)
 A. Tituaña / Drainage Systems in Retaining Walls 8

3.5 Drainage System for Reinforced Concrete Retaining Walls

Figure 10. Typical Drainage Schemes for Reinforced Concrete Retaining Walls (GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING OFFICE, 1993)

Notes: be installed to a level of at least two-thirds of the

height of the wall.
1) For the preferred drainage scheme A, the extent 2) The filter/drainage layers may be omitted if a
of the inclined drain is dependent on the design free-draining granular backfill is used. However,
groundwater level behind the retaining wall. To a drainage pipe should be provided to discharge
intercept infiltration, the inclined drain should water safely. (GEOTECHNICAL
ENGINEERING OFFICE, 1993)
 A. Tituaña / Drainage Systems in Retaining Walls
4. Drainage Materials
Free-draining granular materials such as clean crushed
rock products are often used as filter and drainage
materials. Such materials should be durable and free
from clay, organic materials and other impurities. No-
fines concrete should not be used as a drain material.
The particle size distributions of the retained in-situ
soil or backfill should be determined during the
construction stage. The level of compaction specified
for filter and drainage materials should be compatible
with the shear strength and permeability of these
materials assumed in the design. (GEOTECHNICAL
ENGINEERING OFFICE, 1993)
4.1 Types of Backfills
For a retaining wall, the movement required to
produce the active state in cohesive materials with a
significant clay content is much greater than that for
granular materials. This, together with the fact that the
former generally have lower shear strengths, means
that the amount of shear strength mobilized for any
given wall movement is considerably lower for
cohesive materials than for granular materials. The
corresponding earth pressure on the 'active' side for a
particular wall movement is therefore higher if
cohesive soil is used for the backfill.
In Hong Kong, backfill for retaining walls customarily
comprises selected soils derived from in-situ
weathering of granitic or volcanic (tuff and rhyolite)
rocks. The sandy materials are suitable for backfill in
most types of retaining walls. (GEOTECHNICAL
ENGINEERING OFFICE, 1993)
5. Conclusions and Recommendations
1) Drainage systems are fundamental within the
design of a retaining wall since the water
generates hydrostatic pressures that can lead to
the collapse to the structure.
2) A drainage system helps to reduce the presence
of water, therefore helps to reduce the
hydrostatic pressure that the wall must support
and also maintains the structure with a low
9
contact with the water and thus prolong the
useful life of the wall.
3) There are many drainage systems, the use of
each of these will depend on the type of retaining
wall and the type of filler.
4) The materials used in the drainage system must
be sufficiently permeable to be able to evacuate
as much water as possible.
5) In areas of high precipitation, it is recommended
to use surface drainage (Fig. 6 – Fig. 7) to avoid
additional loads of water on the surface and
decrease the water infiltrated in the soil.
References
Aguilar, C. (2008). ANÁLISIS COMPARATIVO ENTRE
SISTEMAS DE DRENAJES CON
GEOSINTÉTICOS VERSUS SISTEMAS DE
DRENAJES NATURALES PARA MUROS DE
CONTENCIÓN. Valdivia, Chile.
Berry, P. (1993). Mecánica de suelos. Bogotá,
Colombia: McGraw-Hill.
Brooks, H., & Nielsen, J. (2013). Basics of Retaining
Walls. Newport Beach, California:
HBAPublications.
Elkink, A. (2010). RETAINING WALLS. Even low
retaining walls can be exposed to large forces
from water, the earth behind them and nearby
cars or buildings. They need to be well designed
and built to prevent failure. BUILD RIGHT, 25-
26.
GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING OFFICE. (1993).
Guide to Retaining Wall Design. Hong Kong.
Ortigao, J., & Sayao, A. (2004). Handbook of Slope
Stabilisation . Berlín, Germany: Springer.
PAVCO S.A. (Julio de 2001). Geotextiles como
elementos filtrantes. Obtenido de Geonoticias.
Tenesse Department of Transportation Earth. (2012).
Retaining Structures Manual (Segunda Edición
ed.).