Modelling of Soil-Concrete Interface Shear Behaviour for Geotechnical Applications
Abstract
Soil–concrete interface shear behavior is important in pile foundations, retaining structures, and soil–structure interaction systems. In practice, interface friction parameters are often assumed as a fraction of the soil friction angle, which ignores surface roughness and particle characteristics. This study presents a data-driven framework to predict the interface friction angle using soil properties and surface conditions, then apply the predicted values in a three-dimensional finite element model. The adopted direct shear dataset was used to develop a multiple linear regression model based on soil friction angle, equivalent concrete roughness, median particle size, and particle sphericity. The model showed strong performance in training and validation. Predicted interface friction angles were converted into interface reduction factors and used in the finite element model to simulate interface shear behavior under different normal stresses. With calibrated soil friction angles within an acceptable range, the numerical model reproduced the adopted peak and residual interface responses with satisfactory agreement. Compared with selected empirical equations, the proposed model showed closer agreement with the experimental dataset.