Performance of vertical drains in liquefaction mitigation under structures

Abstract Several techniques have been developed in order to mitigate damage to buildings during and after liquefaction events. Benefits of using vertical drains have been verified by analysing their performance in the soil and evaluating their effectiveness in dissipation of excess pore pressures generated by the earthquake. However, the effect of drains in the soil below structures requires further investigation. In this paper, a dynamic centrifuge test series was carried out to evaluate the performance of a vertical drains arrangement below shallow foundations. High permeable rubble brick was used as coarse material inside the drains to provide positive results not only from a geotechnical point of view but also from an environmental and sustainable perspective. The behaviour of drains was analysed when they are located under shallow foundations of a building, in terms of the excess pore pressures generated during the earthquake and subsequent post-seismic dissipation, the foundation settlement and its dynamic response.