Die Methode der kinematischen Elemente in der Geotechnik - aktuelle Entwicklungen und Anwendungen

The method of kinematical elements in geotechnics - new developments and applications.

The prediction of limit states in soils and rocks is a classical task in foundation engineering. An efficient and adaptable tool to solve such problems is the kinematical element method (KEM), which has been presented by the first author nearly 30 years ago. This method has been improved continuously and has been applied to a more and more broad field of problems. Following a short introduction to the basic principles of the method a number of applications of KEM to complex topics is presented and discussed. Bearing capacity of deep footings and of two adjacent interfering footings, the trap door problem and the ultimate load of plate anchors are studied. The potential of optimizing the geometry of a slope is demonstrated and approaches to take into account unsaturated soil conditions as well as three dimensional effects are shown.