Abstract: Based on Mononobe-Okabe’s postulation and the reasonable consideration for the restricted pore water, a first-order differential equation of the dynamic active earth pressure on rigid retaining walls with submerged backfills in the translational movement mode under earthquake loads is set up by using the method of level-layer analysis. And the theoretical answers to the nonlinear distribution of the dynamic active earth pressures are obtained. The analytical results indicate that some parameters such as the groundwater level, the content of restricted pore water, the internal friction angle of backfills, the angle of wall friction and the earthquake coefficient have influence on the distribution of the dynamic earth pressure, the application point of the resultant earth pressure and the overturning moment. The present procedure incorporates the effect of the porosity and the permeability of backfills and the period of ground vibration.

Key words: rigid retaining wall, groundwater, earthquake coefficient, dynamic active earth pressure