Abstract: In view of two modes of general shear failure and composite failure of reinforced foundation, a new solution to the ultimate bearing capacity of strip footings resting on reinforced foundations near slope was derived based on the unified strength theory and the application procedures were given. Effects of the intermediate principal stress, the vertical spacing between reinforcement layers, the number of reinforcement layers, and the tensile strength of reinforcements were comprehensively taken into consideration in the new solution. Compared with other methods, the effectiveness and parameter influence characteristics of the proposed method were discussed. The results showed that the obtained solution to the ultimate bearing capacity of reinforced foundation agreed well with the results of model tests reported in the literature, and it had wide applicability. With the increase of the effect of intermediate principal stress, the ultimate bearing capacity of reinforced foundation near slope subjected to general shear failure and composite failure increased markedly. As the vertical spacing between reinforcement layers increased, the ultimate bearing capacity of reinforced foundation near slope increased first and then decreased under the general shear failure, but it would gradually reduce under the composite failure. The influence of the number of reinforced layers under the general shear failure can be divided into three stages, and that under the composite failure can be divided into two stages. Meanwhile, the effect of the tensile strength of reinforcements cannot be ignored. The research results can provide useful references for the optimization design of reinforced foundation near slope.

Key words: reinforced foundation near slope, ultimate bearing capacity, unified strength theory, general shear failure, composite failure