Abstract: On the basis of laboratory model test, a numerical model of geosynthetic reinforced soil foundation was established. The influence of various reinforcement layouts on the bearing capacity and settlement of the foundation was calculated and analyzed. Results of the numerical simulation show that: 1) as the placement depth of the top reinforcement layer increases, the bearing capacity improvement factor first increases and then decreases; 2) the bearing capacity improvement factor increases as the amount of reinforcement layer increases, yet no more than 3 layers of reinforcement are recommended; 3) though the bearing capacity improvement factor increases as the vertical spacing between consecutive reinforcement layers decreases, there is a rational vertical spacing for reinforcements; 4) as the length of the reinforcement increases, the bearing capacity of the reinforced soil foundation increases and the settlement decreases. The conclusion of this paper can be summarized that there is an optimum range for reinforcements to be placed under the foundation, beyond this range the reinforcements play no significant role in improving the bearing capacity.

Key words: geosynthetic reinforced soil foundation, layout of reinforcements, bearing capacity improvement factor , numerical analysis