Inventors:
Raymond J. O'Neill - Yonkers NY
International Classification:
E02D 2902
Abstract:
A construction element is disclosed for retaining a soil mass. In general, the construction element comprises a face panel and a plurality of protruding arms. The face panel has a forward wall, a rearward wall, side walls and a top and bottom wall. Such protruding arm extends from the rearward wall of the face panel, and each have an upper wall, lower wall, a back wall and side walls. The upper and lower walls of these protruding arms are each provided with engaging means for facilitating stacking of at least a portion of the protruding arm of one construction element, on top of at least a portion of the protruding arm of another construction element, and for preventing relative sliding movement therebetween. These construction elements can be used to construct a retaining wall and soil reinforcement subsystem, which comprises one or more free-standing retaining wall construction elements and at least one grid structure positioned behind each such construction element. In such a subsystem, the grid structures interlock with the soil beyond said face panel and create a substantially self-supporting, stable reinforced soil mass free of failure planes, permitting retaining wall heights that far exceed the height of the individual construction elements.