Pullout resistance of concrete anchor block embedded in cohesionless soil

The anchor block is a specially designed concrete member intended to withstand pullout or thrust forces from backfill material of an internally stabilized anchored earth retaining wall by passive resistance of soil in front of the block. This study presents small-scale laboratory experimental works to investigate the pullout capacity of a concrete anchor block embedded in air dry sand and located at different distances from yielding boundary wall. The experimental setup consists of a large tank made of fiberglass sheets and steel framing system. A series of tests was carried out in the tank to investigate the load-displacement behavior of anchor block. Experimental results are then compared with the theoretical approaches suggested by different researchers and codes. The appropriate placement of an anchor block and the passive resistance coefficient, which is multiplied by the passive resistance in front of the anchor block to obtain the pullout capacity of the anchor, were also studied.