This paper presents the effect of aperture size on the low displacement stiffness response of geogrids subjected to pullout loading. The aperture size of geogrid was varied by cutting ribs of geogrids in the pullout tests. Two types of geogrids were tested at two normal pressures (21 kPa and 35 kPa). The Soil-Geosynthetic Composite (SGC) model was used to compute the low displacement interface stiffness (K_(sgc)) of the geogrids. Based on the analysis of laboratory tests using SGC model, the results showed response of geogrids was highly dependent on the aperture size. The geogrid with original aperture size showed the highest K_(sgc) value. As the size of the aperture increased, the K_(sgc) decreased possibly due to reduction in the passive resistance of transverse members and the loss of confinement at the junctions of the geogrid.
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