Retaining walls play important roles in the stabilisation of soil masses and in the prevention of slope failures encountered in civil and structural engineering. This Excel sheet for Retaining Wall Design complies with ACI 318-05 and provides a reliable and convenient design tool for engineering professionals analysing and designing concrete retaining walls. The spreadsheet performs stability checks for sliding, overturning, and bearing pressure, as well as structural design of the stem, base slab, and key (if applicable).
Types of Retaining Walls Covered
The available sheets in this collection cover the most common retaining wall types used in practice:
- Cantilever retaining wall — the most widely used type for heights of 2–7 m, relying on the weight of backfill on the heel to resist overturning
- Gravity retaining wall — mass concrete structure that relies on self-weight for stability
- Retaining walls with earthquake forces — incorporates seismic active earth pressure per Mononobe-Okabe method
Design Checks Performed
Each sheet performs the following stability and structural checks:
- Sliding stability: Factor of safety ≥ 1.5 (passive resistance + base friction vs active earth pressure)
- Overturning stability: Factor of safety ≥ 2.0 (stabilising moment vs overturning moment)
- Bearing pressure: Maximum and minimum soil pressure compared to allowable bearing capacity
- Stem design: Flexural reinforcement and shear capacity at critical sections
- Heel and toe slab design: Bending moment and shear checks at base slab sections
- Development length: Bar splice and anchorage checks
Input Parameters
- Wall height and geometry (stem thickness, base width, toe/heel dimensions)
- Soil properties (unit weight, angle of internal friction, cohesion)
- Surcharge load on retained soil
- Allowable bearing capacity
- Concrete f'c and steel fy
- Seismic zone parameters (for earthquake sheets)
Available Sheets in This Collection
- Retaining Wall Design Based on ACI 318-05
- Active Force on Retaining Walls with Earthquake Forces
- Retaining Wall Design Based on ACI 530-99 & ACI 318-02
- Retaining Wall Design Based on ACI 318-02
- Gravity Retaining Wall (Rankine method)
- Gravity Retaining Wall (Coulomb method)
- Retaining Wall (Coulomb RRM Gravity)
- Retaining Wall (Rankine Concrete Cantilever)
