LEANING PAGODA OF AYUTTHAYA ANALYSIS WITH THREE-DIMENSIONAL EFFECTS AND GROUND UNCERTAINTY

Abstract

The pagoda of Wat Krasai, built in the 17th century on the outskirts of the Ayutthaya district in the Kingdom of Thailand, tilts approximately 2° to the north and may continue to tilt further. The cause of this tilt is thought to be the uneven settlement of the foundation ground, but no supporting evidence has been presented. Three cohesive soil layers that may cause uneven settlement have been confirmed in the foundation ground around the pagoda, but soil tests are inadequate, leading to uncertainty in proving the cause of inclination. Hence, the cause of inclination was investigated in this study by calculating the inclination that can occur within the realistic ranges of the soil properties through numerical analysis using the finite element method. A method of correcting plane strain analysis, which has a low computational cost, with a three-dimensional effect coefficient, was utilized to assess over 500 cases considering ground material uncertainties, and the probability distribution of the possible inclinations was calculated. This method is useful as it considers fluctuations in the ground material parameters to address land settlement, which is largely influenced by the three-dimensional effects. This approach will also be applicable to future predictions aimed at pagoda preservation.