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Rankine's theory of earth pressure assumes that the soil mass is homogeneous, infinitely extending, and the failure surfaces are planar, mainly used to calculate at-rest, active, and passive pressures.

At-rest earth pressure is the lateral pressure exerted by soil when it is not allowed to expand or contract. This condition applies to situations where the wall movement is zero.

Passive earth pressure is the pressure that applies when the soil is compressed by the movement of a retaining wall towards the soil, thus mobilizing its passive strength and exerting an increased force on the wall.

Active earth pressure occurs when a retaining wall moves away from the soil, causing the soil to expand or 'active' its strength. The force exerted on the wall decreases.

$K_0$ is the ratio of horizontal effective stress ($\sigma'_{h}$) to vertical effective stress ($\sigma'_{v}$) in the soil mass when the soil is at rest.

$K_a$ and $K_p$ are earth pressure coefficients for active and passive conditions, denoting the minimum and maximum lateral earth pressures exerted by soil.

A surcharge load is an additional external load, such as a new construction or weight of parked vehicles, applied to the soil surface causing an increase in the lateral earth pressure.