Sedimentation behavior of flocculant-treated soil slurry

Soil slurry dredged from seabed is becoming more widely used in land reclamation projects. A major problem encountered is that soil slurry is very high in water content and the dewatering process is difficult and time consuming. In this paper, the use of chemical flocculant for the dewatering of soil slurry is proposed and experimentally tested. Polyacrylamide (PAM) with different charge types/charge densities was tested in preliminary slurry dewatering tests. The results showed that the most effective flocculant, cationic PAM (CPAM) with +15 charge density, can reduce the volume of soil slurry (500% water content) by around 60% in 10 minutes. In contrast, the volume of pure soil slurry was almost unchanged. Slurry sedimentation tests on slurries with different flocculant contents and water contents were conducted. It is shown that, by adding flocculant into soil slurry, the rate of settlement under self-weight can be considerably increased in the tested range of water contents (100.7–879.5%). But the water content at the final state increases with flocculant additions. Slurry sedimentation curves displayed different characteristics with different flocculant contents as well as water contents. It is evidenced by particle size analysis that the addition of flocculant into soil slurry can attract soil particles and form large flocs (assemblage of particles), which explains the faster settlement rate in flocculant-treated soil slurry as compared with pure soil slurry. Scanning electron microscopic analysis revealed that flocculant-treated soil particles are more randomly oriented, while soil particles with no flocculant addition deposit in a more paralleled manner. This could explain the higher water content of flocculant-treated soil slurry at the final state.     

Experimental study on settling velocity of soil particles in dredged slurry

Studying sedimentation and consolidation of dredged slurry has significant implications to the design of storage yard and subsequent ground improvement. In this study, settling velocity of soil particles in dredged slurry during sedimentation and consolidation processes was investigated using an improved multilayer extraction sampling (MES) method. A series of sedimentation column tests were performed on dredged slurry with three different initial water contents. Distributions of volume of soil particles and density of dredged slurry were first obtained by the MES method, settling velocity of soil particles was then calculated by volume flux function approach. It was found that the density and velocity inflection points can be used to distinguish the settling zone and the consolidation zone. The experimental results reveal that the velocity of soil particles was quite low and monotonically decreased with sedimentation height at low initial water content throughout the whole test period, whereas it was increased at 0–1 hours and almost remained constant at 1–7 hours in the settling zone at high initial water content. The effects of initial water content on sedimentation and consolidation mode of dredged slurry and the settling velocity of soil particles were discussed. The relationship between settling velocity of soil particles and particle diameter was also studied. It is indicated that the measured velocity of soil particles was much lower than that calculated by the Stokes equation, and it was related to 0.4881–0.5906 order of particle diameter at 0–1 hours and 0.1117–0.1825 order of particle diameter at 1–7 hours for the test slurries.     

Laboratory Investigations for Dewatering of Golden Horn Dredged Sludge with Geotextile Tubes

In this study, an effective means of dewatering the dredged material obtained from the sea-bottom in Istanbul is investigated through the use of additives and geotextile tubes (also known as geotubes, geotextile containers, and geotextile bags). Rapid dewatering test and geotube dewatering test are laboratory approaches, where the types and amounts of anionic and cationic additives for dewatering efficiency of dredged sludge can quickly and economically be examined. In this study, a best dosage amount of 1.5 kg/tonne was used as flocculant solution preparation with distilled water. After this process, twelve homogeneous sludge-polymer admixtures were prepared by adding 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0% polymers (anionic and cationic) by weight of the dredged material in rapid dewatering tests and another twelve homogeneous sludge-polymer admixtures were prepared by adding 0.1, 0.25, and 0.50% polymers (anionic and cationic) by weight of the dredged material in geotube dewatering tests. The results indicated that Golden Horn dredged sludge could be successfully dewatered and retained by geotextile tubes. The use of chemical cationic polymers is recommended with Golden Horn dredged sludge rather than the anionic polymers. Results also showed that use of flocculants can significantly increase the retention capacity of geotubes.     

软弱砂岩骨料碾压混凝土的配制及其特性研究

在东南亚和我国西南地区由于缺乏合适的原材料,必须采用软弱骨料配制混凝土。以东南亚某工程现场的软弱砂岩为原材料,开展碾压混凝土配制和性能试验工作,探讨了该骨料配制碾压混凝土的可行性。采用软化系数为0.71的软弱砂岩,配制强度等级分别为C18020的二级配碾压混凝土和C1807.5的三级配碾压混凝土。结果表明,采用该砂岩骨料可以配制出满足强度要求的碾压混凝土,其用水量比常规骨料高15~20 kg/m3,拌和物密度和抗压弹模较低。其中,二级配碾压混凝土采用50%粉煤灰掺量、0.55水胶比;三级配碾压混凝土采用60%粉煤灰掺量、0.65水胶比。骨料抗碾压破碎模拟试验表明该骨料在碾压过程中破坏程度很低,说明采用该软弱骨料配制碾压混凝土具有可行性。     

Long-Term Consolidation and Strength Behavior of Marine Clay Improved with Fly Ash

This paper presents an investigation of the long-term consolidation and strength behavior with fly ash as an additive in improving soft marine clay in Wando, Korea. 0%, 5%, 10%, 20% and 25% of the soil was replaced with fly ash. Consolidation tests were performed as incremental loaded tests. In addition, unconfined compressive strength were determined after 1, 14, 28 and 90 days. A series of forty-two long-term consolidation tests that lasted for 60 days under the constant loading were also conducted. Creep settlements of the blends decreased significantly with an increase in fly ash content. The shear strength properties increased with an increase in fly ash content. Statistical evaluation reveals an excellent correlation between the measured and predicted undrained shear strengths.     

Rheological behavior of dredged slurries at high water contents

Each year in the world, there is significant amount of dredged slurries generated during geotechnical jobs. In the slurry storage process, the rheological behavior is a key factor affecting the motion of dredged slurries. To gain better understanding on this behavior, experiments on dredged slurries with different liquid limits are conducted using rotary viscometer. It has been found that, as water content increases, slurry property can change from Bingham plastic fluids to Newtonian fluids. In log–log coordinates, their corresponding yield stress and plastic viscosity are in linear relationship with their water contents and the intersection of these two lines can be treated as the turning point which is 4.7 times the liquid limit. The yield stress and plastic viscosity of different dredged slurries can be normalized efficiently using normalized water content. So, in this paper, a new quantitative prediction method for yield stress and plastic viscosity is proposed, which is effective for use in alkined modes of motion, is proposed.     

Properties and performance of a high volume fly ash grout

Abstract

This study investigated the penetrability of high volume fly ash cement suspensions prepared with and without superplasticizer into sandy soil having different relative densities with 30%, 60%, 73%, and 83% through permeation grouting. Class C fly ash was used due to its pozzolanic activity and fineness. Due to engineering characteristics and cost, cementitious grouts are the most commonly used grout in both waterproofing and ground strengthening. Fly ash-cement grouts have relatively constant and low viscosity values for a reasonable period after preparation, exhibit limited or negligible bleed capacity and set and develop satisfactory strength within a relatively short period. Modeling of grouting of soil was done in laboratory and improvements in physical and mechanical properties of grouted soil were analyzed. Unconfined compressive strength, shear strength and permeability characteristics of grouted soil were studied as a result. Unconfined compressive strength values of grouted sand with high volume fly ash ranged between 410 and 1107?kPa. Morover, cohesion values were comparable to microfine cement grouting ranging from 373 to 511?kPa. Furthermore, permeability values were also approximately equal to the permeability of impervious liners, which is around 1?×?10^?7?cm/s. The findings support the applicability of grouting in different applications.     

Application of flocculation combined with vacuum preloading to reduce river-dredged sludge

Abstract

To achieve the rapid dewatering of dredged sludge, the flocculation–vacuum-preloading method was tested indoors. In this study, the optimal mixing ratio of six flocculants was determined through the settling column test, and then the proposed method was tested. The water drainage and settlement were monitored during the test, while the soil moisture content and shear strength were measured after the test. The results show that all the flocculants had an optimal mixing ratio, and the addition of 0.8% FeCl₃ or 0.08% anionic polyacrylamide (APAM) in the sludge can better accelerate solid–liquid separation of the sludge. After the test, the water content in the sludge decreased from 140% to 60%. Compared with general vacuum preloading, the use of the proposed method increased the water drainage by 46.5% and 56.8% and decreased the soil volumes by 60.5% and 82.4% for FeCl₃ and APAM, respectively. Moreover, the corresponding shear strength was increased from 10 to 14 and 17?kPa. In addition, the use of APAM increased the solidification rate of heavy metals in the sludge to more than 80%, effectively inhibiting the migration of heavy metals.     

海水环境粉煤灰混凝土结构耐久性现场检测与评估分析

对服役12年的华南某跨海大桥典型构件开展碳化性能、氯离子扩散性能等指标的耐久性检测,评估了海水环境下掺粉煤灰的高性能混凝土长期耐久性。研究表明:随高程的增加混凝土碳化深度逐渐增大,其中大气区浪溅区水位变动区,碳化作用对粉煤灰混凝土结构耐久性的影响较小;粉煤灰可显著提升实体结构混凝土抗氯离子侵蚀性能,粉煤灰高性能混凝土的氯离子扩散系数不大于0.40×10-12m2/s,比普通混凝土氯离子扩散系数降低了约6倍;利用规范计算了引桥承台混凝土中氯离子含量计算值,其计算值与实测值吻合较好,可用于实体工程混凝土结构的耐久性评估,评估结果显示采用粉煤灰高性能的桥梁典型构件满足100年设计使用寿命的要求。     

Effects of fly ash and slag content on the solidification of river-dredged sludge

Abstract

River-dredged sludge has a high water content and minimal bearing capacity and strength. Adding cement, fly ash, and slag to dredged sludge as a combined curing agent can quickly reduce its water content and improve its strength. This study experimentally investigates the solidification effectiveness of different proportions of curing agents using methods including electron microscopy, particle size analysis, water ratio limit, and water content and direct shear tests. The water content and shear strength of different combined curing agents are obtained at different ages. We find that an optimum curing agent combination exists. With increases in fly ash and slag content, test results indicate that the water content of solidified sludge first decreases and then increases, whereas the shear strength first increases and then decreases, allowing an optimal combination curing agent to be obtained. When using industrial waste residue as curing agent, it is necessary to consider the negative effects of the curing agent to better control the dosage so as to achieve better curing effect.     

改性粉煤灰性质及其封堵油层大孔道效果

粉煤灰是燃煤火力发电厂的废弃物,由大小不等、结构疏松的非晶质玻璃相球形颗粒组成,其主要化学成分是铝硅酸盐,具有来源广和成本低等特点。在水热条件下,Holler和Wirsching首先利用粉煤灰与碱（NaOH或KOH）作用合成了沸石。针对油田封堵油层孔隙即改善注水井吸水效果的实际需求,在总结和吸取粉煤灰和沸石颗粒封堵油层孔隙矿场施工成功经验和不足基础上,探索了水热条件下粉煤灰部分转化为沸石的配方组成和工艺条件,研究了改性粉煤灰组成和外观结构特征,评价了改性粉煤灰的封堵效果,分析了改性粉煤灰封堵作用机理。研究结果对改善油层孔隙封堵效果、提高油田注水效率具有重要应用价值。     

强夯法处理粉煤灰地基效果评价

在青岛娄山河污水处理厂使用强夯法对粉煤灰地基进行处理,通过定量计算分析强夯前后土工试验、原位测试结果,评价粉煤灰物理力学性质的改善状况;分析原位测试试验成果之间的内在联系,对强夯法加固粉煤灰地基的效果评价进行了初步研究。结果显示,强夯有效加固深度内的粉煤灰层物理力学性质发生了明显改善,但其孔隙比仍大于1.0;点夯过程宜及时排水,以提高夯实效率。本文研究结论对粉煤灰地区的加固具有一定的指导和参考意义。     

Laboratory and Field Observations for Golden Horn Marine Clay

Istanbul, the largest city in Turkey and one of the major metropolitan areas in the world, cleaned one of its environmentally polluted areas—Golden Horn—by dredging 5 million m³ of the bottom sediments and pumping the resulting sludge to a storage area behind a dam built at an abandoned rock quarry site in Alibey district. The reclamation of the land that formed over the storage area of Golden Horn dredged material is socially and economically very desirable. In this paper, results from experimental studies that are focused on determining the shear strength behavior of the dredge material and undisturbed soil are presented. Slurry consolidometer test, large model tests and small model tests are used to consolidate the dredged soil samples from Halic to simulate the natural consolidation behavior of these soils. Shear strength parameters are determined by laboratory vane tests; unconfined compression tests; undrained-unconsolidated (UU) and consolidated-undrained (CU) triaxial tests on samples that are obtained through in situ undisturbed samples and laboratory model tank and slurry consolidation. Moreover, the effects of fly ash and lime additives on the undrained shear strength were determined by mixing the materials with the dredged clay from Golden Horn during the model experiments conducted in the laboratory. Based on these findings, equations are proposed that govern the relationships between undrained shear strength and water content value.     

The behavior of fly-ash derived arsenic in seawater

With the rising cost of oil the electric power generating companies are turning to coal as a fuel source. Large amounts of fly ash are produced as a by product of coal combustion. This fly ash must then be disposed of, with the oceans being considered an alternative to land fill disposal. This research investigated the sorptive behavior of the surface-associated arsenic and utilized the results to project arsenic's impact on the water column during the ocean disposal of fly ash.Several acid digests were investigated to determine an effective method of arsenic recovery from fly ash. Of these, the HCl digest was the most effective technique, yielding 100% arsenic recoveries from fly-ash particles. The arsenic content of the fly ashes studied varied from 69 ± 11 μg g⁻¹ to 323 ± 24 μg g⁻¹, reflecting differences in the arsenic content of the source coal. In both seawater and freshwater there is an increase in arsenic desorption with increasing pH. The greatest release of arsenic occurred at pH 12 with generally over 80% of the surface arsenic released.Fly ash in contact with seawater and freshwater can exhibit either acidic or alkaline tendencies depending upon the soluble elemental composition on the surface of the flyash particle. The acidic ashes were shown to leach a greater percentage of arsenic (16.9%) than the more alkaline ashes (8.2%). During these leaching studies in seawater, arsenic was found to leach in both the pentavalent and trivalent oxidation state. The pentavalent state was predominant, comprising 77% of the arsenic initially desorbed.The dissolution in seawater of arsenic was utilized to assess the possible impact of the ocean disposal of fly ash. Based upon these data it appears that the natural levels of arsenic in the water column would not be significantly increased. Further research is needed on the fate of fly-ash particles in marine sediments.     

The solubility of coal fly ash and marine aerosols in seawater

The elemental solubilities of three coal fly ash samples and two coastal marine-aerosol samples in seawater are different. The coal fly ash samples were collected from the electrostatic precipitators on coal-fired power plants. The air particulates were collected by a high-volume air sampler located near the Washington coast. Samples were neutron-activated then contacted with seawater for several hours. The elements that were partially solubilized from both fly ash and aerosols included As, Sb, Se, Br and Cr. Zinc and Co were more soluble in aerosols then fly ash.     

Stress relaxation of grouted entirely large diameter B-GFRP soil nail

One of the potential solutions to steel-corrosion-related problems is the usage of fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) as a replacement of steel bars. In the past few decades, researchers have conducted a large number of experimental and theoretical studies on the behavior of small size glass fiber reinforce polymer (GFRP) bars (diameter smaller than 20 mm). However, the behavior of large size GFRP bar is still not well understood. Particularly, few studies were conducted on the stress relaxation of grouted entirely large diameter GFRP soil nail. This paper investigates the effect of stress levels on the relaxation behavior of GFRP soil nail under sustained deformation ranging from 30% to 60% of its ultimate strain. In order to study the behavior of stress relaxation, two B-GFRP soil nail element specimens were developed and instrumented with fiber Bragg grating (FBG) strain sensors which were used to measure strains along the B-GFRP bars. The test results reveal that the behavior of stress relaxation of B-GFRP soil nail element subjected to pre-stress is significantly related to the elapsed time and the initial stress of relaxation procedure. The newly proposed model for evaluating stress relaxation ratio can substantially reflect the influences of the nature of B-GFRP bar and the property of grip body. The strain on the nail body can be redistributed automatically. Modulus reduction is not the single reason for the stress degradation.     

脆嫩–厚成期海带物质成分变化分析研究

采用国家规定的标准方法,分别测定了脆嫩-厚成期(1~5月份)荣成地区养殖海带体内9种物质(蛋白、脂肪、粗纤维、粗灰分、碘、磷、钙、铁和锌)含量,系统分析了各物质成分含量变化规律,以及各成分与海水温度的关联性。分析表明,不同物质质量分数最高值出现时间不同,其中蛋白质和粗灰分质量分数最高值出现在1月份,脂肪、磷和锌出现在2月份,碘和铁出现在3月份,粗纤维和钙出现在5月份。同时,1~5月份各种物质质量分数变化规律也不相同,蛋白质、粗灰分、磷和锌的质量分数呈现下降趋势,粗纤维、钙的质量分数呈上升趋势,而碘和铁的质量分数变化不稳定。蛋白质、脂肪、粗纤维、粗灰分、磷和锌含量变化与温度有显著关联性。     

Comparison between reactive MgO- and Na2SO4-activated low-calcium fly ash-solidified soils dredged from East Lake,China

Abstract

A novel approach to mitigate the environmental concerns associated with cement industry is to replace Portland cement with low carbon alternative materials such as fly ash-based geopolymer cement. Hence, reactive MgO-activated low-calcium Class F fly ash was employed in comparison to Na₂SO₄-activated fly ash to stabilize a lacustrine soil reused potentially in soft coastal reclamation projects and as reinforced aggregates for anti-corrosion in marine engineering. The microstructural and strength properties were investigated with series of tests including X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetry/differential thermogravimetry (TG/DTG), mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and unconfined compressive strength (UCS). The results demonstrate that the main hydration products in reactive MgO- and Na₂SO₄-fly ash-solidified soils are, respectively, magnesium silicate hydrate (M-S-H) gel and sodium aluminosilicate hydrate (N-A-S-H) gel. This finding is reconfirmed by the weight loss of solidified samples at 40–200?°C, which is correspondingly attributed to the dehydration of magnesium silicate hydrate (M-S-H) gel and sodium aluminosilicate hydrate (N-A-S-H) gel. The morphology and bonding ability of hydration products affects the microstructure and long-term strength of solidified soils. The microstructural change identified from SEM images coincides well with the quantitative evolution of pore structure. The pores with radius of 0.01–1?µm, i.e., micropore and mesopore, are supposed to be the dominant pores in reactive MgO- and Na₂SO₄-activated fly ash-solidified soils. The comparison of UCS indicates reactive MgO-activated low-Ca fly ash behaves much superior to Na₂SO₄-activated fly ash in enhancing the long-term compressive strength of soils. This study provides insight into the promising potential of low-Ca fly ash activated by immerging material – reactive MgO to replace cement in soil improvement.     

Effect of Fly Ash on Frost-Resistance and Chloride Ions Diffusion Properties of Marine Concrete

It is necessary to pay more attention to the durability of concrete undergoing freeze-thaw cycles and seawater attack simultaneously.Investigated are the effects of water-binder ratio,fly ash (FA) contents and air-entraining agent on resistance to frost and chloride diffusion of marine concrete blended with FA in natural seawater.The results show that fly ash does not improve the frost resistance of concrete but can improve its resistance to chloride diffusion by addition of less than 30%.The resistance to frost and chloride diffusion of FA concrete can be improved with the decrease of water-binder ratio,and FA may improve both of them simultaneously only being mixed with air-entraining agent.A ratio (named as R) of the frost-resisting durability factor to chloride diffusion coefficient can be used to evaluate the durability of marine concrete.Scanning electron microscope (SEM) analyses are consistent with the evaluations by the value of R.     

海洋环境下粉煤灰混凝土的抗冻性与抗氯离子渗透性的耦合

针对海洋环境条件,重点研究了粉煤灰混凝土的抗冻性和氯离子渗透性能的相互关系.试验分别研究了水胶比、粉煤灰等量取代水泥掺量大小、引气剂掺量等因素对抗冻性和抗氯离子渗透性能的影响,并与普通混凝土进行了对比.结果表明,粉煤灰不增加混凝土的抗海水冻融耐久性;粉煤灰增加混凝土的抗氯离子渗透性能,但是掺量超过30%,抗氯离子渗透性能下降;粉煤灰对混凝土抗冻性和抗氯离子渗透性的耦合影响在30%左右存在一个最佳掺量.为评估混凝土的抗冻性和氯离子扩散性的耦合性能,提出了新的评价方法--冻渗比(R值方法),并进行了试验验证.SEM和MIP微观分析与R值方法评价的结果是吻合的.