Interaction of Ribbed-Metal-Strip Reinforcement with Tire Shred–Sand Mixtures

There is a pressing need of finding innovative and beneficial ways of using scrap tires in the construction of various geotechnical structures because a large number of waste tires are generated and discarded every year throughout the world. One example of such geotechnical application is the use of tire shreds mixed with soil as a backfill material for mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) walls. In this paper, we report the results of laboratory pullout tests performed to study the interaction between ribbed-metal-strip reinforcement and tire shred–sand mixtures prepared with various tire shred sizes (9.5 mm in nominal size, 50–100 mm in length, and 100–200 mm in length) and tire shred-to-sand mixing ratios (tire shred contents of 0, 12, 25, 100% by weight). The pullout capacities of ribbed metal strips embedded in tire shred–sand mixtures were obtained for three confining pressures (40, 65, and 90 kPa). The test results showed that the pullout capacity of ribbed metal strips embedded in tire shred–sand mixtures is much higher than that of ribbed metal strips embedded in samples prepared with only tire shreds. Based on the laboratory pullout test results, an equation was developed that can be used to estimate the pullout capacity of ribbed metal strips embedded in tire shred–sand mixtures if the tire shred size, compacted unit weight of the mixture, mean particle size of sand, and vertical effective stress acting at the interface are known.     

Cyclic and Dynamic Behavior of Sand–Rubber and Clay–Rubber Mixtures

Geotechnical and Geological Engineering - In this paper, the possibility of using fine scrap tyre rubber to improve the mechanical properties of soil subjected to cyclic loading is...     

Pullout Response of Uniaxial Geogrid in Tire Shred–Sand Mixtures

Use of tire shred–soil mixtures as backfill materials in mechanically stabilized earth walls has several advantages over other backfill materials: (1) good drainage, (2) high shear strength, and (3) low compacted unit weight. This paper presents the results of laboratory pullout tests performed on uniaxial geogrid embedded in tire shred–sand mixtures. The effects of tire shred size, tire shred–sand mixing ratio and confining pressure on the interaction between the geogrid and tire shred–sand mixtures are evaluated. Three sizes of tire shreds are considered: tire chips (with 9.5 mm nominal size), tire shreds 50-to-100 mm long and tire shreds 100-to-200 mm in length, with mixing ratios of 0, 12, 25 and 100 % of tire shreds in the mixtures (by weight). Based on compaction testing of a number of mixtures, the optimal mixing proportion of tire shreds and sand was found to lie between 25/75 and 30/70 (by weight of tire shred and sand); this is equivalent to approximately 40/60 and 50/50, respectively, by volume of tire shreds and sand. The pullout resistance of a geogrid embedded in tire shred–sand mixtures is significantly higher than that of the same geogrid embedded in tire shreds only. The size of the tire shreds has negligible effect on the pullout resistance of a geogrid embedded in mixtures prepared with either low (12/88 mix) or high (100/0 mix) tire shred content. However, when the 25/75 mixture is used, greater geogrid pullout resistance was obtained for the geogrid embedded in tire chip–sand mixtures than in tire shred–sand mixtures.     

Hydraulic Conductivity Tests for Evaluating Compatibility of Lateritic Soil—Fly Ash Mixtures with Municipal Waste Leachate

Long term competent performance of liner systems is a critical issue in the design and construction of waste repositories due to adverse interactions associated with leachate generated by wastes. This study was conducted to verify the efficacy of fly ash stabilization in enhancing compatibility between lateritic soil and municipal waste leachate. Applications investigated include soil mixtures containing 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20% fly ash compacted at approximately 2% wet of optimum moisture content with modified proctor energy. Baseline hydraulic conductivity was first established at every level of fly ash content by permeating soil mixtures with tap water before permeation with leachate in a compaction mould permeameter using the falling head test method. Results show that the trend in hydraulic conductivity of specimen containing 0% fly ash was characterized by a gradual but erratic decrease which may suggests partial entry of the leachate cations into the double layer. Conversely, specimens containing fly ash showed a general trend consisting of an initial drop in k (up to an order of magnitude) that was followed by slight decrease sustained until k stabilized and later terminated. Above 10% fly ash content, the relatively high values of k observed was not connected with the reactivity of the soil mixtures with leachate, rather it may be attributed to excessive fly ash content that altered their textural and hydraulic properties. The result of this study is potentially significant in the assessment of fly ash as a compatibility enhancing agent which can be admixed in barrier materials that are susceptible to adverse reactions with the liquid to be contained.     

Evaluation of Engineering and Cement–Stabilization Parameters of Clayey–Sand Mixtures under Soaked Conditions

Clay soils, especially clay soils of high or very high swelling potential often present difficulties in construction operations. However, the engineering properties of these clay soils can be enhanced by the addition of cement, thereby producing an improved construction material. Higher strength loss of cement stabilized clay soils after soaking in water is attributed to water absorbing capacity of the clay fraction (e.g. montmorillonite). Kaolinite and illitic soils are largely inert and resist to water penetration. These clays generally develop satisfactory strengths resulting to low strength reduction [Croft, 1967]. The swelling clays such as bentonite soaked in water, due to environmental conditions, result to volume increase causing macro and micro-fracturing in engineering structures. These fractures accelerate water penetration and consequently cause greater strength loss [Sällfors and Öberg-Högsta, 2002]. The water intrusion during soaking creates swelling and disrupts the cement bonds. The development of internal and external force systems in soil mass, due to soaking conditions, establish the initiation of slaking. Internal force system of a stabilized clayey soil consists of the resultant stresses established by the bonding potential of a cementing agent and the swelling potential of a clay fraction. In an effort to study this influence of soaking conditions and final absorbed water content on the stabilization parameters (cement, compaction, curing time), both unconfined compressive strength and slaking (durability) tests were carried out on two different cement stabilized clayey mixtures consisted of active bentonite, kaolin and sand.     

Bearing Capacity of Eccentrically–Obliquely Loaded Footings Resting on Fiber-Reinforced Sand

This paper presents the method proposed to calculate the bearing capacity of a square footing under oblique and eccentric oblique loading condition (satisfying both shear failure and settlement criteria) resting on fiber reinforced sand layer underlain by sand with geosynthetic/fabric sheet at the interface. Large direct shear tests were carried out to investigate the shear strength parameters of sand and randomly distributed fiber reinforced sand (RDFS) and soil-plastic fabric sheet bond. The ultimate bearing capacity of RDFS was determined using direct shear results. Non-dimensional charts proposed by Kumar (Behaviour of eccentrically–obliquely loaded footing on reinforced earth slab. Ph.D. thesis, University of Roorkee, Roorkee, India, 2002) were used to consider the contribution of plastic fabric sheet in increasing the bearing capacity. Also, for calculating the settlement, horizontal deformation and tilt at a given pressure the regression analysis of plate load test data have been carried out. The predicted values of ultimate bearing capacity, settlement, horizontal deformation and tilt are compared with the experimental values which are in good agreement with each other. There appeared to be an increase in the residual shear strength and angle of internal friction of RDFS.     

Undrained Cyclic Pore Pressure Response of Sand–Silt Mixtures: Effect of Nonplastic Fines and Other Parameters

Literature regarding the pore pressure generation characteristics and in turn the cyclic resistance behaviour of silty sand deposits is confusing. In an attempt to clarify the effect of nonplastic fines on undrained cyclic pore pressure response of sand–silt mixtures, an experimental programme utilising around 289 stress-controlled cyclic triaxial tests on specimens of size 50 mm diameter and 100 mm height was carried out at a frequency of 0.1 Hz. Specimens were prepared to various measures of density through constant gross void ratio approach, constant relative density approach, constant sand skeleton void ratio approach, and constant interfine void ratio approach to study the effect of nonplastic fines on pore pressure response of sand–silt mixtures. The effect of relative density, confining pressure as well as the frequency and magnitude of cyclic loading was also studied. It was observed that the pore pressure response is greatly influenced by the limiting silt content and the relative density of a specimen corresponding to any approach. The influence of other parameters such as relative density, confining pressure and magnitude of cyclic loading was as usual but an increase in frequency of cyclic loading was seen to generate excess pore pressure at a higher rate indicating an impact load type of behaviour at higher frequency. Utilising the entire test results over a wide range of parameters a new pore pressure band for sand–silt mixtures in line with Lee and Albaisa (1974) has been proposed. Similarly another pore pressure band corresponding to 10th cycle of loading as suggested by Dobry (1985) and up to a shear strain of around 25% has been proposed. These two bands can readily be used by researchers and field engineers to readily assess the pore pressure response of sand–silt mixtures.     

Prediction of Enhanced Soil–Anchored Geogrid Interactions in Direct Shear Mode Using Gene Expression Programming

Design of reinforced soil structures is greatly influenced by soil–geosynthetic interactions at interface which is normally assessed by costly and time consuming laboratory tests. In present research, using the results of large-scale direct shear tests conducted on soil–anchored geogrid samples a model for predicting Enhanced Interaction Coefficient (EIC) is proposed enabling researchers/engineers easily, quickly and at no cost to estimate soil–geosynthetic interactions. In this regard well and poorly graded sands, anchors of three different size and anchorage lengths from the shear surface together with normal pressures of 12.5, 25 and 50 kPa were used. Artificial Intelligence (AI) called the Gene Expression Programming (GEP) was adopted to develop the model. Input variables included coefficients of curvature and uniformity, normal pressure, effective grain size, anchor base and surface area, anchorage length and the output variable was EIC. Contributions of input variables were evaluated using sensitivity analysis. Excellent correlation between the GEP-based model and the experimental results were achieved showing that the proposed model is well capable of effectively estimating soil–anchored geogrid enhanced interaction coefficient. Sensitivity analysis for parameter importance shows that the most influential variables are normal pressure (σ_n) and anchorage length (L) and the least effective parameters are average particle size (D₅₀) and anchor base area (A_b).

     

Stress and Deformation Analysis of Concrete-Facing Sand–Gravel Dam Based on Inversion Parameters

With the long-term operation of the project, the material parameters of concrete-facing sand–gravel dam will change, which brings great difficulty to the scientific and effective stress and deformation analysis. Combining with the measured displacement data, the finite element analysis model of the concrete-facing sand–gravel dam of Heiquan reservoir was established, and the modulus of elasticity and internal friction angle of the dam body were inverted by the measured displacement of the dam, then the simulation analysis of the filling construction process and the reservoir storage process of dam was carried out, and the stress and deformation values of the dam during the construction period and the impoundment period were calculated. The results showed that the parameters obtained from the inversion are smaller than the original parameters, but there is little difference between them. The displacement calculated by finite element inversion was close to the measured displacement value, the overall displacement and stress distribution of the dam body and panel were in line with the general law, and the calculated displacement and stress values were at the normal level. This study provides a reference for parameter inversion and stress and deformation analysis of concrete slab dam through monitoring data analysis.

     

Influence of Infiltration of Sodium Chloride Solutions on SWCC of Compacted Bentonite–Sand Specimens

The degree of saturation of compacted bentonite buffer in deep geological repositories is subject to alterations from infiltration of groundwater and heat emanated from the waste canisters. The matric suction (ψ)–degree of saturation (S _r ) relations of unsaturated clays is represented by soil–water characteristics curves (SWCC) that are influenced by soil structure, initial compaction condition and stress history. Infiltration of groundwater besides increasing the degree of saturation can also alter the pore water chemistry; the associated changes in cation hydration and diffuse double layer thickness could impact the micro-structure and matric suction values. This study examines the influence of infiltrating sodium chloride solutions (1,000–5,000 mg/L) on the transient ψ–S _r relations of compacted bentonite–sand specimens. Analysis of the ψ–S _r plots, and X-ray diffraction measurements indicated that infiltration of sodium chloride solutions has progressively less influence on the micro-structure and SWCC relations of bentonite–sand specimens compacted to increasingly higher dry densities. The micro-structure and SWCC relations of specimens compacted to 1.5 Mg/m³ were most affected, specimens compacted to 1.75 Mg/m³ were less affected, while specimens compacted to 2 Mg/m³ remained unaffected upon infiltration with sodium chloride solutions.     

Wind–Sand Flux Electrization over Desertified Areas

Doklady Earth Sciences - Using the measurement data in a wind–sand flux on the desertified areas of Astrakhan oblast and Kalmykia, it has been established that the time variability of...     

Influence of Relative Density on Static Soil–Structure Frictional Resistance of Dry and Saturated Sand

Soil–structure frictional resistance is required while designing foundation systems and retaining walls. Although much more attention has been paid in recent years regarding soil–structure interaction for dynamic loading, highly conservative values of the static frictional resistance between soil and structure are used in design. Not much emphasis has been given lately to evaluate static frictional resistance between soil and structure. In this study, a well graded sand, as per USCS classification system, was prepared in the laboratory at different relative densities and moisture contents i.e. dry and saturated, and frictional resistances of those soils were measured. Those soil samples were also sheared against wood, concrete, and steel blocks and corresponding soil–structure frictional resistances were measured. Moreover, similar experiments were performed for saturated and loose poorly graded sand (SP), silty sand (SM) and poorly graded sand with silt (SP–SM). The study result shows that the difference between frictional resistance of soil and skin friction depends on the type of soil, relative density and the moisture content. Interestingly, shear envelopes for soil–soil and soil–structure shearing resistance exhibited curvature. The traditionally adopted soil–structure frictional resistance values adopted by various geotechnical manuals were found to be highly conservative.     

Sand Massifs as Objects of Ecological–Geological Research

In the ecological and geological respect the sand soil stratum is considered as a component of ecological–geological systems or biogeocenoses. The characteristic ecological–geological features of sand massifs are studied. Types of sand ecological–geological systems are distinguished and their structure is described.     

Study on the Erodibility and Mechanical Resistance of Mulches Prepared from Micro Silica–Cement Mixtures

Geotechnical and Geological Engineering - Mulching is fastest strategy to control sand dune movement in arid and semiarid areas. In the present study the effect of micro silica- cement mixture was...     

Shear behavior of sensitive marine clay–steel interfaces

Many soil–structure interaction problems require the knowledge of the shear resistance and behavior between the soil and construction materials. Although sensitive marine clay deposits are widely found in Canada (Leda clay) and many regions in the world (e.g., Scandinavia), and steel is a common construction material for many civil engineering structures, our understanding of the interface shear behavior between sensitive marine clay and steel is still limited. This paper presents the results of an experimental study on the interface shear behavior between Leda clay and steel. In this research, direct shear tests (DSTs) are conducted to investigate the interface shear strength parameters and behavior between Leda clay and steel, and the effect of several factors (e.g., steel surface roughness, properties of the Leda clay) on the interface shear behavior and parameters. All tests have been carried out with a standard DST apparatus at normal loads which range from 250 to 450 kPa. The results show that the Leda clay interface shear behavior can be significantly affected by the steel surface roughness, the Leda clay’s OCR, dry density, and salt content. The results presented in this paper will contribute to a more cost-effective design of geotechnical structures in Leda clay.     

Some Effects of Shearing Velocity on the Shear Stress-Deformation Behaviour of Hard–Soft Artificial Material Interfaces

Shear behaviour of the joints formed by the interface of two different material types, such as rock and cemented paste backfill, rock and concrete or two different rock types, have practical importance in many rock engineering activities. This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation into the shear behaviour of these special joints under pseudo-static shear velocity. Direct shear tests on concrete–plaster interfaces were carried out under boundary conditions of constant normal load and constant normal stiffness. Shearing velocities of the performed tests were in the range of 0.3–30 mm/min. The results of the shear tests conducted on the planar and rough artificial prepared joints showed that the shearing velocity has a significant influence on the shear strength, friction angle and shear stiffness of the hard–soft material interface. So that, these parameters were decreased when shear velocity was increased. Also, comparison of the tests results that performed on the concrete–plaster joints with those from tests on the plaster–plaster and concrete–concrete interfaces showed that the shear behaviour of concrete–plaster interface is governed mainly by the shear parameters of the plaster block (namely softer material).     

Laboratory Investigation of the Influence of Geotextile on the Stress–Strain and Volumetric Change Behavior of Sand

This paper presents the results of triaxial tests conducted for the investigation of the influence of geotextile on both the stress–strain and volumetric change behavior of reinforced sands. Tests were carried out on loose sand. The experimental program includes drained compression tests on samples reinforced with different values of both geotextile layers (1 ≤ Ng ≤ 3) and confining pressure (\(\upsigma_{\text{c}}^{\prime }\)) varying from 50 to 200 kPa. Tests show that the contribution of geotextile is negligible until an axial strain threshold that range between 2.5% for a confining pressure of 50 kPa to lower than 1% for 100 and 200 kPa confining pressure. At higher values of ε_a, geotextile induces a quasi-linear increase in the stress deviator (q) and volume contraction in the reinforced sand. Tests show a negligible influence of the number of geotextile layers (Ng) on the contribution of geotextile to both stress–strain and volumetric change, when normalized with Ng. Tests also show that the contribution of geotextile to the stress–strain mobilization augments with the increase in the confining pressure, while its contribution to the volume contraction decreases with the increase in the confining pressure. The reinforced soil becomes contracting in the case of 2 and 3 geotextile layers.     

Shear strength and compressibility of oyster shell–sand mixtures

This paper investigates the fundamental characteristics of shear strength and deformation of crushed oyster shell–sand mixtures to stimulate recycling of waste oyster shells. Standard penetration tests (SPT) and large-scale direct-shear tests were carried out with different kinds of dry unit weight and mixing rate of oyster shell–sand mixture. Correlations between N-value, dry unit weight, and friction angle of mixtures were observed from the results of experimental tests, making it possible to estimate the in situ strength from SPT, and the coefficient of volume compressibility from the confined direct-shear compression test. These results also make it possible to compute the settlement of oyster shell–sand mixture when used in soft ground improvement.     

Sand–mud couplets deposited by spontaneous remobilization of subaqueous transitional flows

Clean basal and capping argillaceous sandstone couplets in deep water settings have been previously interpreted as the result of spatially segregated turbidity currents and debris flows or spatio-temporal transitioning of a turbulent flow to a transitional/laminar state. However, this paper presents three-dimensional laboratory experiments demonstrating that a single sediment-gravity flow can develop sand–mud couplets by autogenic remobilization of sediments that are still in the process of being deposited. This remobilization appears common to flows composed of mixtures of sand and mud with viscosities and strengths measurably greater than water, but not so high as to fully suppress the settling of sand through the depositional current. Dewatering in the early sand deposit acts to lubricate the basal portion of the increasingly muddy upper division of the flow, causing it to accelerate downslope, triggering a secondary flow with a sediment composition distinct from the original mixture. Sediment deposition and remobilization processes in a single sediment-gravity flow and their resultant deposit were imaged acoustically and cored at representative locations within the deposit. The acoustic data and cores show sand–mud couplets that are qualitatively similar to interpreted turbidite–debrite-like couplets in natural systems.