Load-penetration response of a site-won soil reinforced with natural fibres. Application for unpaved roads
Load-penetration response of a site-won soil reinforced with natural fibres. Application for unpaved roads
Unpaved roads are fundamental infrastructure worldwide. Forest roads provide access to forest areas to enable exploring the forest value chain products and access for firefighting. Usually, unpaved roads are formed using a superficial layer of unsealed gravel or aggregate, and often local soils or a mix of both materials. Reinforcements can be used to improve the mechanical properties of soil and aggregate, which enable reducing the quantities of good quality materials required for construction of these roads and delay the occurrence of defects leading to maintenance operations. Commonly, geosynthetics are used. However, alternative solutions can be defined, namely by applying locally available products. Resourcing natural reinforcements locally available can contribute to increasing the sustainability and decreasing the carbon footprint of the solutions adopted. Although natural materials tend to biodegrade, in areas such as forests where they are readily available, they can be a valid alternative. This study analysed the behaviour of a site-won fine soil reinforced with natural fibres from the forest value chain (pine needles), to assess the possibility of their use on unpaved forest roads. CBR tests were carried out to assess the load-penetration response of the soil and the soil-pine needles composite material. These tests and their interpretation have limitations, but they provide information commonly adopted in design methods for unpaved roads. The tests results allowed to conclude that the force-penetration response and CBR of the soil was improved by including pine needles; the greatest gain was observed for soil reinforced with 1% fibres, in mass.
D. M. Carlos; Joaquim Macedo; Margarida Pinho-Lopes
18th European Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ECSMGE2024)
D - Current and new construction methods
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