Reinforced soil technique for temporary slope stabilisation in loose saturated ground
Reinforced soil technique for temporary slope stabilisation in loose saturated ground
During 2020, a method to provide stability to an initially unstable soil excavation was required in loose saturated soil. The initial slope angle was up to 45° to the horizontal, with saturated ground causing local slip failures and running sand into the excavation. The excavation was surrounded by existing sensitive infrastructure, so it was not feasible to construct shallow excavation slopes, nor feasible to use techniques such as soil nails or anchors. It was neither feasible to use a steel sheet pile wall nor a secant pile wall. To provide soil reinforcement to enhance slope stability, a system was designed that incorporated the construction of a highly permeable angular drainage stone channel along the toe of slope, combined with aggregated cemented angular stone “wedges” compacted orthogonally to the toe of the slope. This combined drainage and reinforced soil system met the economic budget for the client. To comply with Eurocode 7 design standards, including using appropriate partial safety factors on the soil parameters, a PLAXIS 3D analysis was undertaken to demonstrate stability under drained conditions. This ground stabilisation was successful, with stability maintained for the required two years until the infrastructure was ultimately constructed and backfilled.
George R. French; Stephen D. Thomas
18th European Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ECSMGE2024)
A - New developments on structural design
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