Numerical Simulation of Vacuum Preloading for Chemically Conditioned Municipal Sludge

Municipal sludge is a sedimentation waste produced during the wastewater process in sewage treatment plants.Among recent studies,pilot and field tests showed that chemical conditioning combined with vacuum preloading can effectively treat municipal sludge.To further understand the drainage and consolidation characteristics of the conditioning sludge during vacuum preloading,a large deformation nonlinear numerical simulation model based on the equal strain condition was developed to simulate and analyze the pilot and field tests,whereas the simulation results were not satisfactory.The results of the numerical analysis of the pilot test showed that the predicted consolidation degree was greater than that measured by the field tests,which is attributed to the relatively low permeability layer formed during the preloading process of the prefabricated vertical drain.To better reflect the consolidation process of the conditioned sludge,a simplified analysis method considering the low permeability layer around the prefabricated vertical drain was proposed.The initial permeability coefficient of the low permeability layer is determined via numerical simulations using finite difference method.The predicted settlement curve was in good agreement with the measured results,which indicated that the numerical simulation based on the equal strain condition considering the relatively low permeability layer can better analyze the consolidation process of ferric chloride-conditioning sludge with vacuum preloading.

Laboratory study for effects of vacuum preloading on physical and mechanical properties of soft clayey soils

A new triaxial apparatus was designed and manufactured. It is able to applysurcharge and combined vacuum-surcharge pressures on soil samples, and allows for monitoring ofexcess pore-water pressure, axial strain or settlement, and volumetric strain during the process ofconsolidation. Tests were performed using the apparatus on undisturbed soft clayey soil samples,which were collected from Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, China, at average natural water content 72. 5%. The consolidation behavior of theclay has no rigorous difference, whether it is consolidatedunder the vacuum, surcharge, or combined vacuum-surcharge preloading. The study shows that somephysical properties of the soft clayey soils are changed and mechanical properties are improved tosupport excessive loads transferred to the soil foundation due to construction.

Vacuum preloading combined electroosmotic strengthening of ultra-soft soil

To assess the effectiveness of vacuum preloading combined electroosmotic strengthening of ultra-soft soil and study the mechanism of the process, a comprehensive experimental investigation was performed. A laboratory test cell was designed and applied to evaluate the vacuum preloading combined electroosmosis. Several factors were taken into consideration, including the directions of the electroosmotic current and water induced by vacuum preloading and the replenishment of groundwater from the surrounding area. The results indicate that electroosmosis together with vacuum preloading improve the soil strength greatly, with an increase of approximately 60%, and reduce the water content of the soil on the basis of consolidation of vacuum preloading, howeve~ further settlement is not obvious with only 1.7 mm. The reinforcement effect of vacuum preloading combined electroosmosis is better than that of electroosmosis after vacuum preloading. Elemental analysis using X-ray fluorescence proves that the soil strengthening during electroosmotic period in this work is mainly caused by electroosmosis-induced electrochemical reactions, the concentrations of Al2O3 in the VPCEO region increase by 2.2%, 1.5%, and 0.9% at the anode, the midpoint between the electrodes, and the cathode, respectively.

Laboratory model study of newly deposited dredger fills using improved multiple-vacuum preloading technique

Problems continue to be encountered concerning the traditional vacuum preloading method in field during the treatment of newly deposited dredger fills.In this paper,an improved multiple-vacuum preloading method was developed to consolidate newly dredger fills that are hydraulically placed in seawater for land reclamation in Lingang Industrial Zone of Tianjin City,China.With this multiplevacuum preloading method,the newly deposited dredger fills could be treated effectively by adopting a novel moisture separator and a rapid improvement technique without sand cushion.A series of model tests was conducted in the laboratory for comparing the results from the multiple-vacuum preloading method and the traditional one.Ten piezometers and settlement plates were installed to measure the variations in excess pore water pressures and moisture content,and vane shear strength was measured at different positions.The testing results indicate that water dischargeetime curves obtained by the traditional vacuum preloading method can be divided into three phases:rapid growth phase,slow growth phase,and steady phase.According to the process of fluid flow concentrated along tiny ripples and building of larger channels inside soils during the whole vacuum loading process,the fluctuations of pore water pressure during each loading step are divided into three phases:steady phase,rapid dissipation phase,and slow dissipation phase.An optimal loading pattern which could have a best treatment effect was proposed for calculating the water discharge and pore water pressure of soil using the improved multiple-vacuum preloading method.For the newly deposited dredger fills at Lingang Industrial Zone of Tianjin City,the best loading step was 20 kPa and the loading of 40-50 k Pa produced the highest drainage consolidation.The measured moisture content and vane shear strength were discussed in terms of the effect of reinforcement,both of which indicate that the multiple-vacuum preloading method has a better treatment effect not only in decreasing the moisture content and increasing the bearing capacity,but also in increasing the process uniformity at different depths of foundation.

Improvement of silty clay by vacuum preloading incorporated with electroosmotic method

A laboratory test was performed to assess the effectiveness of vacuum preloading incorporated with electroosmotic (EOM) treatment on silty clay (combined method) for reclamation projects like new disposal ponds, where the horizontal electrode configurations beneath the soil layer were possible and the drainage pipes and the prefabricated vertical drains (PVDs) system could be easily installed in advance before the sludge dragged from sea bed or river bed was filled into the site. Three groups of tests were conducted on the silty clay from Qinhuai River in Nanjing, China. The model is able to apply vacuum pressure at the bottom of the soil layer and a direct current electric field simultaneously. It is also possible to measure the pore pressures at different depths of soil column, and the changes in settlement and volume with the elapsed time. In this study, the vacuum preloading method, vacuum preloading applied at the bottom (VAB method), was applied and the cathodes were installed beneath the soil layer. The results obtained indicate substantial reduction in water content, and increases in dry density and undrained shear strength in comparison with those obtained by the vacuum preloading only, particularly at the positions close to the anode. The combined method utilizes the vertical drainage flow created by the electroosmosis integrating the horizontal drainage flow created mostly by the vacuum pressure. The total drainage flow can be calculated as a result of the vertical drainage flow by electroosmosis only and the horizontal drainage flow by the vacuum preloading only. The way of placement of the cathode and the anode in the combined method also overcomes the disadvantage of EOM method itself, i.e. the appearance of cracks between the anode and the surrounding soil. Moreover, it is observed that the vacuum preloading plays a primary role in earlier stage in deduction of free pore water; meanwhile, the electroosmotic method is more efficient in later stage for absorbing water in the diffused double layers of soil.

Numerical model of soft ground improvement by vertical drain combined with vacuum preloading

The rapid development of high-speed transportation infrastructure such as highway and high-speed railway has resulted in the advancement of soft soil improvement techniques. Vacuum preloading combined with vertical drains has been proved to be an effective method in the treatment of soft foundation. A three-dimensional numerical analysis of the coupled methods was presented, in which the smear zone and the well resistance were taken into account. The variations of the basic soil parameters including the permeability coefficient and the coefficient of volume compressibility were considered in the numerical model. The result of the numerical model was then compared to the measured value. The results indicate that the decrease of coefficient of volume compressibility accelerates the consolidation of the soil while the influence of hydraulic conductivity is insignificant. A cube drain presents the closest result to the real situation compared to the other equivalent methods of prefabricated vertical drain (PVD). The case study indicates that the numerical model with variation of soil parameters is closer to the measured value than the numerical model without variation of soil parameters.

Analysis of ground deformation development and settlement prediction by air-boosted vacuum preloading

Vacuum preloading has been widely used to improve soft soils in coastal areas of China.An increasing amount of evidence from field operations has shown that conventional vacuum preloading is prone to clogging in prefabricated vertical drains(PVDs)and demands a large volume of sand fills.In recent years,air-boosted vacuum preloading has been developed to overcome these limitations;however,this method still requires more data to verify its performance.In this study,a field test for air-boosted vacuum preloading was conducted,and a large-strain two-dimensional(2D)finite element(FE)model was developed and validated against the field test data.Then,a series of FE parametric analyses was performed to assess key factors,i.e.the air injection pressure,the injection spacing,and the characteristics of cyclic injection,which affect the performance of the air-boosted vacuum preloading.The results showed that the ground settlement and lateral displacement of the soils increased due to an increase in the injection pressure,a decrease in the injection spacing,or increases in the number and duration of the injection cycles.Based on the parametric analyses,an empirical formula for ground settlement prediction was proposed and compared with a case history reported in the literature,showing good agreement.

Consolidation behavior of Tianjin dredged clay using two air-booster vacuum preloading methods

This paper presents model tests(macro aspect)and microstructure tests(micro aspect)for investigating the consolidation behavior of Tianjin dredged clay using the prefabricated vertical drain air-booster vacuum preloading(PAVP)and tube air-booster vacuum preloading(TAVP)methods.The mechanism of air-booster vacuum preloading(AVP)using a spring-like system is explained.The main difference between these two methods is the air-boosting equipment.A new anticlogging air-booster prefabricated vertical drain(PVD)is used in the PAVP technique and a self-designed air-booster tube is used in the TAVP technique.In the model tests,a comparison of the variables that are monitored during reinforcement(vacuum pressure,surface settlement,water discharge,and pore-water pressure)and after reinforcement(water content,dry density,and vane shear strength)is conducted.The results indicate that the consolidation behavior of Tianjin dredged clay using the PAVP method is better than that using the TAVP method.PAVP more efficiently mitigates the issue of water-draining PVD clogging and significantly accelerates drainage consolidation.In addition,in the microstructure tests,a comparison of the variables that are monitored after reinforcement(via scanning electron microscopy(SEM)and mercury intrusion porosimetry(MIP))is conducted,and the results further explain the model test results.

A New Method of Combination of Electroosmosis, Vacuum and Surcharge Preloading for Soft Ground Improvement

As a rapid and effective ground improvement method is urgently required for the booming land reclamation in China＇s coastal area, this study proposes a new combined method of electroosmosis, vacuum preloading and surcharge preloading. A new type of electrical prefabricated vertical drain （ePVD） and a new electroosmotic drainage system are suggested to allow the application of the new method. This combined method is then field-tested and compared with the conventional vacuum combined with surcharge preloading method. The monitoring and foundation test results show that the new method induces a settlement 20% larger than that of the conventional vacuum combined with surcharge preloading method in the same treatment period, and saves approximately half of the treatment time compared with the vacuum combined with surcharge preloading method according to the finite element prediction of the settlement. The proposed method also increases the vane shear strength of the soil significantly. The bearing capacity of the ground improved by use of the new proposed method raises 118%. In comparison, there is only a 75% rise when using the vacuum combined with surcharge preloading method during the same reinforcement period. All results indicate that the proposed combined method is effective and suitable for reinforcing the soft clay ground. Besides, the voltage applied between the anode and cathode increases exponentially versus treatment time when the output current of power supplies is kept constant. Most of the voltage potential in electroosmosis is lost at electrodes, leaving smaller than 50% of the voltage to be effectively transmitted into the soil.

Improvements of marine clay slurries using chemicale-physical combined method(CPCM)

In this paper, the effectiveness, applicability and validity of chemicalephysical combined methods（CPCMs） for treatment of marine clay （MC） slurries were evaluated. The method CPCM1 combineschemical stabilization and vacuum preloading （VP）, while CPCM2 is similar to CPCM1 but includes boththe application of surcharge and use of geo-bags to provide confinement during surcharge preloading.The key advantage of CPCM2 using geo-bags is that the surcharge can be immediately applied on thechemically stabilized slurries. Two types of geo-bags were investigated under simulated land filling anddyke conditions, respectively. The test results show that the shear strength （cu） of treated slurry byCPCM2 is generally much higher than that by CPCM1. Besides, the use of CPCM2 can significantly reducethe treatment time due to the short drainage paths created by geo-bags. Overall, CPCM2 allows fasterconsolidation and higher preloading that help to achieve higher mechanical properties of the stabilizedslurry. There are consistent relationships between cU and water content of slurries treated by CPCM2.Several important observations were also made based on comparisons of experimental data. 2015 Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Production and hosting byElsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Erective Sea Embankment with PCC Piles

The sea embankment is a critical civil works in marine and coastal engineering. In this study, an innovative technique is proposed for constructing erective sea embankments. In the construction of sea embankments, this technique integrates PCC pile installation, PVDs drainage systems, and geotextile reinforcements, resulting in sea embankments with PCC piles. In the application of a sea embankment with PCC piles, PCC piles are employed as the retaining structures; the soft sea ground inside PCC piles is drained and improved by PVDs and vacuum-surcharge combined preloading; geotextile-reinforced backfills lying over the improved soft ground form the embankment body. Brief descriptions of the fundamentals, design and construction of the sea embankment with PCC piles are presented. A case study on the stability of sea embankment with PCC piles is presented as well.

An integrated method for the rapid dewatering and solidification/stabilization of dredged contaminated sediment with a high water content

To more efficiently treat the dredged contaminated sediment(DCS)with a high water content,this study proposes an integrated method(called PHDVPSS)that uses the solidifying/stabilizing(S/S)agents and prefabricated horizontal drain(PHD)assisted by vacuum pressure(VP).Using this method,dewatering and solidification/stabilization can be carried out simultaneously such that the treatment time can be significantly shortened and the treatment efficacy can be significantly improved.A series of model tests was conducted to investigate the effectiveness of the proposed method.Experimental results indicated that the proposed PHDVPSS method showed superior performance compared to the conventional S/S method that uses Portland cement(PC)directly without prior dewatering.The 56-day unconfined compressive strength of DCS treated by the proposed method with GGBS-MgO as the binder is 12–17 times higher than that by the conventional S/S method.DCS treated by the PHDVPSS method exhibited continuous decrease in leaching concentration of Zn with increasing curing age.The reduction of Zn leachability is more obvious when using GGBS-MgO as the binder than when using PC,because GGBS-MgO increased the residual fraction and decreased the acid soluble fraction of Zn.The microstructure analysis reveals the formation of hydrotalcite in GGBS-MgO binder,which resulted in higher mechanical strength and higher Zn stabilization efficiency.