Estimation of soil reinforcement by the roots of four postdam prevailing grass species in the riparian zone of Three Gorges Reservoir, China

Soil erosion and bank degradation is a major post-dam concern regarding the riparian zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir. The development and succession of vegetation is a main countermeasure,especially to enhance bank stability and mitigate soil erosion by the root system. In this study, the roots of four prevailing grass species, namely, Cynodon dactylon, Hemarthria altissima, Hemarthria compressa, and Paspalum paspaloides, in the riparian zone were investigated in relation to additional soil cohesion. Roots were sampled using a single root auger. Root length density（RLD） and root area ratio（RAR） were measured by using the Win RHIZO image analysis system. Root tensile strength（TR） was performed using a manualdynamometer, and the soil reinforcement caused by the roots was estimated using the simple Wu＇s perpendicular model. Results showed that RLD values of the studied species ranged from 0.24 cm/cm3 to20.89 cm/cm3 at different soil layers, and RLD were significantly greater at 0–10 cm depth in comparison to the deeper soil layers（＆gt;10 cm）. RAR measurements revealed that on average 0.21% of the reference soil area was occupied by grass roots for all the investigated species. The measured root tensile strength was the highest for P. paspaloides（62.26MPa） followed by C. dactylon（51.49 MPa）, H.compressa（50.66 MPa）, and H. altissima（48.81MPa）. Nevertheless, the estimated maximum root reinforcement in this investigation was 22.5 k Pa for H.altissima followed by H. compressa（21.1 k Pa）, P.paspaloides（19.5 k Pa）, and C. dactylon（15.4 k Pa） at0–5 cm depth soil layer. The root cohesion values estimated for all species were generally distributed at the 0–10 cm depth and decreased with the increment of soil depth. The higher root cohesion associated with H. altissima and H. compressa implies their suitability for revegetation purposes to strengthen the shallow soil in the riparian zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir. Although the soil reinforcement induced by roots is only assessed from indirect indicators, the present results still useful for species selection in the framework of implementing and future vegetation recovery actions in the riparian zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir and similar areas in the Yangtze River Basin.

Seismic stability of reinforced soil walls under bearing capacity failure by pseudo-dynamic method

In order to evaluate the seismic stability of reinforced soil walls against bearing capacity failure,the seismic safety factor of reinforced soil walls was determined by using pseudo-dynamic method,and calculated by considering different parameters,such as horizontal and vertical seismic acceleration coefficients,ratio of reinforcement length to wall height,back fill friction angle,foundation soil friction angle,soil reinforcement interface friction angle and surcharge.The parametric study shows that the seismic safety factor increases by 24-fold when the foundation soil friction angle varies from 25°to 45°,and increases by 2-fold when the soil reinforcement interface friction angle varies from 0 to 30°.That is to say,the bigger values the foundation soil and/or soil reinforcement interface friction angles have,the safer the reinforced soil walls become in the seismic design.The results were also compared with those obtained from pseudo-static method.It is found that there is a higher value of the safety factor by the present work.

Large-scale direct shear testing of geocell reinforced soil

The tests on the shear property of geocell reinforced soils were carried out by using large-scale direct shear equipment with shear-box-dimensions of 500 mm×500 mm×400 mm (length×width×height). Three types of specimens, silty gravel soil, geocell reinforced silty gravel soil and geocell reinforced cement stabilizing silty gravel soil were used to investigate the shear stress-displacement behavior, the shear strength and the strengthening mechanism of geocell reinforced soils. The comparisons of large-scale shear test with triaxial compression test for the same type of soil were conducted to evaluate the influences of testing method on the shear strength as well. The test results show that the unreinforced soil and geocell reinforced soil give similar nonlinear features on the behavior of shear stress and displacement. The geocell reinforced cement stabilizing soil has a quasi-elastic characteristic in the case of normal stress coming up to 1.0 GPa. The tests with the reinforcement of geocell result in an increase of 244% in cohesion, and the tests with the geocell and the cement stabilization result in an increase of 10 times in cohesion compared with the unreinforced soil. The friction angle does not change markedly. The geocell reinforcement develops a large amount of cohesion on the shear strength of soils.

Effect of discrete fibre reinforcement on soil tensile strength

The tensile behaviour of soil plays a significantly important role in various engineering applications. Compacted soils used in geotechnical constructions such as dams and clayey liners in waste containment facilities can suffer from cracking due to tensile failure. In order to increase soil tensile strength, discrete fibre reinforcement technique was proposed. An innovative tensile apparatus was developed to deter- mine the tensile strength characteristics of fibre reinforced soil. The effects of fibre content, dry density and water content on the tensile strength were studied. The results indicate that the developed test apparatus was applicable in determining tensile strength of soils. Fibre inclusion can significantly in- crease soil tensile strength and soil tensile failure ductility. The tensile strength basically increases with increasing fibre content. As the fibre content increases from 0% to 0.2%, the tensile strength increases by 65.7%. The tensile strength of fibre reinforced soil increases with increasing dry density and decreases with decreasing water content. For instance, the tensile strength at a dry density of 1.7 Mg/m^3 is 2.8 times higher than that at 1.4 Mg/m^3. It decreases by 30% as the water content increases from 14.5% to 20.5%. Furthermore, it is observed that the tensile strength of fibre reinforced soil is dominated by fibre pull-out resistance, depending on the interracial mechanical interaction between fibre surface and soil matrix.

Finite Element Modeling of Geotextile Reinforced Embankments on Soft Clay

The use of geotextiles as a reinforcement material for improving the factor of safety against slope failure in embankments built on soft clay is becoming a common practice. This work is intended to help understand the effect of the geotextile reinforcement has on such embankments and to provide a design aid for civil engineers that enables them to quickly estimate the factor of safety against slope failure. Seventy four different cases were modelled and analyzed using a finite element software, GeoStudio 2018 R2. The results showed that the optimum improvement was achieved when using a single layer of geotextile reinforcement placed at the base of the embankment, by which the factor of safety increased by up to 40%. Adding a second layer, a third layer and a fourth layer, increases the safety factor by 2.5%, 1% and 0.5% respectively. Different charts for different heights of embankments were presented to aid in finding the most suitable slope angle and number of reinforcement layers required to achieve a certain safety factor.

Effect of geogrid reinforcement on soft and medium dense soils

The field tests were carried out to examine the reinforcement effect of a geogrid on various conditions of embankment height,the number of passages of vibratory roller,the number of reinforced layer of geogrid,and soil properties.The test results of the dynamic earth pressure indicate that the soil reinforced by geogrid is very effective to increase the stiffness of soil,especially in soft soil.The dynamic earth pressure ratio,which is defined as the ratio of dynamic earth pressure to self weight of soils,exponentially decreases as the embankment height increases.The dynamic earth pressure ratio increases up to 80% for soft soils reinforced by both one layer of geogrid in place of no reinforced soils and two layers in place of a single layer of geogrid.

Experimental study of polyurethane foam reinforced soil used as a rock-like material

In this study, p o ly u reth an e foam ty p e th e rm o se t polym erizing, d u e to chem ical reaction b e tw e e n itsliquid ingredients, w as teste d as b in d e r afte r solidifying and th e n a rock-like m aterial m ixing w ith asandy silt ty p e soil w as prep ared . The uniaxial com pressive stren g th s （UCSs） o f p o ly u reth an e foamreinforced soil specim ens w ere d e term in ed for different p o ly u reth an e ratios in th e m ixture. A dditionally,a series o f te sts o n slake durability, im pact value, freezing-th aw in g resistance, and ab rasio n resistance ofp o ly u reth an e reinforced soil （PRS） m ix tu re w as co n d u cted . The UCS values over 3 M Pa w ere m easuredfrom th e PRS specim ens. The testin g results show ed th a t tre a te d soil can econom ically b ecom e adesirable rock-like m aterial in term s o f slake d u ra b ility a n d resistances ag ain st freezing-thaw ing, im pacteffect an d abrasion. As a n o th e r ch aracteristic o f th e rock-like m aterial m ade w ith p o ly u reth an e foam,u n it volum e w eig h t w as found to be q uite low er th a n th o se o f n atu ral rock m aterials.

Thermal conductivity of reinforced soils: A literature review

This paper aims a review of the literature related to soil reinforcements to achieve lower soil thermal conductivity （2）. The use of various natural and synthetic fibers, polymers, geosynthetics, agricultural waste/materials, and nanoclays is discussed and existing prediction models that have been thought to affect low thermal conductivity are presented.

Material Properties and Tensile Behaviors of Polypropylene Geogrid and Geonet for Reinforcement of Soil Structures

The properties and tensile behaviors of polypropylene (PP) geogrids and geonets for reinforcement of soil structures are investigated.Mass per unit area of the geogrids and geonets was weighed using an electronic balance and aperture sizes of the geonets were exactly measured using a computer.Laboratory tests were performed using a small tensile machine capable of monitoring tensile force and displacement.Tensile failure behaviors were described,and tensile index properties such as tensile strength,maximum tensile strain,tensile forces corresponding to different strains in the geogrids and gronets were obtained.The characterization of these indexes is discussed.

Geotechnical and Structural Benefits of Utilizing Reinforced Soil in Earth Dams

Approximately, 75% of constructed dams in the world are earth dams. The use of an earth dam is restricted by its geometrical area, weir restriction, and the availability of sufficient amount of earth material. These restrictions can be alleviated by the use of reinforced soil. In this research study the use of geotextile to stabilize and increase the shear strength of clay soils has been investigated. The results show an increase of about 25% in shear strength and cause an enhancement of stability in sandy soil in earth dams.

Performance of a Nonwoven Geotextile Reinforced Wall with Unsaturated Fine Backfill Soil

The use of marginal backfills in GSE （geosynthetic stabilized earth） walls has not been recommended by different standards specifications. Restrictions are motivated by the poor hydraulic conductivity of fine soils that are capable of developing of water pressures. However, the use of granular materials can expend the cost of the construction. As a result, local soils, granular or not, have been increasingly used. Unsaturated conditions of fine soils may result in convenient performance even using extensible reinforcements. This paper evaluates the performance of a full scale model of a nonwoven geotextile reinforced wall constructed with fine grained soil backfill. The unsaturated condition was maintained and matric suctions, displacements and reinforcement strains were monitored during the test. Results have shown that the unsaturated condition of the backfill allowed maximum reinforcement peak strain of 0.4 %. For the case of a wrap faced wall on a firm foundation the performance and good agreement between measured strains and factors of safety from limit equilibrium analyses have shown the maintenance of unsaturated conditions as an economical alternative to the use of high quality fill.

Effect of natural and synthetic fibers reinforcement on California bearing ratio and tensile strength of clay

Use of environmentally friendly approaches with the purpose of strengthening soil layers along with finding correlations between the mechanical characteristics of fiber-reinforced soils such as indirect tensile strength(ITS)and California bearing ratio(CBR)and as well as the evaluation of shear strength parameters obtained from the triaxial test would be very effective at geotechnical construction sites.This research was aimed at investigating the influence of natural fibers as sustainable ones including basalt(BS)and bagasse(BG)as well as synthetic polyester(PET)fibers on the strength behavior of clayey soil.To this end,the effects of various fiber contents(0.5%,1%and 2%)and lengths(2.5 mm,5 mm and 7.5 mm)were experimentally evaluated.By conducting ITS and CBR tests,it was found that increasing fiber content and length had a significant influence on CBR and ITS values.Moreover,2%of 7.5 mm-long fibers led to the largest values of CBR and ITS.The CBR values of soil reinforced with PET,BS,and BG fibers were determined as 19.17%,15.43%and 13.16%,respectively.The ITS values of specimens reinforced with PET,BS,and BG fibers were reported as 48.57 kPa,60.7 kPa and 47.48 kPa,respectively.The results of the triaxial compression test revealed that with the addition of BS fibers,the internal friction angle increased by about 100%,and with the addition of PET fibers,the cohesion increased by about 70%.Moreover,scanning electron microscope(SEM)analysis was employed to confirm the findings.The relationship between CBR and ITS values,obtained via statistical analysis and used for the optimum design of road pavement layers,demonstrated that these parameters had high correlation coefficients.The outcomes of multiple linear regression and sensitivity analysis also confirmed that the fiber content had a greater effect on CBR and ITS values than fiber length.

Behavior of ring footing resting on reinforced sand subjected to eccentric-inclined loading

Ring footings are suitable for the structures like tall transmission towers, chimneys, silos and oil storages.These types of structures are susceptible to horizontal loads(wind load) in addition to their dead weight.In the literature, very little or no effort has been made to study the effect of ring footing resting on reinforced sand when subjected to eccentric, inclined and/or eccentric-inclined loadings. This paper aims to study the behavior of ring footing resting on loose sand and/or compacted randomly distributed fiberreinforced sand(RDFS) when subjected to eccentric(0 B, 0.05 B and 0.1 B, where B is the outer diameter of ring footing), inclined(0°,5°,10°, 15°,-5°,-10° and-15°)and eccentric-inclined loadings by using a finite element(FE) software PLAXIS 3 D. The behavior of ring footing is studied by using a dimensionless factor called reduction factor(RF). The numerical model used in the PLAXIS 3 D has been validated by conducting model plate load tests. Moreover, an empirical expression using regression analysis has been presented which will be helpful in plotting a load-settlement curve for the ring footing.

AN FE ANALYSIS OF REINFORCED SUBGRADE UNDER AUTOMOBILE LOADING

An FE analysis procedure was presented to predict the behavior of soil-geogrid interac- tion under automobile loading.The dynamic interactions between the transverse bars,the longitudinal ribs and the soil were simulated by a system consisting of nonlinear springs,dashpots and masses,to study the deformation properties of the reinforced soil.The equivalent stiffness and damping ratios could be determined with the shaking table.The dynamic responses of a reinforced subgrade were analyzed with the 3D finite element approach.This approach is programmed and applied to analyze the soil-geogrid interaction under dynamic loading.The comparative analysis of the response of the reinforced subgrade and that of the subgrade without reinforcement shows that the geogrid placed at the bottom of the base layer may effectively reduce the accumulative plastic deformation due to the cyclic automobile loading.

Geotechnical Characterization of Silty Clay Reinforcedwith Jute Cloth as Waster Product

Soil reinforcement is a recent and special field of soil improvement.It covers a range of techniques,which consists of placing inclusions in soil.The most conferences devoted partly or totally the behavior of foundation on reinforced subgrade without regarding the basic characteristics of the reinforced soil.So,the paper presents an experimental investigation into the mechanical and compressibility properties of the reinforced silty clay samples by jute cloth at intermediate depth.The effects of the reinforcement on shear stress and shear failure were studied;also,the presence of the reinforcement on behavior of consolidation process was distinctly described.The laboratory tests were supported by the finite element analysis to identify only the consolidation process and explained the effect of the reinforcement on the effective vertical stress and pore water pressure.The results indicated that the presence of such reinforcement has a considerable effect in increasing the shear strength of the reinforced samples and decreasing the compressibility especially decreasing the soil movement also,relieving both the effective and pore water pressure.

Influence of variables related to soil weathering on the geomechanical performance of tropical soils

This paper presents an experimental and analytical investigation of the influence of variables related to soil weathering on the geomechanical performance of sand-silt mixtures containing lateritic soils,i.e.intensely weathered tropical soils with the influence of interparticle bonding.The sand-silt mixtures containing different relative proportions between uniform sand and lateritic soil were produced,and geomechanical soil characterization tests were performed.Based on the results,a transition from a primarily coarse-to a fine-grained prevailing soil structure was found to cause considerable impact on the geomechanical performance of these soils,as evidenced by design variables related to soil mineralogy and size distribution characteristics.Specifically,fines contents of both individual soil particles and soil aggregations were found to correlate with experimental results,while the relative proportion between sesquioxides(aluminum,and iron oxides),and silica,i.e.sesquioxide-silica ratios(SSR^(-1)),facilitated estimates concerning changes in geomechanical performance.Finally,the application of the sandsilt mixtures containing lateritic soil on soil walls reinforced with polymeric strips was also evaluated,further emphasizing the potential advantages of adopting variables related to soil weathering on design guidelines concerning tropical soils.

Influence of the roots of mixed-planting species on the shear strength of saline loess soil

In order to improve our knowledge of the mechanical effect of the roots of mixed-plantings on soil reinforcement and slope protection,the influence of roots of a mixed-planting with four herb species(Medicago sativa L.,Elymus nutans Griseb.,Puccinellia distanx(L.),and Poa pratensis L.)and one shrub species(Caragana korshinskii Kom.)were investigated on the shear strength characteristics of saline loess soil.The root distribution characteristics were assessed via a survey when the plants grew for one year.The effects of the root biomass density,the root mass ratio(RMR)of the fine roots to the coarse roots,the moisture content,and the salt content on the shear strength index of the rooted soil were analyzed via a triaxial compression test,and the mechanism of these effects was discussed.The results indicate that the biomass density decreased linearly with increasing depth.The RMR initially decreased with depth and then increased,exhibiting in a quadratic relationship.The cohesion of the rooted soil increased linearly as the biomass density increased.The cohesion of the rooted soil initially increased with increasing RMR and salt content,and then it decreased.The turning point of the cohesion occurred when the RMR was 0.6 and the salt content was 1.18%.The internal friction angle of the rooted soil initially increased with biomass density and then decreased,and the turning point of the internal friction angle occurred when the biomass density was 0.015 g/cm3.The relationships between the internal friction angle of the rooted soil and the RMR and salt content were exponential incremental and linear subtractive relationship,respectively.Both the cohesion and the internal friction angle of the rooted soil linearly decreased with increasing moisture content.

Novel experimental techniques to assess the time-dependent deformations of geosynthetics under soil confinement

A new experimental approach to assess the impact of soil confinement on the long-term behavior of geosynthetics is presented in this paper.The experimental technique described herein includes a novel laboratory apparatus and the use of different types of tests that allow generation of experimental data suitable for evaluation of the time-dependent behavior of geosynthetics under soil confinement.The soil-geosynthetic interaction equipment involves a rigid box capable of accommodating a cubic soil mass under plane strain conditions.A geosynthetic specimen placed horizontally at the mid-height of the soil mass is subjected to sustained vertical pressures that,in turn,induce reinforcement axial loads applied from the soil to the geosynthetic.Unlike previously reported studies on geosynthetic behavior under soil confinement,the equipment was found to be particularly versatile.With minor setup modifications,not only interaction tests but also in-isolation geosynthetic stress relaxation tests and soil-only tests under a constant strain rate can be conducted using the same device.Also,the time histories of the reinforcement loads and corresponding strains are generated throughout the test.Results from typical tests conducted using sand and a polypropylene woven geotextile are presented to illustrate the proposed experimental approach.The testing procedure was found to provide adequate measurements during tests,including good repeatability of test results.The soilegeosynthetic interaction tests were found to lead to increasing geotextile strains with time and decreasing reinforcement tension with time.The test results highlighted the importance of measuring not only the time history of displacements but also that of reinforcement loads during testing.The approach of using different types of tests to analyze the soilegeosynthetic interaction behavior is an innovation that provides relevant insight into the impact of soil confinement on the time-dependent deformations of geosynthetics.

Effects of loading rate on root pullout performance of two plants in the eastern Loess Plateau,China

Root pullout performance of plants is an important mechanical basis for soil reinforcement by plant roots in the semi-arid areas.Studies have shown that it is affected by plant factors(species,ages,root geometry,etc.)and soil factors(soil types,soil moisture,soil bulk densities,etc.).However,the effects of loading rates on root pullout performance are not well studied.To explore the mechanical interactions under different loading rates,we conducted pullout tests on Medicago sativa L.and Hippophae rhamnoides L.roots under five loading rates,i.e.,5,50,100,150,and 200 mm/min.In addition,tensile tests were conducted on the roots in diameters of 0.5-2.0 mm to compare the relationship between root tensile properties and root pullout properties.Results showed that two root failure modes,slippage and breakage,were observed during root pullout tests.All M.sativa roots were pulled out,while 72.2%of H.rhamnoides roots were broken.The maximum fracture diameter and fracture root length of H.rhamnoides were 1.22 mm and 7.44 cm under 100 mm/min loading rate,respectively.Root displacement values were 4.63%(±0.43%)and 8.91%(±0.52%)of the total root length for M.sativa and H.rhamnoides,respectively.The values of maximum pullout force were 14.6(±0.7)and 17.7(±1.8)N under 100 mm/min for M.sativa and H.rhamnoides,respectively.Values of the maximum pullout strength for M.sativa and H.rhamnoides were 38.38(±5.48)MPa under 150 mm/min and 12.47(±1.43)MPa under 100 mm/min,respectively.Root-soil friction coefficient under 100 mm/min was significantly larger than those under other loading rates for both the two species.Values of the maximum root pullout energy for M.sativa and H.rhamnoides were 87.83(±21.55)mm•N under 100 mm/min and 173.53(±38.53)mm•N under 200 mm/min,respectively.Root pullout force was significantly related to root diameter(P<0.01).Peak root pullout force was significantly affected by loading rates when the effect of root diameter was included(P<0.01),and vice versa.Except for the failure mode and peak pullout force,other pullout parameters,including root pullout strength,root displacement,root-soil friction coefficient,and root pullout energy were not significantly affected by loading rates(P>0.05).Root pullout strength was greater than root tensile strength for the two species.The results suggested that there was no need to deliberately control loading rate in root pullout tests in the semi-arid soil,and root pullout force and pullout strength could be better parameters for root reinforcement model compared with root tensile strength as root pullout force and pullout strength could more realistically reflect the working state of roots in the semi-arid soil.

Seismic effects on reinforcement load and lateral deformation of geosynthetic-reinforced soil walls

Current design methods for the internal stability of geosynthetic-reinforced soil(GRS)walls postulate seismic forces as inertial forces,leading to pseudo-static analyses based on active earth pressure theory,which yields unconservative reinforcement loads required for seismic stability.Most seismic analyses are limited to the determination of maximum reinforcement strength.This study aimed to calculate the distribution of the reinforcement load and connection strength required for each layer of the seismic GRS wall.Using the top-down procedure involves all of the possible failure surfaces for the seismic analyses of the GRS wall and then obtains the reinforcement load distribution for the limit state.The distributions are used to determine the required connection strength and to approximately assess the facing lateral deformation.For sufficient pullout resistance to be provided by each reinforcement,the maximum required tensile resistance is identical to the results based on the Mononobe-Okabe method.However,short reinforcement results in greater tensile resistances in the mid and lower layers as evinced by compound failure frequently occurring in GRS walls during an earthquake.Parametric studies involving backfill friction angle,reinforcement length,vertical seismic acceleration,and secondary reinforcement are conducted to investigate seismic impacts on the stability and lateral deformation of GRS walls.