Bearing Capacity of a Geotextile-Reinforced Unpaved Road as a Function of Deformation: A Model Study

Abstract

An experimental investigation has been carried out to study the bearing capacity of a geotextile-reinforced unpaved road as a function of its deformation. A number of model footing tests were performed on compacted granular fill overlying an artificially sedimented kaolinite layer. The test bed was instrumented to determine the vertical stresses at the fill-subgrade interface. The test results were used to estimate the bearing capacity factors of the foundation as a function of footing deformation. A load transfer mechanism has been proposed to explain the improvement in bearing capacity of the geotextile-reinforced soil models.

Full-scale field tests on geosynthetic reinforced unpaved roads on soft subgrade

“…The empirical approach (1) is valid for Np10000 and a maximum rut depth of 75 mm, or 40 mm with reference to the initial level of the pavement, respectively (Jenner et al, 2002). It is widely applied (Espinoza, 1994;Ingold, 1994;Koerner, 1997) and has proven satisfactory in practice (Jenner et al, 2002;Meyer and Elias, 1999;Som and Sahu, 1999).…”

Influence of geosynthetic reinforcement on the load-settlement characteristics of two-layer subgrade

“…3 and 4 show the relationship between the value of LCR and normalized magnitude of two-layer surface displacement calculated on the basis of the experimental results presented by Alenowicz (1989) and Som and Sahu (1999). It is clearly visible that the magnitude of load capacity factors remain practically constant (LCR ¼ 1) for displacements: Up0.1 D/2B (the first case) or Up0.1 D/D (the second case).…”

“…Results of the research programme performed by Som and Sahu (1999) suggested the significant influence of magnitude of loading on the value of a 0 (Fig. 7).…”

“…An increasing number of studies on the subject have been conducted by researchers in the last few years Ghosh et al, 2005;Hufenus et al, 2006;Patra et al, 2005Patra et al, , 2006Yetimoglu et al, 2005). The experimental results show (Fannin and Sigurdsson, 1996;Cancelli and Montanelli, 1999;Som and Sahu, 1999) that the use of geosynthetic reinforcement is particularly effective when the subgrade is weak. It is also visible ) that geosynthetic reinforcement becomes very effective when the depth of settlements in the road or foundation surface increases.…”

Effect of Geosynthetic on the Performance of Road Embankment over Sabkha Soils in Algeria: Case Study

“…One of the most common uses of geosynthetics is in pavement construction, where soft and low-strength soil conditions prevail. In this application, the benefits associated with the use of geosynthetic reinforcement are: (a) to minimize differential and total settlements; (b) to improve the bearing capacity of the soft subsoil; (c) to prevent contamination of the base materials allowing for more open graded, free-draining aggregates; (d) to reduce the pavement thickness; and (e) to extend the service life of the pavement [4,7,[9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]. Some previous research and experimental studies on sabkha soils have been conducted in the last few decades.…”