Soil Isolation for Seismic Protection Using a Smooth Synthetic Liner

A synthetic liner consisting of a nonwoven geotextile over an ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene, geotextile/UHMWPE, placed within a soil profile can dissipate seismic energy transmitted to the overlying soil layer and structure. This concept of soil isolation can be an effective and inexpensive way of reducing seismic ground motions through slip displacements. Shaking table tests on soil layers isolated using cylindrical and tub-shaped liners were conducted using harmonic and earthquake base excitations. The results show that an isolation liner can significantly reduce the accelerations at the surface of the isolated soil mass. Accompanying such a reduction in accelerations are slip displacements that manifest around the perimeter of the isolated soil. Because of the curved nature of the liner, permanent slips are minimized by the restoring effect of the gravitational forces of the isolated soil mass. Analytical results under field scale conditions indicate that a soil isolation liner can dramatically reduce the peak and spectral accelerations of a vertically propagating shear wave. Such a reduction can provide seismic protection to a structure founded on soil-isolated ground.