Performance of Geosynthetic-Encased Stone Columns in Embankment Construction: Numerical Investigation
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 136, Issue 8
Abstract
This paper presents the results of a numerical investigation into the performance of geosynthetic-encased stone columns (GESCs) installed in soft ground for embankment construction. A three-dimensional finite-element model was employed to carry out a parametric study on a number of governing factors such as the consistency of soft ground, the geosynthetic encasement length and stiffness, the embankment fill height, and the area replacement ratio. The results indicate among other things that additional confinement provided by the geosynthetic encasement increases the stiffness of the stone column and reduces the degree of embankment load transferred to the soft ground, thereby decreasing the overall settlement. It is also shown that the geosynthetic encasement has a greater impact for cases with larger stone column spacing and/or weaker soil. Also revealed is that unlike isolated column loading conditions, full encasement may be necessary to ensure maximum settlement reduction when implementing GESCs under an embankment loading condition. Practical implications of the findings are discussed in detail.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
This work was supported by Korea Ministry of Construction and Transportation under Grant No. UNSPECIFIEDC105A1000017-05A0300-01700 and by the Basic Research Program of the Korea Science and Engineering Foundation under Grant No. UNSPECIFIEDR01-2004–000-10953–0. The financial supports are gratefully acknowledged.
References
Abaqus Inc. (2006). ABAQUS user’s manual, version 6.7, Abaqus, Inc., Pawtucket, Providence, R.I.
Alexiew, D., Brokemper, D., and Lothspeich, S. (2005). “Geotextile encased columns (GEC): Load capacity, geotextile selection and pre-design graphs.” Proc., Geo-Frontiers Conf., ASCE Geotechnical Special Publication, Austin, Tex., 497–510.
Barksdale, R. D., and Bachus, R. C. (1983). “Design and construction of stone columns.” Rep. No. FHWA/RD-83/026, Office of Engineering and Highway Operations Research and Development, Federal Highway Administration, Washington, D.C.
Bowles, J. E. (2002). Foundation analysis and design, McGraw-Hill, New York.
Brokemper, D., Sobolewski, J., Alexiew, D., and Brok, C. (2006). “Design and construction of geotextile encased columns supporting geogrid reinforced landscape embankments: Bastions Vijfwal Houten in the Netherlands.” Proc., 8th Int. Conf. on Geosynthetics, Millpress, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 1681–1684.
Davis, E. H. (1968). “Theories of plasticity and the failure of soil masses.” Soil mechanics: Selected topics, Butterworth, London, 341–380.
Gniel, J., and Bouazza, A. (2009). “Improvement of soft soils using geogrid encased stone columns.” Geotext. Geomembr., 27(3), 167–175.
Greenwood, D. A. (1970). “Mechanical improvement of soils below ground surface.” Proc., Conf. on Ground Engineering, Institution of Civil Engineers, London.
Han, J., and Gabr, M. A. (2002). “Numerical analysis of geosynthetic-reinforced and pile-supported earth platforms over soft soil.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng., 128(1), 44–53.
Kempfert, H. G., Möbius, W., Wallis, P., Raithel, M., Geduhn, M., and McClinton, R. G. (2002). “Reclaiming land with geotextile encased columns.” Geotechnical Fabrics Report, 20(6), 767–772.
Kempton, G., Russell, D., Pierpoint, N. D., and Jones, C. J. F. P. (1998). “Two- and three-dimensional numerical analysis of the performance of piled embankment.” Proc., 6th Int. Conf. on Geosynthetics, Industrial Fabrics Association International, Roseville, Minn., 767–772.
Lee, D. Y., Song, A. R., Kim, S. B., and Yoo, C. (2007). “Short- and long-term load carrying capacity of geogrid-encased stone column—A numerical investigation.” Journal of Korean Geotechnical Society, 23(8), 5–16.
Madahv, M. R. (2006). “Engineering of ground by stone columns/granular piles.” Proc., ATC-7 Workshop on Stone Column in Soft Deposits, ISSMGE ATC-7, Busan, Korea, 1–17.
Murugesan, S., and Rajagopal, K. (2006). “Geosynthetic-encased stone columns: Numerical evaluation.” Geotext. Geomembr., 24(6), 349–358.
Murugesan, S., and Rajagopal, K. (2007). “Model tests on geosynthetic-encased stone columns.” Geosynthet. Int., 14(6), 346–354.
Park, S. S., Lee, D. Y., Yoo, C., Jung, S. T., and Lee, B. R. (2006). “Development of geogrid reinforced stone column method.” Rep. No. 05-C17, Korea Institute of Construction and Transportation Technology Evaluation and Planning, Seoul, 134.
Raithel, M., and Kempfert, H. G. (2000). “Calculation models for dam foundations with geotextile-coated sand columns.” Proc., GeoEngineering 2000, Technomic, Melbourne, Australia, 347.
Raithel, M., Kempfert, H. G., and Kirchner, A. (2002). “Geotextile-encased columns (GEC) for foundation of a dike on very soft soils.” Proc., 7th Int. Conf. on Geosynthetics, Balkema, The Netherlands, 1025–1028.
Tan, S. A., Tjahyono, S., and Oo, K. K. (2008). “Simplified plane-strain modeling of stone-column reinforced ground.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng., 134(2), 185–194.
Wu, C. S., and Hong, Y. S. (2009). “Laboratory tests on geosynthetic encapsulated sand columns.” Geotext. Geomembr., 27(2), 107–120.
Yoo, C. (2007). “IT-based soft ground improvement design for Gwang-Yang land reclamation project.” Report to ESCO Consultant and Engineers Co., Ltd., Seoul.
Yoo, C., and Kim, S. B. (2009). “Numerical modeling of geosynthetic-encased stone columns.” Geosynthet. Int., 16(3), 116–126.
Yoo, C., Song, A. R., Kim, S. B., and Lee, D. Y. (2007). “Finite element modeling of geogrid-encased stone column in soft ground.” Journal of Korean Geotechnical Society, 23(10), 133–150.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Copyright
© 2010 ASCE.
History
Received: Feb 9, 2009
Accepted: Jan 4, 2010
Published online: Jan 6, 2010
Published in print: Aug 2010
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.