Abstract
Traditional interpretation and interpolation techniques have been extensively used in conjunction with geotechnical in-situ tests to evaluate subsurface conditions; however, these approaches, when applied at highly variable geomaterial sites, can lead to high uncertainties and inaccurate subsurface characterization. This paper presents the application of a proposed framework that combines geotechnical in-situ test data and a geostatistical modeling approach with visualization techniques to provide an advanced three-dimensional (3D) site characterization and visualization of an aging hydraulic fill dam. There were 66 cone penetration tests (CPT) performed along the crest, downstream, and upstream sides of the hydraulic fill dam and properties, such as the soil behavior type index (), effective friction angle (), and undrained shear strength (), were determined using traditional CPT data correlations. Univariate statistics performed on the properties revealed high variability in the hydraulic fill dam configuration. Anisotropic semivariogram models were developed to incorporate the spatial variability and the directional anisotropy of soil properties in the proposed site characterization approach. A 3D kriging interpolation was then performed based on the anisotropic semivariograms to generate 3D geotechnical visualization models of the , , and of the geomaterials encountered in the dam. Validation studies were performed by comparing the 3D interpolated soil properties with the ground-truth measured values obtained from laboratory tests. The visualization models based on a geostatistical interpolation approach can facilitate the identification of critical zones within the dam that could be susceptible to geotechnical hazards. This paper highlights a novel approach combining the in-situ data, 3D interpolation kriging analyses, and visualization techniques to evaluate the soil configuration within highly heterogeneous sites such as hydraulic fill dams and mine-tailings sites.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Acknowledgments
This study case was performed as part of a research project awarded by the Tarrant Regional Water District (TRWD), Texas, USA. The authors would like to acknowledge Mr. Louie Verreault, Mr. Jason Gehrig, Ms. Dorota Koterba, and Mr. David Marshall of TRWD for their assistance with various research activities related to testing and research coordination between TRWD and The University of Texas at Arlington. Each author contributed towards the present research study. The conceptualization, analysis, and draft manuscript preparation were performed by Santiago Caballero. Tejo Bheemasetti and Sayantan Chakraborty performed in-depth technical review of the previous draft version of the manuscript and improved the quality of the manuscript. Anand Puppala was the primary investigator of the project which was performed under his supervision. All authors have read and approved the manuscript.
Disclaimer
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
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Published In
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 148 • Issue 11 • November 2022
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© 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 20, 2021
Accepted: May 12, 2022
Published online: Sep 7, 2022
Published in print: Nov 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Feb 7, 2023
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