Embankment Design—The Early Days

This paper describes in general terms the unique and innovative embankment design approaches developed and implemented by Dr. Charles C. Ladd in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Some of these approaches included 12.7 cm (5 in) diameter undisturbed tube sampling, in situ strength testing using the Geonor field vane shear device, innovative laboratory strength testing (Geonor Direct Simple Shear Tests), development and application of the SHANSEP approach to fall scale test and production embankments, use of test embankments during design not only to verify soil properties but also to assess impacts of sand drain installation techniques on in situ soil properties, and first time use in the United States of the Dutch jet bailer (non-displacement) method of sand drain installation. Many of these approaches, particularly SHANSEP, have withstood the test of time and have been used on many other projects over the past 30 years.