Deformation Analysis of Geotextile-Encased Stone Columns
Publication: International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 15, Issue 3
Abstract
Based on the unit-cell concept, analytical solutions are presented to predict deformation behaviors of geotextile-encased stone columns at any depth below the top plane of the columns. Under vertical loads at the tops of the stone columns, an axial compression deformation occurs that is often accompanied by a lateral expansion near the top. This deformation characteristic of stone columns was incorporated directly into the proposed analytical method. The shear stress between the encased stone column and the surrounding soil in the vertical direction also was taken into account. In this method, the confining pressure provided by the soil was analyzed based on an analogy with passive earth pressure. The method was verified via comparison with two other analytical solutions. Parametric studies were conducted to investigate the effects of geotextile encasement, vertical applied stress, and column spacing and diameter on the deformation behaviors of columns. The results indicated that geotextile encasement with higher stiffness has a beneficial effect on reducing column bulging and settlement. Moreover, selection of geotextile stiffness for encased stone columns should be done in relation to column diameter and spacing because increased column diameter and decreased spacing have a great effect on settlement reduction.
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Acknowledgments
This research was funded through the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC No. 51208191 and No. 51078138), the Ministry of Education 985 Project, and the Basal Research Fund Support by Hunan University.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 15 • Issue 3 • June 2015
Copyright
© 2014 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jul 2, 2013
Accepted: Feb 11, 2014
Published online: Feb 13, 2014
Published in print: Jun 1, 2015
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