Ground Displacements from a Pipe-Bursting Experiment in Well-Graded Sand and Gravel
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 135, Issue 11
Abstract
Pipe bursting is a construction technique that involves the replacement of an existing buried pipe with potentially much less surface disturbance than traditional cut and cover construction. However, excessive ground movements associated with pipe-bursting operations may lead to damage to surrounding infrastructure. A static pipe-bursting experiment was performed in sand and gravel within an 8-m-long, 8-m-wide, and 3-m-deep test pit to quantify the ground displacements from pipe bursting. An existing unreinforced concrete pipe buried 1.385 m below the ground surface was replaced with a high-density polyethylene pipe. Pulling force and the three-dimensional nature of surface displacements associated with pipe bursting are examined. The 4-m wide surface response had a peak vertical displacement of 6 mm. In addition, transverse displacements of 1.2 mm resulted in the formation of a tension crack in the ground above the concrete pipe. This experiment offers data that improves the understanding of the mechanisms of ground disturbance, and provides unique experimental data for calibration of numerical models.
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Acknowledgments
The work has been funded by Strategic and Discovery Grants from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). The research facilities were developed with funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation, Ontario Innovation Trust, NSERC, and Queen’s University. The HDPE pipe was provided by KWH Pipe Ltd. The assistance of Mr. Brendon Taylor with the setup of the experiment is appreciated.
References
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© 2009 ASCE.
History
Received: Jul 18, 2008
Accepted: Mar 23, 2009
Published online: Apr 1, 2009
Published in print: Nov 2009
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