Shear strength behavior of geotextile/geomembrane interfaces

This paper aims to study the shear interaction mechanism of one of the critical geosynthetic interfaces,the geotextile/geomembrane,typically used for lined containment facilities such as landfills.A large direct shear machine is used to carry out 90 geosynthetic interface tests.The test results show a strain softening behavior with a very small dilatancy(0.5 mm) and nonlinear failure envelopes at a normal stress range of 25-450 kPa.The influences of the micro-level structure of these geosynthetics on the macro-level interface shear behavior are discussed in detail.This study has generated several practical recommendations to help professionals to choose what materials are more adequate.From the three geotextiles tested,the thermally bonded monofilament exhibits the best interface shear strength under high normal stress.For low normal stress,however,needle-punched monofilaments are recommended.For the regular textured geomembranes tested,the space between the asperities is an important factor.The closer these asperities are,the better the result achieves.For the irregular textured geomembranes tested,the nonwoven geotextiles made of monofilaments produce the largest interface shear strength.     

Evaluation of interface shear strength of composite liner system and stability analysis for a landfill lining system in Thailand

The paper presents the case history of laboratory evaluation of the interface shear strength properties of various interfaces encountered in a modern day landfill with emphasis on proper simulation of field conditions and subsequent use of these results in the stability analyses of liner system. Over 70 large direct shear tests were systematically conducted to evaluate the interface shear strength properties of composite liner system using project specific materials under site specific conditions, being used at non-hazardous and hazardous landfills project situated in Sa Kaeo Province, Thailand. The critical interfaces were located between the geotextiles and the smooth geomembrane (GM), the smooth GM and the geosynthetic clay liner (GCL), and the smooth GM liner and the compacted clay liner (CCL) with the interface friction angles ranging from 6.5° to 10.5° for dry conditions and 6.5° to 9.5° in wet conditions. The residual shear stress for these interfaces was attained at a displacement less than 4 mm. Three methods, namely, limit equilibrium method (LEM), limit method (LM), and the simple composite column (SCC) approach were used to evaluate the tensile loads induced in the geosynthetic components. The SCC approach proposed by Liu, C.N. [2001. Tension of geosynthetics material regarding soils on landfill liner slopes. Proceedings, National Science Council ROC(A), 25(4), 211–218] that takes into account the force equilibrium as well as displacement compatibility yielded satisfactory results. The factor of safety for geosynthetic components in the liner was found to be greater than 3.0 for both types of landfill.     

Dynamic friction and the seismic performance of geosynthetic interfaces

The stability of geotechnical structures which contain geosynthetic interfaces is closely linked to the shear strength between the geosynthetics themselves, both in static and dynamic conditions. Static friction is the maximum interface shear strength mobilised before displacement, whereas dynamic friction is related to the kinematics of the displacement itself. In polymer materials, dynamic friction may be widely variable, depending on the type, geometry and integrity of the surfaces in contact, as well as on the intensity and time-history of the seismic signal. This means that predicting interface shear strength is not simple. This paper focuses on the evaluation of dynamic interface shear strength between geosynthetics, using the results of both inclined plane tests and shaking table tests; this latter test also provided a means to analyse interface behaviour under the conditions of real seismic records. To this purpose, two common geosynthetic interfaces, which exhibit different behaviour under dynamic loading, were tested. One interface was a smooth HDPE geomembrane in contact with a nonwoven polypropylene geotextile, while the second was a textured HDPE geomembrane in contact with a different type of nonwoven polypropylene geotextile.The test results shows that dynamic friction mobilised during seismic events depends on the relative speed according to the same law outlined by the free sliding tests and by the shaking table tests carried out with sinusoidal base motions. Moreover, for the two different types of studied interfaces dynamic friction may be greater, lesser or equal to the static friction and the assumption of a constant value of dynamic friction does not lead to an accurate prediction of the seismic displacements under various earthquakes.     

Multi-scale understanding of sand-geosynthetic interface shear response through Micro-CT and shear band analysis

To understand the process of mobilisation of shear strength in sand-geosynthetic interfaces at a fundamental level, it is essential to precisely characterize the size and shape of the grains and the shear-induced surface changes in geosynthetics. In the current study, shear behaviour of dilative and non-dilative geosynthetics interfacing with sands of different morphological characteristics was analysed through interface shear tests and a gamut of digital imaging techniques. 3D shape parameters of sands such as sphericity, convexity, roundness, aspect ratio, and roughness were quantified at different scales using X-ray micro computed tomography (μCT) and optical profilometry. Interface shear tests revealed higher peak and residual friction angles for particles with greater irregularity, angularity, and surface texture. The surface texture of geotextile surfaces resulted in higher interface friction and higher vertical displacement compared to geomembrane surfaces, which showed completely non-dilative behaviour. Surface changes in geomembranes were quantified using laser profilometry. High resolution images obtained at different stages of shearing were analysed for quantifying the shear zone thickness using digital image correlation (DIC). Thickness of the shear bands, microscopic shearing mechanisms and shear strength are correlated to the multi-scale shape parameters of sands and surface changes in geosynthetic surfaces.     

Design and placement considerations for clay and composite clay/geomembrane landfill final covers

The performance of clay and clay geosynthetic combinations for landfill barrier layers has not always proved predictable and the integration of geosynthetic materials into conventional landfill designs presents some interesting problems which were previously unforeseen.

This paper looks at identifying and mapping the approach to some specific considerations for clay and geomembrane/clay barriers. These considerations include: long-term performance of clay barriers, short-term and long-term stability of clay barriers, clay/geomembrane interface behavior, and the phenomena of moisture build-up beneath exposed membrane liners.     

A numerical modelling technique for geosynthetics validated on a cavity model test

Numerical modelling approaches can aid in designing geotechnical constructions involving geosynthetics. However, the reliability of numerical results depends on how the model is developed, the constitutive model, and the set of parameters used. By comparing the numerical results with experiment, the present work verifies a numerical modelling technique developed to model multilayered geosynthetic lining systems for landfills. The numerical modelling technique involves strain softening at interfaces and allows the axial stiffness of the geosynthetics to evolve as a function of strain. This work focuses on a two-dimensional finite-difference model, which is used to simulate three types of experimental tests: conventional uniaxial tensile tests, direct shear tests, and a large-scale test that was used to assess the overall mechanical behaviour of a reinforced geosynthetic system that spanned over a cavity. This reinforced geosynthetic system consisted of a 50 kN/m polyvinyl alcohol geogrid reinforcement embedded in a layer of sand, a geosynthetic clay liner, a high-density polyethylene geomembrane, and a non-woven needle-punched geotextile. The uniaxial tensile tests, direct shear tests, and the large-scale test were numerically modelled and the numerical results were compared with experimental results. The results of the numerical modelling technique presented very closely match the results of the three experimental tests, which indicates that the numerical model correctly predicted the measured data.     

Evaluation of Interface Shear Strength between Geosynthetics Under Wet Condition

This paper presents direct shear testing data for interfaces between a nonwoven geotextile or two types of geosynthetic clay liners (GCL) (reinforced and unreinforced) and two types of geomembranes (smooth and textured). In this study, the effect of moisture on interface shear behavior was investigated by performing shear tests in both dry and wet (or hydrated) conditions because the geosynthetic interfaces in a landfill are easily exposed to rain, leachate and groundwater beneath the liners. The degree of strength reduction with increasing displacement and the effect of the normal stress level on friction angles were examined, and the modified hydration method applied for the GCL was also validated. The test results showed that the normal stress level, interface water presence and hydration methods dominated the interface shear strength and behavior. The relationship between the peak secant friction angle and the normal stress demonstrated that the friction angle decreased with increasing normal stress, implying that the shear strength for safe design should be determined by using the maximum value of the normal stress applied in landfills. Finally, comparisons with a few published test results were presented and some design implications for the geosynthetic-installed landfills were discussed.     

Shear strength of geosynthetic composite systems for design of landfill liner and cover slopes

Torsional ring shear tests were performed on composite specimens that simulate the field alignment of municipal solid waste (MSW) landfill liner and cover system components. Simultaneous shearing was provided to each test specimen without forcing failure to occur through a pre-determined plane. Composite liner specimens consisted of a textured geomembrane (GM) underlain by a needle-punched geosynthetic clay liner (GCL) which in turn underlain by a compacted silty clay. Hydrated specimens were sheared at eleven different normal stress levels. Test results revealed that shear strength of the composite liner system can be controlled by different failure modes depending on the magnitude of normal stress and the comparative values of the GCL interface and internal shear strength. Failure following these modes may result in a bilinear or trilinear peak strength envelope and a corresponding stepped residual strength envelope. Composite cover specimens that comprised textured GM placed on unreinforced smooth GM-backed GCL resting on compacted sand were sheared at five different GCL hydration conditions and a normal stress that is usually imposed on MSW landfill cover geosynthetic components. Test results showed that increasing the GCL hydration moves the shearing plane from the GCL smooth GM backing/sand interface to that of the textured GM/hydrated bentonite. Effects of these interactive shear strength behaviors of composite liner and cover system components on the possibility of developing progressive failure in landfill slopes were discussed. Recommendations for designing landfill geosynthetic-lined slopes were subsequently given. Three-dimensional stability analysis of well-documented case history of failed composite system slope was presented to support the introduced results and recommendations.     

Geomembrane factory and field thermally welded seams comparison

This technical paper presents a unique comparison of geomembrane factory and field welded thermal seams for a large off-stream water reservoir project. The results of the comparison show that factory welded seams exhibit higher seam peel and shear strengths at yield, less variability, and more consistency than field welded thermal seams. In particular, the results show that factory seams are about 10% stronger than field seams in shear and about 9% stronger in peel strength at yield. More importantly, this resulted in 100% of the factory welded seams passing the project seam strength requirements even though the factory welding speed was 1.1–1.6 times faster than the field welding speed. Conversely, about 25% of the field welded seams did not pass the initial specified field seam shear strength requirement, which caused significant delays, scheduling, and other construction issues. As a result, the field seam shear strength requirement was reduced from 9.6 kN/m to 8.2 kN/m to increase the number of field seams that achieved project requirements. Because the geomembrane was primarily factory fabricated, there were about 78% less field seams on this project than if the geomembrane was entirely field fabricated.     

Cyclic shear behavior of GMB/GCL composite liner

The composite liner system consisting of geomembrane (GMB) and geosynthetic clay liner (GCL) has been widely used in landfills. Although there have been a lot of studies on the monotonic shear behavior of GMB/GCL composite liner, the dynamic test data are still very limited and consequently, the dynamic shear mechanism is not clear. A series of displacement-controlled cyclic shear tests were conducted to study the shear behavior of GMB/GCL composite liner, including the shear stress versus horizontal displacement relationships, backbone curves, and shear strengths. Hysteretic loops in the shape of parallelogram were obtained and equivalent linear analyses revealed that the secant shear stiffness decreased and the damping ratio increased with the rise in loading cycles. According to the test results, it is generally acceptable to predict the dynamic peak strength of a GMB/GCL composite liner with its static strength envelope. Furthermore, the dynamic softening mechanism and rate-dependent shear stiffnesses were well described by the proposed equations, which also facilitate the accurate modeling of the cyclic shear behavior.     

Destructive testing of polyethylene geomembrane seams: Various methods to evaluate seam strength

The incidence of high-density polyethylene geomembrane liner failures makes it essential that as much information as possible regarding seam performance be extracted from testing. The durability of polyethylene geomembrane seams can be determined largely by the data resulting from conventional seam peel and shear destructive tests.

Unfortunately, current test parameters and acceptance criteria are not used to a great enough extent. Specifically, the seam peel and shear tests can and should be used more fully to assess the effect of seaming on the strength and durability of the seam and the adjacent geomembrane. Specific minimum values for seam shear strength and elongation as well as peel separation should be established by a project's geosynthetic design engineer. In addition, functional seam test acceptance criteria for very low-density polyethylene need to be defined. Another type of testing that can provide valuable information on the aging behavior and defect distribution within field seams is hydrostatic, biaxial burst testing.     

我国四类衬垫系统防污性能的比较分析

对我国填埋场采用的四类衬垫进行了防污性能的比较分析。评价参数包括渗漏率、污染物击穿时间及衬垫系统底部浓度值。除了2m压实黏土衬垫(CCL)外,其余3种均为包含土工膜(GM)的复合衬垫。分析模型采用了污染物通过有缺陷膜复合衬垫的一维运移解析解。以镉离子(Cd2+)为渗滤液中重金属离子的代表;以苯为其中挥发性有机污染物的代表。研究表明土工复合膨润土垫(GCL)复合衬垫的渗漏率最小,2m黏土最大,两者的差别可在3～5个数量级。GCL复合衬垫对重金属离子具有较好的防污性能,尤其是在高水头及复合衬垫接触较差的情形。厚度较大的2m黏土对挥发性有机污染物的防污性能较好,其击穿时间要比GCL复合衬垫大2～3个数量级。随着水头的增大,CCL复合衬垫的防污性能逐渐地优于2m黏土。在10m水头作用下,CCL复合衬垫底部的100年浓度可比2m黏土小近一个量级。单层膜衬垫的防污性能较差,不适合作为填埋场的衬垫系统。控制填埋场复合衬垫的施工质量和渗滤液水头尤为重要。     

Failure mechanisms of geosynthetic clay liner and textured geomembrane composite systems

The objective of this study was to evaluate shear behavior and failure mechanisms of composite systems comprised of a geosynthetic clay liner (GCL) and textured geomembrane (GMX). Internal and interface direct shear tests were performed at normal stresses ranging from 100 kPa to 2000 kPa on eight different GCL/GMX composite systems. These composite systems were selected to assess the effects of (i) GCL peel strength, (ii) geotextile type, (iii) geotextile mass per area, and (iv) GMX spike density. Three failure modes were observed for the composite systems: complete interface failure, partial interface/internal failure, and complete internal failure. Increasing normal stress transitioned the failure mode from complete interface to partial interface/internal to complete internal failure. The peak critical shear strength of GCL/GMX composite systems increased with an increase in GMX spike density. However, the effect of geotextile type and mass per area more profoundly influenced peak critical shear strength at normal stress > 500 kPa, whereby an increase in geotextile mass per area enhanced interlocking between a non-woven geotextile and GMX. Peel strength of a GCL only influenced the GCL/GMX critical shear strength when the failure mode was complete internal failure.     

Role of particle shape on the shear strength of sand-GCL interfaces under dry and wet conditions

Interface shear strength of geosynthetic clay liners (GCL) with the sand particles is predominantly influenced by the surface characteristics of the GCL, size and shape of the sand particles and their interaction mechanisms. This study brings out the quantitative effects of particle shape on the interaction mechanisms and shear strength of GCL-sand interfaces. Interface direct shear tests are conducted on GCL in contact with a natural sand and a manufactured sand of identical gradation, eliminating the particle size effects. Results showed that manufactured sand provides effective particle-fiber interlocking compared to river sand, due to the favorable shape of its grains. Further, the role of particle shape on the hydration of GCL is investigated through interface shear tests on GCL-sand interfaces at different water contents. Bentonite hydration is found to be less in tests with manufactured sand, leading to better interface shear strength. Grain shape parameters of sands, surface changes related to hydration and particle entrapment in GCL are quantified through image analysis on sands and tested GCL surfaces. It is observed that the manufactured sand provides higher interface shear strength and causes lesser hydration related damages to GCL, owing to its angular particles and low permeability.     

Development of a numerical model for performance-based design of geosynthetic liner systems

A numerical model for performance-based design of the geosynthetic elements of waste containment systems has been developed. The model offers a rational alternative to the current state of practice for design of geosynthetic containment system elements in which neither the strains nor the forces in liner system elements are explicitly calculated. To explicitly assess the ability of the geosynthetic elements of a containment system to maintain their integrity under both static and seismic loads, a large strain finite difference model of waste-liner system interaction was developed. Modular features within the model allow the user to select the appropriate features required for any particular problem. A beam element with zero moment of inertia and with interface elements on both sides is employed in the model to represent a geosynthetic element in the liner system. This enables explicit calculation of the axial forces and strains within the liner system element. Non-linear constitutive models were developed to represent the stress-strain behavior of geomembrane and geosynthetic clay liner beam elements and the load-displacement behavior of the beam interfaces. The use of the various features on the model is illustrated using available experimental data, including shaking table test data on rigid and compliant blocks sliding on geomembranes. Analysis of geomembranes subject to waste settlement and subject to seismic loading demonstrate applications of the model and provide insight into the behavior of geosynthetic liner system elements subject to tensile loads.     

Determination of geomembrane – protective geotextile friction angle: An insight into the shear rate effect

This study investigates how the shear rate can affect the geomembrane – protective geotextile friction angle. Four types of geomembranes (GMB) were considered (EPDM, HPDE, PP, and PVC) and a single nonwoven needle-punched geotextile (GTX_nw) was used to make the interfaces with the geomembrane. Three shear devices were used: a large-scale inclined plane (IP), a shear box (SB), and a small-scale shear device (ssSD). The ssSD allows two shear modes to be compared: one mode involves incrementally increasing the shear stress, and the other involves imposing a constant tangential velocity at the interface. Only the PP GMB- GTX_nw was tested with the SB and the ssSD. Inclined plane standardised tests show that for the three interfaces that undergoes gradual sliding (EPDM, PP and PVC GMB- GTX_nw), it is shown that a step-by-step experimental procedure gives significantly lower interface friction angle than that given by the procedure from the current international standard, which is explained by the increase of interface shear stress with sliding speed. These observations are confirmed by shear box tests. One major practical result is that, following the nature of geosynthetics, the shear rate applied in large-scale shear box tests should be adapted to assess a safety value of a geosynthetic - geosynthetic interface friction angle.     

Failure analysis of a geomembrane lined reservoir embankment

This paper presents case study and failure analysis of an embankment enclosing a raw water reservoir at a coal-based thermal power plant. The embankments and the base of the reservoir were all lined with geomembrane. Major breaches occurred in the embankment separating two compartments of the reservoir (i.e., the partition embankment) approximately one year after the filling of one of the reservoirs. Seepage and slope stability analyses were carried out to detect the causes of failure. The post–failure field observations and results of stability analyses indicated that the use of a single layer geomembrane as the sole component of barrier layer was inadequate. Pipe drains provided at the base of the reservoir to intercept rising groundwater level acted as a flow pathway for water seeping from tears and punctures in geomembrane liner at the base of the reservoir. The design of internal drainage system for both the partition embankment and peripheral embankment (i.e., the embankments other than the partition embankment surrounding the reservoir) was insufficient. The remedial measures which could be adopted for geosynthetic lined reservoir and embankment were evaluated and presented in the paper. The study highlights the need to provide a secondary liner in form of clay or geosynthetic clay liner whenever a geomembrane is used as a barrier layer. In cases where use of single layer of geomembrane is unavoidable, seepage and safety analysis should be carried out with the assumption that it may leak. This is important when an adequate quality control in laying the geomembrane is lacking or the embankment facilities would continue to be operated at full head even after the design life of the geomembrane is exceeded.     

Shear strength of landfill liner interface in the case of varying normal stress

Landfills are sequentially filled by solid waste lifts, thus normal stress on the liner interface changes in different shear stages, which may affect selection of interface strength in landfill slope stability analysis. Shear tests were conducted at the liner interfaces of geomembrane/geotextile (GM/GT) and geomembrane/geocomposite/sand (GM/GC/Sand), and the normal stress changed in different shear stages. Values of friction angles on both the GM/GT and GM/GC/Sand interfaces obtained by direct and simple shear tests under increasing normal stress in the hardening, softening, and large-displacement stages were lower than those obtained by the traditional direct shear test. The reduction was greater for peak friction angles. Since the peak liner interface strength obtained by staged loading is lower than the peak interface strength by using the traditional shear test method, using the peak shear strength obtained from the traditional direct shear test for the base floor liner to conduct slope stability analysis may cause an un-conservative result. It is necessary to consider the effects of normal stress changes on the liner interface strength in landfill slope stability analysis.     

Change pattern of geomembrane surface roughness for geotextile/textured geomembrane interfaces

Applying textured geomembrane improves the frictional performance of geotextile and geomembrane interfaces. However, very limited research has been conducted to analyze the variation in textured geomembrane roughness during geotextile/geomembrane interface shear processes. In this study, a geomembrane surface roughness measurement method for measuring asperity height data with fixed intervals was presented. Normalized profile length and fractal dimension were used to quantitatively describe the geomembrane surface deformation during the geotextile/textured geomembrane interface shear process. It was found that applying normal stress led to a reduction of the roughness parameters. After the mobilization of the peak shear stress during the shear process, the chosen roughness parameters decreased with the shear displacement. And, increasing the normal stress made the shear-induced reduction of roughness parameters more obvious. The hyperbolic model can be used to describe the quantitative relationship between the geomembrane roughness parameters and the shear displacement. This study can help explain the displacement-softening post-peak behavior of the geotextile/textured geomembrane interfaces.     

Artificial intelligence algorithms for predicting peak shear strength of clayey soil-geomembrane interfaces and experimental validation

The peak shear strength of clayey soil-geomembrane interfaces is a vital parameter for the design of relevant engineering infrastructure. However, due to the large number of influence factors and the complex action mechanism, accurate prediction of the peak shear strength for clayey soil-geomembrane interfaces is always a challenge. In this paper, a machine learning model was established by combining Mind Evolutionary Algorithm (MEA) and the ensemble algorithm of Adaptive Boosting Algorithm (ADA)-Back Propagation Artificial Neural Network (BPANN) to predict the peak shear strength of clayey soil-geomembrane interfaces based on the results of 623 laboratory interface direct shear experiments. By comparing with the conventional machine learning algorithms, including Particle Swarm Optimisation Algorithm (PSO) and Genetic Algorithm (GA) tuned ADA-BPANN, MEA tuned Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Random Forest (RF), the superior performance of MEA tuned ADA-BPANN has been validated, with higher predicting precision, shorter training time, and the avoidance of local optimum and overfitting. By adopting the proposed novel model, sensitivity analysis was carried out, which indicates that normal pressure has the largest influence on the peak shear strength, followed by geomembrane roughness. Furthermore, an analytical equation was proposed to assess the peak shear strength that allows the usage of machine learning skills for the practitioners with limited machine learning knowledge. The present research highlights the potential of the MEA tuned ADA-BPANN model as a useful tool to assist in preciously estimating the peak shear strength of clayey soil-geomembrane interfaces, which can provide benefits for the design of relevant engineering applications.