Experimental investigation on electro-osmotic treatment combined with vacuum preloading for marine clay

An electro-osmotic consolidation (EO) combined with vacuum preloading (VP) was investigated on marine clay using laboratory tests. To improve consolidation efficiency and reduce the settlement difference, a new prefabricated device was designed to combine EO and VP for the tests. The results indicated that the vacuum preloading with intermittent electro-osmotic consolidation (VP–I-ECM) provided more water discharge with higher discharge rate and produced larger soil settlement compared to traditional vacuum preloading and electro-osmotic consolidation. For the combined method, the VP effectively removed water from the soil for the first 12 h, and its efficiency decreased with the time. After 12 h, the intermittent EO was used to further consolidate the soil and maintain a high level of drainage rate. Test results also showed that the combined method of VP-I-ECM significantly improved the shear strength and bearing capacity of the marine clay to satisfy the construction requirements with a significant reduction in the anode erosion and the energy consumption. This research study provides useful information for the design guide and practical application of the combined technique for improving marine clay.     

EKG电极真空–电渗处理软黏土室内试验研究

针对真空–电渗法在软基处理中存在金属电极易腐蚀,试验后期排水效率低等问题,利用自主研发的装置试验了EKG电极在电渗法、真空预压法、真空–电渗法、阴极直排式真空–电渗法下的排水效果,通过监测排水量、电流、pH值、沉降和处理后的强度等指标将上述方法进行比较,结果表明:(1)真空–电渗法处理后排水量最大,沉降更明显,土体强度更大;(2)阴极直排法在前8 h,排水量高于双侧排水真空–电渗法,土体内pH值更稳定,土体表面更均匀;阴极直排法能在一定时间内改善传统真空–电渗法在阳极真空预压与电渗相互抑制的情况,如果将阴极直排法与双侧排水真空–电渗法相结合,能够为扩大真空–电渗联合法的应用范围提供新的研究思路。     

真空联合堆载预压固结沉降计算方法的探讨

介绍了真空联合堆载预压路基沉降的方法,主要是分析在已有吹填土的深厚淤泥地段主固结沉降的计算方法,并结合工程实例,通过分析对比研究,得出了一些有益的结论。     

Pilot tests on vacuum preloading method combined with short and long PVDs

Dredged marine clay has been widely used as a filling material for land reclamation in China. The difficulty of using the vacuum preloading method to improve the dredged marine clay together with the bottom sediment clay is the different spacing requirement of the PVDs. To solve this problem, the Vacuum Preloading method combined with the Short and Long PVDs (VPSL) is proposed in this paper. The short PVDs are installed only into the dredged marine clay layer in-between the long PVDs which are installed through the whole clay layer. Pilot tests are also conducted at a land reclamation site in Tianjin, China, to investigate the performance of the proposed method. The ground settlement, the applied vacuum pressure and the pore water pressure in the soil are monitored during the pilot tests. The average degrees of consolidation are calculated based on the monitored settlement and pore pressure data. It is found that the proposed VPSL method is more effective for improving top dredged clay together with the bottom sediment clay than the conventional vacuum preloading method. The vane shear strength profiles of soil layers after ground improvement also show that the VPSL method is more effective to achieve a uniform soil strength profile.     

Effect of vacuum removal on consolidation settlement under a combined vacuum and surcharge preloading

The combined vacuum and surcharge preloading technique is extensively used to accelerate the consolidation process of subsoils. The effect of vacuum pressure is often considered as a loading/unloading cycle of mean effective stress, such that elastic rebound occurs after vacuum removal, which cannot explain the observed postconstruction settlement in the field. In this study, the stress state of subsoils subject to vacuum and surcharge preloading is analyzed and decomposed into two components: (a) geostatic consolidation at a different depth, and (b) loading/unloading in the minor principal stress direction. A series of consolidated drained triaxial tests is conducted to simulate the soil behaviour after vacuum removal. Results show that the contribution of unloading in the minor principal stress direction outweighs the magnitude of elastic rebound after vacuum removal, and hence continued settlement dominates. A field case for highways is provided to further demonstrate the proposed mechanism.     

A simple solution for prefabricated vertical drain with surcharge preloading combined with vacuum consolidation

Prefabricated vertical drains (PVDs) with the surcharge preloading and vacuum consolidation has become considerably popular for ground improvement projects. A simple solution that incorporates the fundamental embankment features, such as the average degree of consolidation and excess pore pressure, are essential for the design of soft ground improvements by PVDs with vacuum preloading. However, most of the solutions for vertical drains with vacuum consolidation require numerical simulations, whose implementation tends to be laborious. In contrast, a simple solution for vacuum consolidation under time-dependent loading has not yet been proposed. In this study, a simple solution that can be easily incorporated into a conventional spreadsheet is derived for PVDs with vacuum preloading by applying the Laplace transform technique. The proposed solution accounts for several actual construction conditions, such as initial surcharge load, vacuum pump trial period, variations of radial permeability, and time-dependent loading. The results obtained from this proposed approach were validated with those from the finite element method and field data from the case study of the Cai Mep International Terminal project in southern Vietnam. The derived solutions, including the excess pore pressures and average degrees of consolidation, were in good agreement with the predicted and observed data.     

PVD improvement combined with surcharge and vacuum preloading including simulations

This paper presents the study of PVD improved reconstituted specimen with and without vacuum preloading on large-scale consolidometer in the laboratory tests. Subsequently, the results of the laboratory tests were analyzed and simulated by 2D (axisymmetric) finite element method (FEM) to back-analyze and confirm the related design parameters which were used further in subsequent numerical experiments. The laboratory test results indicated that the increased hydraulic conductivity in the smear zone of PVD with vacuum preloading (Vacuum-PVD) resulted in the increase in the coefficient of horizontal consolidation (Ch) by 16% as well as the decrease in the ratio between the horizontal hydraulic conductivity of the undisturbed zone (Kh) to the horizontal hydraulic conductivity in the smear zone (Ks) or (Kh/Ks) of about 10%. The Vacuum-PVD and PVD only have the same settlement magnitudes with similar equivalent loads.     

真空–电渗联合加固技术的固结试验研究

针对真空预压与电渗联合加固时存在水流方向相互干扰的问题,在室内试验中开展真空预压与电渗不同联合方式对淤泥脱水效果的研究。试验结果表明:真空预压与电渗异步加固时能够获得比其他联合方式更好的加固效果,而真空预压与电渗交替加固的时间对加固效果也有显著的影响。若交替时间太短,真空预压与电渗将不能充分发挥排水作用,若交替时间太长,真空预压与电渗所提供的能量将不能被充分利用。在现场实际应用中,应根据实测排水量或排水速率的变化不断调整真空预压与电渗交替加固时间。     

电动土工合成材料加固软土地基实验研究

本文用电动土工合成材料(EKG)与土工织物制成电极进行了室内软土地基电渗固结模型试验,测量了电渗过程中电势分布、电流变化、吸力的变化及土体的沉降,对电渗前后土体的含水率、抗剪强度和固结曲线进行了对比,并探讨了电渗的有效性。就目前EKG材料存在的问题进行了思考,为下一步的改进给出了建议。     

Improved estimates of power consumption during dewatering of mine tailings using electrokinetic geosynthetics (EKGs)

Electrokinetic geosynthetics (EKGs) were developed about a decade ago, producing a material that did not experience the same corrosion problems as metal electrodes when used in electro-osmotic (EO) dewatering applications. The conductive polymeric material from which EKGs are made has the additional advantage of being able to be formed into a variety of shapes, including drainage tubes such as those used in this study. One of the primary concerns regarding EO dewatering applications is the rate of energy consumption. This paper reports experiments at three different scales, on different mine tailings materials, that illustrates the potentially misleading results obtained from small scale laboratory tests. Using large, outdoor tests, power consumption rates for treating a kaolinitic mineral sands tailings and a smectitic diamond tailings were found to be up to 30 times lower than the power consumption rates obtained from laboratory tests using small samples in a purpose built EO cell. The primary reason for the improved performance is thought to be the lower voltage gradient used in the field tests, plus the geometric advantages offered by a field layout where a greater volume of material is exposed to the EO effect than only the material directly between the electrodes, which is the case in the EO cell tests. Finally, in the field tests the EO treatment caused the early development of vertical cracks in the tailings, resulting in increased exposure of the tailings to the effects of solar drying. This effect cannot obviously be reproduced in the EO cell laboratory tests, and can be a major advantage for the in situ treatment of mine tailings lagoons, where in some materials the onset of cracking is significantly delayed by the development of an impermeable surface crust.     

真空堆载联合预压法在实际工程中的运用

通过引入一个工程实例,从设计、施工方面对真空堆载联合预压法进行了论述,并对实际工程中遇到的技术问题提出了相应的解决办法,为不良地基的处理积累了经验。     

真空预压与堆载预压加固软基的微观效果评价

本文以某高速公路路基软土为研究对象,在地质条件相近的、不同试验路段的软基加固方法（堆载预压、真空预压、真空．堆载联合预压）前后（加固时间达到3个月）,工程单位分别进行了原位试验并采取软土样,开展了室内物理力学试验。结合工程单位所取的软土样进行了软土的微观结构试验,在试验的基础上,获得了软土在天然状态以及3种不同工况下的微结构图像,通过对图像处理得到加固前后的微结构特征参数。研究得出：在工程地质条件相近以及加固时间相同的情况下,无论是从宏观、微观结构,还是从固结过程和强度的增长上来看,3种工况的加固效果依次为：堆载预压→真空预压→真空．堆载联合预压。     

Analytical solutions to the axisymmetric consolidation of a multi-layer soil system under surcharge combined with vacuum preloading

Surcharge combined with vacuum preloading is a common technique for accelerating the consolidation process in ground improvement. A unit cell model for the axisymmetric consolidation of a soft soil using a prefabricated vertical drain (PVD) under a surcharge, combined with vacuum preloading, is investigated in this study. Based on this model, analytical solutions for a multi-layer soil system are put forward and the explicit expressions for two-layer and one-layer systems are presented. The accuracy of the proposed solution is verified using an analytical solution available in the literature. In the parametric study, the influencing factors on the consolidation process, such as, the smear zone, the PVD spacing, the hydraulic conductivity in the radial direction, the coefficient of vacuum decrease, are taken into account. The water flow in the radial direction plays an important role in the consolidation process while the impact of the vertical flow mainly develops around the interfaces between two adjacent layers. In addition, the proposed analytical solution is applied in a case history with three different layers and the results are reasonable.     

超载真空预压动力排水固结联合法运用实例

结合汕头市东部城市经济带市政基础设施建设项目试验段某区软基处理工程实例,介绍了超载真空预压动力排水固结联合法,通过检测结果表明,采用超载真空预压动力排水固结联合法能够有效加速软土固结,减少软土工后沉降。     

真空预压处理填埋污泥的固结解析解

真空预压法是一种行之有效的填埋污泥原位加固方法。在考虑真空预压的时间效应条件下,基于椭圆柱等效模型推导了真空预压联合塑料排水板的固结解析解。利用实际监测数据,拟合得出了预压时间效应参数。通过对比研究,分析了传统的圆柱形等效模型与椭圆柱等效模型的差异及预压时间效应参数对固结发展的影响。进一步,将根据解析解计算出的沉降曲线与实测沉降值比较,验证了解答的合理性与实用性。表明,在考虑塑料排水板的"形状效应"时,椭圆柱体等效模型的效果最佳,且基于各周长等效模型的计算结果与椭圆柱等效模型结果较为接近;预压时间效应参数的值越大代表真空预压施加得越快,对应的土体固结发展越快。     

快速真空预压结合强夯法的现场试验研究

结合珠海某软基工程,采用快速真空预压结合强夯法进行软基处理。现场试验结果表明,加固后软土物理力学性质明显得到改良,软土强度得到较大提高,地基承载力试验结果满足设计要求,地基加固效果良好,对类似工程具有一定的指导意义。     

真空预压加固软土地基效果评价

本文结合某真空预压加固软土地基工程,对实测的监测和检测结果进行分析。实践证明,加固后地基土能满足建筑物的建设要求。     

真空堆载联合预压法在公路软基处理中的应用

首先介绍了真空堆载联合预压法的加固机理,然后结合高速公路软基处理中真空堆载联合预压法的应用,分析了对该类工程的加固效果,认为真空堆载联合预压法施工工艺成熟、能增加地基稳定性、缩短施工工期,可作为高速公路软基处理的一种手段进一步推广。     

真空堆载预压联合电渗竖向排水地基非线性固结解析解

基于等应变假设,采用非线性渗透及压缩模型,考虑真空度沿深度线性衰减以及随指数时间增加、附加应力随深度线性减小、有效电压随时间指数衰减特征,推导瞬时加载、单级加载和多级加载方式下的真空堆载预压联合电渗竖向排水地基非线性固结解析解.通过与现有文献中的试验和数值结果对比,验证推导的解析理论的正确性.在此基础上,利用该解对真空...     

Experimental study of PVD-improved dredged soil with vacuum preloading and air pressure

The PVD-vacuum method is the main method used to treat dredged soil, but sometimes it cannot completely meet engineering needs due to the limitations of vacuum pressure. Therefore, based on the traditional PVD-vacuum method, a method of air pressure combined with vacuum preloading is proposed in this paper. The air pressure is transmitted into the dredged soil by using an impermeable and flexible membrane airbag embedded in the dredged soil. A comparison of the traditional PVD-vacuum method and the combination of air pressure and vacuum preloading is investigated by the model test. The data of the settlement and water discharge during the test are monitored. After the tests, the water content and shear strength at different positions are measured. Finally, a method for calculating the volume change of dredged soil is proposed, and the results of the test are used to prove the correctness of the proposed method.