Design and Performance of a 46-m-High MSE Wall |
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Authors: | Armin W. Stuedlein Michael Bailey Doug Lindquist John Sankey William J. Neely |
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Affiliation: | 1Assistant Professor, School of Civil and Construction Engineering, Oregon State Univ., 220 Owen Hall, Corvallis, OR 97331 (corresponding author). E-mail: armin.stuedlein@oregonstate.edu 2CEO, Hart Crowser, 1700 Westlake Ave. North, Ste. 200, Seattle, WA 98109. E-mail: mike.bailey@hartcrowser.com 3Senior Associate, Hart Crowser, 1700 Westlake Ave. North, Ste. 200, Seattle, WA 98109. E-mail: doug.lindquist@hartcrowser.com 4Vice President of Engineering, The Reinforced Earth Company, 8614 Westwood Center Dr., Vienna, VA 22182. E-mail: jsankey@reinforcedearth.com 5Senior Vice President and Chief Engineer, Retaining Wall Services, Inc., 1660 Hotel Circle North, Suite 304, San Diego, CA 92108. E-mail: wneely@retainingwallservices.com
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Abstract: | This paper focuses on the design and performance of a very tall mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) wall. Expansion of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport called for the construction of a third runway west of the two existing runways. A significant volume of compacted earth fill was required to raise the grade as much as 50 m to meet the level of the existing airfield. Nominal 2H:1V fill slopes were used where possible, but MSE retaining walls were used where fill slopes would have encroached into existing wetlands. Consequently a four-tier 46-m-tall MSE wall was constructed along a portion of the western edge of the embankment. Performance monitoring included strain gauge-instrumented reinforcing strips, inclinometer installations with sondex settlement rings, optical survey of the wall facing for vertical and lateral movements, and piezometers. This paper describes wall design issues, aspects associated with the instrumentation of the wall, and the observed performance. Monitoring indicates satisfactory performance of the MSE wall and compares reasonably well with predicted performance. |
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Keywords: | Soil stabilization Retaining walls Performance characteristics Instrumentation Design Displacement Washington Airport and airfield runways |
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