SEQUITIN, Camille Andrea B.

BSCE 5
October 2, 2015
The lesson throughout the remaining days in our class discussed a lot about bridges, geofibers and geotextiles and a lot more. Though
they are may seem diverse, they make transportation efficient end more environment friendly. Other considerations in designs of bridges were
tackled thoughout those times and guides. One of the lesson that was discussed was about the advantages of geofibers such as it saves space as
geofibers are sheet-like and take up much less space in a landfill than do comparable soil and aggregate layer, it has quality control over the
material as Soil and aggregate are generally heterogeneous materials that may vary significantly across a site or borrow area, it also has quality
control over construction as geofibers are manufactured and often factory prefabricated into large sheets so this minimizes the required number
of field connections, or layers, it also saves cost as geofibers materials are generally less costly to purchase, transport and install than soils and
aggregates, the material is also easy to deploy as layers of geofibers are deployed sequentially, but with a minimum of sway between layers,
allowing a single crew to efficiently deploy multiple geofiber layers, geofibers material has also an advantageous availability as there are
numerous of suppliers of geofibers and ease of shipping insure competitive pricing and ready availability of materials, again it is also
environment friendly as geofibers systems reduce the use of natural resources and the environmental damage associated quarrying, trucking, and
other material handling activities. Another significant topic that was discussed was about the factors the results from flood related damages such
as scour around piers and abutments, erosion along toe of highway embankment due to a long-embankment flow, erosion of embankment due to
overtopping flow, debris impact on structure and lastly, Clogging due to debris causing redirection of flow. In order to reduce the potential for
pier scour, we must reduce numbers of piers by increasing span lengths, especially where you expect large debris loads, use bullet-nosed or
circular-shaped piers, use drilled shaft foundations, increase bridge length to reduce through-bridge velocities and align bents with flood flow to
degree practicable. There are also two types of rail discussed which is the solid bridge railing which should be used only where the bridge
superstructure is in no danger of overtopping and the other one which is the open bridge railing which is the most desirable type of rail for
accommodation of flood flow offers the floodwater an opening; it is an open slender type of bridge railing that has a lower backwater and reduced
lateral forces than a more solid type. Stress ribbon which is a special type of suspension bridge where in the cables are embedded in the deck just
below the walking surface was also discussed which has the following advantages, stress ribbon pedestrian bridges are very economical,
aesthetical and almost maintenance free structures, they require minimal quantity of materials, they are erected independently from existing
terrain and therefore they have a minimum impact upon the environment during construction, they are quick and convenient to construct if given
appropriate conditions, without false work and a stress ribbon bridge allows for long spans with a minimum number of piers and the piers can be
shorter than those required for cable stayed or suspension bridges. The 8 main geosynthetic products were also discussed which was the
geotextiles, geogrids, geonets or geospacers, geomembranes, geosynthetic clay liners, geofoam, geocells and geocomposites. Geotextiles are
textiles consisting of synthetic fibers rather than natural ones such as cotton, wool, or silk; these synthetic fibers are made into flexible, porous
fabrics by standard weaving machinery or are matted together in a random non-woven manner. Geogrids have large apertures between individual
ribs in the transverse and longitudinal directions. Geogrids are either stretched in one, two or three directions for improved physical properties,
made on weaving or knitting machinery by standard textile manufacturing methods, or by laser or ultrasonically bonding rods or straps together.
Geonets or geospacers are formed by a continuous extrusion of parallel sets of polymeric ribs at acute angles to one another. They consist of
nubbed, dimpled or cuspated polymer sheets, three-dimensional networks of stiff polymer fibers in different configurations and small drainage
pipes or spacers within geotextiles. Their design function is completely within the drainage area where they are used to convey liquids or gases of
all types. Geomembranes which have a relatively thin material which is used primarily for linings and covers of liquids- or solid-storage facilities.
Geosynthetic clay liners which are rolled of factory fabricated thin layers of bentonite clay sandwiched between two geotextiles or bonded to a
geomembrane. They are used as a composite component beneath a geomembrane or by themselves in geoenvironmental. Geofoam is a product
created by a polymeric expansion process of polystyrene resulting in a foam consisting of many closed, but gas-filled, cells. The resulting
product is generally in the form of large, but extremely light, blocks which are stacked side-by-side providing lightweight fill in numerous
applications. Geocells are three-dimensional honeycombed cellular structures that form a confinement system when infilled with compacted soil.
It is traditionally used in slope protection and earth retention applications. Geocomposites consists of a combination of geotextiles, geogrids,
geonets and/or geomembranes in a factory fabricated unit. The five main applications for geosynthetics in roads are separation, reinforcement,
filtration, drainage and containment. Separation is the placement of a flexible geosynthetic material, like a porous geotextile, between dissimilar
materials so that the integrity and functioning of both materials can remain intact or even be improved. Paved roads, unpaved roads, and railroad
bases are common applications. Reinforcement is the synergistic improvement of a total systems strength created by the introduction of a
geotextile, geogrid or geocell into a soil (that is good in compression, but poor in tension) or other disjointed and separated material. Filtration is
the equilibrium soil-to-geotextile interaction that allows for adequate liquid flow without soil loss, across the plane of the geotextile over a service
lifetime compatible with the application under consideration. Drainage is the equilibrium soil-to-geosynthetic system that allows for adequate
liquid flow without soil loss, within the plane of the geosynthetic over a service lifetime compatible with the application under consideration.
Geopipe highlights this function, and also geonets, geocomposites and very thick geotextiles. Containment involves geomembranes, geosynthetic
clay liners, or some geocomposites which function as liquid or gas barriers. Landfill liners and covers make critical use of these geosynthetics.All
hydraulic applications (tunnels, dams, canals, surface impoundments, and floating covers) use these geosynthetics as well.Bitumen was also
discussed which is defined as a viscous liquid, or a solid consisting essentially of hydrocarbons and their derivatives, which is soluble in trichloro-ethyelene and is substantially non-volatile and softens gradually when heated. It is black or brown in colour & possesses waterproofing
and adhesive properties. It is obtained by refinery processes from petroleum, and is also found as a natural deposit or as a component of naturally
occurring asphalt, in which it is associated with mineral matte. Bitumen is an essential component of any pavement and is used widely throughout
the world. It can be termed as the building block of the pavements without which all the pavement materials would behave independently and
thus will be deemed useless. The main purpose of bitumen in flexible pavements is to strongly bind and hold the other pavement components
together and provide a smooth and leveled surface for the moving vehicles. Bitumen is a naturally occurring material and is found in large
quantities in the solid or semi solid forms of petroleum. It is also manufactured artificially in vast amounts globally. The high demand of
bituminous materials is owing to the number of their first-rate advantageous properties which includes adhesive which binds together all the
components without bringing about any positive or negative changes in their properties, water proof as bitumen is insoluble in water and can
serve as an effective sealant; strong, though the coarse aggregates are the main load bearing component in a pavement, bitumen or asphalt also
play a vital role in distributing the traffic loads to the layers beneath; durable as bitumen lives up to twenty years if maintained properly
throughout the pavement life. Excessive rates of hardening (poor durability) can lead to premature binder embrittlement and surfacing failure
resulting in cracking and chip loss; versatile as bitumen is a relatively easy to use material because of its thermoplastic property. It can be spread
easily along the underlying pavement layers as it liquefies when heated making the job easier and hardens in a solid mass when cooled;
economical as it is available in cheaper rates almost all over the world; Hardness it has a penetration greater than 40 are used for road
construction; softening Point which is a property that make us to know whether given bitumen can be used at the particular place i.e. softening
point value should be higher than pavement temperature; ductility, formation of the film and coating would be proper; viscosity, at low or high

viscosity of bitumen coating of binder around aggregates will not be proper; flash and fire point, flash point 175 degrees and, fire point usually 15
degree higher than flash point and lastly, specific gravity which lies between 0.97 to 1.02.