A Technical Seminar Report on

SOIL NAILING

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the academic year 2017-2018

Requirements for the award of the degree of

Bachelor of Technology

In

Civil Engineering

By

K.ROHIT KUMAR

(14071A0183)

Department of Civil Engineering

Vallurupalli Nageswara Rao Vignana Jyothi Institute of

Engineering & Technology

Approved by A.I.C.T.E., Autonomous (UGC)

Accredited by NBA, NAAC (A Grade)

Bachupally, Nizampet (S.O.), Hyderabad – 500 090

2017-2018

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 BONAFIDE CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that this technical seminar report on SOIL NAILING is the
original bonafide work of K.ROHIT KUMAR (14071A0183).

SIGNATURE SIGNATURE

Dr. A.Mallika Sri R. Durga Prasad

Professor,
Head of The Department
CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
VNR VIGNANA JYOTHI INSTITUTE
OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY,
BACHUPALLY, NIZAMPET (S.O)
HYDERABAD-500090
Assistant Professor,
Technical Seminar Faculty
CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
VNR VIGNANA JYOTHI INSTITUTE OF
ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
BACHUPALLY, NIZAMPET (S.O)
HYDERABAD-500090

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 DECLARATION

I, the Undersigned declare that the technical seminar report on SOIL NAILING is
an original work written and submitted by me.

SIGNATURE
K.ROHIT KUMAR
(14071A0183)

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 ABSTRACT

Soil nailing is an in-situ reinforcement technique by passive bars which can withsand
tensile forces, shearing forces anb bending moments. This techinque is used for
retaining walls and for slope stabilization. Its behaviour is typical of that of composite
materials and involves essentially two interaction mechanisms : The soil- reinforcement
friction and the normal earth pressure on the reinforcement. The mobilization of the
lateral friction requires frictional properties for the soil, while the mobilization of the
normal earth pressure requires a relative rigidity of the inclusions. Taking into account
these mechanisms, a multi-criteria at failure design method is proposed. It is derived
from the slice methods used in slope stability analysis. The criteria lead to a yielding
curve in the shear – tensile forces plane and the consideration of the principle of the
maximun plastic work enables to calculate the shear and tensile forces mobilized at
failure in each inclusion. Using an formulation determinate, the slope stability analysis
take into account the passive force of reinforcement.

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to Mr R. Durga Prasad, Assistant Professor, Technical

Seminar Faculty, Civil Engineering Department, VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering
and Technology Bachupally, Nizampet (S.O) Hyderabad for providing me an opportunity to
present my Technical Seminar.
I sincerely thank Dr.A. Mallika (HOD-CE), for her guidance and encouragement in carrying out
the technical seminar presentation. I also wish to express my gratitude to all my fellow friends
and other staff members of my department, who rendered their help during my technical seminar
presentation.
I also sincerely thank the principal of VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering and
Technology for providing me this opportunity.

K.ROHIT KUMAR

(14071A0183)

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TABLE OF CONTENTS:

 Introduction
 History of soil nailing
 Literature review
 Applications
 Types of soil nailing
 Advantages
 Disadvantages
 Conclusion
 References

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INTRODUCTION

soil nailing is a construction remedial measure to treat unstable natural soil slopes or
as a construction technique that allows the safe over-steepening of new or existing soil
slopes. The technique involves the insertion of relatively slender reinforcing elements
into the slope – often general purpose reinforcing bars(rebar) although proprietary solid
or hollow-system bars are also available. Solid bars are usually installed into pre-drilled
holes and then grouted into place using a separate grout line, whereas hollow bars may
be drilled and grouted simultaneously by the use of a sacrificial drill bit and by pumping
grout down the hollow bar as drilling progresses. Kinetic methods of firing relatively
short bars into soil slopes have also been developed. Bars installed using drilling
techniques are usually fully grouted and installed at a slight downward inclination with
bars installed at regularly spaced points across the slope face. A rigid facing (often
pneumatically applied concrete, otherwise known as shotcrete) or isolated soil nail head
plates may be used at the surface.[1] Alternatively a flexible reinforcing mesh may be
held against the soil face beneath the head plates. Rabbit proof wire mesh and
environmental erosion control fabrics and may be used in conjunction with flexible mesh
facing where environmental conditions dictate. Soil nail components may also be used
to stabilize retaining walls or existing fill slopes (embankments and levees); this is
normally undertaken as a remedial measure.
Since its first application using modern techniques in Versailles in 1972,[2] soil nailing is
now a well-established technique around the world. One of the first national guideline
publications for soil nailing was produced in Japan in 1987.The U.S. Federal Highway
Administration issued guideline publications in 1996[3] and 2003.
Soil Nailing is a procedure to reinforce and strengthen ground adjacent to an excavation
by installing closely spaced steel bars called “nails” as construction proceeds from top
down. It is an effective and economical method of constructing retaining wall for
excavation support, support of hill cuts, bridge abutments and high ways.This process is
effectively in cohesive soil, broken rock, shale or fixed face conditions

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History of soil nailing

The origin of soil nailing comes from rock bolting in tunneling, and the first mention of
soil nailing came out in the 1960's with the "New Australian Tunneling Method". This
article describes this method as combination of shotcrete and fully bonded steel
inclusions that increased the stability of the excavation.Gradually the technique has
been applied to less cohesive materials until the technique was ripe enough to be
applied in the stabilization of soil formations. The earliest application of soil nailing in
Europe was in the stabilization works of a small section of a tunnel from the
underground trains in Frankfurt in 1970.Then the French engineers got their feet wet in
using this technique in the early 70's. French Contractors Bouygues and Soletenche in
a joint venture used soil nailing to stabilize a 70 degree slope for a road expansion
project near Versailles. This is the first recorded use of soil nailing in its modern form.
In the USA, the university of California at Davis, concerned with the lack of information
on performance, conducted through a research program that included centrifuge testing,
full scale trials and finite element analysis.

In Hong Kong soil nailing was used for the first time in the early eighties to
stabilize weathered zones in slopes. Also, some passive soil nails were installed, but
the real interest in soil nailing took of in 1987. In 1987 a steep cut face was stabilized
for the construction of the retaining wall on King's road. In 1987, in Kam Shan, Tai Po,
permanent soil nails were installed in a masonry skin wall. In the last few years, the
Hong Kong has incorporated soil nailing as its standard construction method in the
stabilization of slopes.

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 Literature review

A Review Of Soil Nailing

Jadeja Rajveer1, Savani Brijesh2, Makawana Hardik3, Kalsariya

Dinesh4, Maulik Kansagara5

According to the author The main aim of this research is to bring soil stability in area
where landslides might be a problem by inserting carbon rods in place of steel
reinforcement bars in yellow type soil. Carbon fiber reinforced polymer, carbon fiber
reinforced plastic or carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP or often
simply carbon fiber, or even carbon), is an extremely strong and light fiber-reinforced
plastic which contains carbon fibers.

According to author Soil nailing is a construction method that can be used as a remedial
measure to treat unstable natural soil slopes or as a construction technique that allows
the safe over-steepening of new or presented soil slopes. The technique involves the
insertion of relatively slender reinforcing elements into the slope – often general
purpose reinforce bars though proprietary solid or hollow-system bars are also
available. Solid bars are usually installed into pre-drilled holes and then grouted into
place using a separate grout line, whereas hollow bars may be drilled and grouted
simultaneously by the use of a sacrificial drill bit and by pumping grout down the hollow
bar as drilling progress. The purpose is to provide updated, state-of-the-practice
information for selecting, designing, and construct soil nail walls for road way project.
The information contained herein is aimed at producing secure and cost-effective soil
nail designs for road way projects, and to help owners to recognize and manage the
risks associated with soil nail wall projects. It focuses slowly on soil nail systems
providing long-term support of excavation of a permanent structure. It does not specially
address the use of soil nails as temporary structures for providing temporary support of
excavation or to become constant landslide.

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Applications

 Soil nailing is an in situ soil reinforcement technique that has been used for the
last three decades for stabilising slopes and retaining excavations. The soil
nailing process includes the installation of nails into the excavated cut or in the
slope either by driving and grouting in pre-drilled holes

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Soil nailing is performed by staged excavations from “the top down”. It consists of
several steps which include subsequent excavating of soil layers, covering
exposed surfaces with shotcrete, nailing with steel inclusions and grouting. Nails
are generally high-strength steel bars (up to 50 mm in diameter) placed in the
boreholes with vertical and horizontal spacing varying typically from 1 to 3 m. The
nails are then cement grouted by gravity or under low pressure in order to ensure
the bond between the ground and reinforcement. The zone of reinforced soil
performs as a homogeneous and resistant unit.

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 It supports the unreinforced ground behind much as a conventional gravity
retaining wall. Shotcrete facing is often used in soil nailing wall construction. The
main functions of the facing are to ensure the stability of the ground between the
reinforcement layers, and to protect the soil from surface erosion. The facing is
generally reinforced with a welded wire mesh and its thickness is obtained by
application of successive layers of shotcrete (figure 2b). Soil nails are relatively
simple and inexpensive to install, and there is only a little disturbance to the
surrounding ground. This technology is flexible, as both structural elements (i.e.
inclusions and facing) and installation techniques can be easy adopted to provide
the most appropriate solution for specific site conditions. Therefore this method
has also been used successfully in remedial construction, for example :-

 The stabilizing of existing over-steep embankments.

 Soil Nailing through existing concrete or masonry structures such as failing
retaining walls and bridge abutments to provide long term stability without
demolition and rebuild costs.
 Temporary support can be provided to excavations without the need for bulky
and intrusive scaffold type temporary works solutions
 The stabilizing of existing over-steep embankments.
 Soil Nailing through existing concrete or masonry structures such as failing
retaining walls and bridge abutments to provide long term stability without
demolition and rebuild costs.
 Temporary support can be provided to excavations without the need for bulky
and intrusive scaffold type temporary works solutions

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 Figure: soil nailing installation

Figure: concreting after completion of soil naling

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Figure 1: Typical soil nail wall arrangement

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Soil nail wall construction sequence

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TYPES OF NAILS

 Driven Nails
 Grouted Nails
 Corrosion Protected Nails
 Jet grouted Nails
 Launched Nails

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 Driven Nails

Generally small-diameter nails (15-46 mm) with a relatively limited

length (to about 20 m) made of mild steel (about 50 ksi) that are closely
spaced in the wall (two to four nails per square meter). Nails with an
axial channel can be used to permit the addition of grout sealing. Driven
nails are the quickest (four to six per hour) and most economical to
install (with a pneumatic or hydraulic hammer).

Driven nailing is used for temporary stabilization of soil slopes. In this method,
the nails are driven in the slope face during excavation. This method is very
fast, but does not provide corrosion protection to the reinforcement steel or
nails.

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  Grouted Nails

Steel bars, with diameters ranging from 15 to 46 mm, stronger than driven nails (about 60 ksi). • Grouted nails
are inserted into boreholes of 10-15 cm and then cement grouted. • Ribbed bars are also used to increase soil
adhesion. • Corrosion-protected nails • For aggressive soils as well as for permanent structures

 Corrosion Protected Nails

For aggressive soils as well as for permanent structures. these nails are prevented from
corrosion of nails.

galvanised iron nail

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Jet-grouted nails

A composite of grouted soil and a central steel rod, up to 40 cm thick. Nails are installed using a
high-frequency vibropercussion hammer, and cement grouting is injected during installation.
This method has been shown to increase the pullout resistance of the composite, and the nails are
corrosion-resistant

In this method, jets are used for eroding the soil for creating holes in the slope
surface. Steel bars are then installed in this hole and grouted with concrete. It
provides good corrosion protection for the steel bars (nails).

soil nail reinforced wall with jet grouting include the adaptability to varying site conditions.
There are no restrictions regarding the bottom of wall embedment because surface movement
can be controlled by adding additional nails. Higher compressive soil strengths along the face of
the excavation are created from the jet grout thus providing an overall soil improvement. The
construction of the jet grout wall will create a groundwater cut off wall, thus reducing dewatering
during excavations. Quality assurance can be well documented, as each nail may be proof tested
and the jet grout compressive strength can be verified. A soil nail reinforced wall with jet
grouting is well suited to sites with difficult access because of the relatively small size and
mobility of the construction equipment; noise and vibration nuisances are minimized.

A high degree of system redundancy of this wall minimizes the affect of a failure of one
inclusion. Given the highly variable SPT N-values and subsurface materials, redundancy from
the installation of multiple nails provides a wall that allows the contractor flexibility in nail
placement location and construction. This was critical around the existing dam where there is
little clearance between the dam and Beach Drive. For a single row of anchors (tiebacks) to be
installed, the anchors would need to be firmly bonded into rock and a much smaller margin of
error is required for both placement and construction. By constructing a wall with one or two
rows of tiebacks, the grout facing will become a structural member of the wall and not just a
facing element; therefore requiring structural steel reinforcement. To provide structural support
for this scenario, the grout facing would also be required to be firmly seated into firm rock
requiring large diameter rock coring.

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Figure 7 - Excavated Jet Grout Column Partially Removed From the Ground

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Fig:Jet Grout Installation from Beach Drive Showing Water Jets, Operator and Protective

Mats

 Launched Nails

Nails between 25 and 38 mm in diameter and up to 6 m or longer are

fired directly into the soil with a compressed-air launcher. Used primarily for
slope stabilization, this technique involves the least site disturbance

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Launched nails can have the following applications:

• horizontal drainage – installation of perforated nails will help reduce peak ground water levels

• vertical gas venting – useful to vent methane from landfills

• wall strengthening – existing walls that have deteriorating tiebacks, increased external loading,
or ageing components can be remediated by launched nails

• ground anchors and tiebacks • temporary excavation support – speed of installation means that
excavation and launched nails can work together at the same time

• steep slope stabilization – in either new works or old slopes that have started to fail

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Figure 2. Diagram of launching mechanism

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 Advantages

 With the right soil and site conditions, a rapid and economical means of
constructing earth retention support systems and retaining walls.
 Shorter drill holes.
 Smaller diameter bars at shorter lengths.
 Retaining walls are secured laterally into the soil, eliminating piles and
foundation footers.
 Grouting only once is required, saving time and labor.
 The technique is flexible, easily modified.
 Creates less noise and traffic obstructions.
 Less impact on nearby properties
 Allow in-situ strengthening on existing slope surface with minimum
excavation and backfilling, particularly very suitable for uphill widening,
thus environmental friendly,
 Allow excellent working space in front of the excavation face,
 Can be used for strengthening of either natural slope, natural or man-
made cut slopes.
 Less disruptive to traffic and causes less environmental impact
compared to other construction methods.
Provide a less congested work place, particularly when compared to
bracedexcavations.

 There is no need to embed any structural element below the bottom of

excavation as with soldier beams used in ground anchor walls.

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 Soil nail installation is relatively rapid and uses typically less
construction materials than ground anchor walls.
Nail location, inclination, and lengths can be adjusted easily when
obstructions (cobbles or boulders, piles or underground utilities) are
encountered. On the other hand, the horizontal position of ground
anchors is more difficult to modify almost making field adjustments
costly.Since considerably more soil nails are used than ground
anchors, adjustments to the design layout of the soil nails are more
easily.
 Requires smaller right of wat than ground anchors as soil nails are
typically shorter;
 Less disruptive to traffic and causes less environmental impact
compared to other construction methods.
 Provide a less congested work place, particularly when compared to
bracedexcavations.
 There is no need to embed any structural element below the bottom
of excavation as with soldier beams used in ground anchor walls.
 Soil nail installation is relatively rapid and uses typically less
construction materials than ground anchor walls.
 Nail location, inclination, and lengths can be adjusted easily when
obstructions (cobbles or boulders, piles or underground utilities) are
encountered. On the other hand, the horizontal position of ground
anchors is more difficult to modify almost making field adjustments
costly.
 Since considerably more soil nails are used than ground anchors,
adjustments to the design layout of the soil nails are more easily
accomplished in the field without compromising the level of safety.
 Overhead construction requirements are smaller than those for
ground anchor walls because soil nail walls do not require the
installation of soldier beams (especially when construction occurs
under a bridge).
 Soil nailing is advantageous at sites with remote access because
smaller equipment is generally needed.
 Soil nail walls are relatively flexible and can accommodate relatively
large total and differential settlements.

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 Measured total deflections of soil nail walls are usually within
tolerable limits.
 Soil nail walls have performed well during seismic events owing to
overall system flexibility.
 Soil nail walls are more economical than conventional concrete
gravity walls when conventional soil nailing construction procedures
are used.
 Soil nail walls are typically equivalent in cost or more cost-effective
than ground anchor walls when conventional soil nailing construction
procedures are used.
 Shotcrete facing is typically less costly than the structural facing
required for other wall systems.

DISADVANTAGES

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 Nail encroachment to retained ground rendering unusable underground space,
 Generally larger lateral soil strain during removal of lateral support and ground surface
cracking may appear,
 Tendency of high ground loss due to drilling technique, particularly at course grained
soil,
 Less suitable for course grained soil and soft clayey soil, which have short self support
time, and soils prone to creeping,
 Suitable only for excavation above groundwater
 Soil nail walls may not be appropriate for applications where very
strict deformation control is required for structures and utilities
located behind the proposed wall, as the system requires some
soil deformation to mobilize resistance. Deflections can be
reduced by post tensioning but at an increased cost.
 Existing utilities may place restrictions on the location, inclination,
and length of soil nails.
 Soil nail walls are not well-suited where large amounts of
groundwater seeps into the excavation because of the
requirement to maintain a temporary unsupported excavation face.
 Permanent soil nail walls require permanent, underground
easements.
 Construction of soil nail walls requires specialized and
experienced contractors.

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Case study

Figure: soil nailed wall

Soil nailing is being used in many geotechnical applications to improve stability of

excavated vertical cuts and existing slopes. This paper presents a few case studies on
the stabilization of a vertical cut and improvement of slope stability using soil-nailing
technique. It was found that the vertical cut stability/slope stability improved due to the
reinforcing effect of nails. The study illustrates that the technique is a viable technique to
improve the stability of vertical cuts and stability of existing slopes and its advantages
need to be exploited on a large scale in infrastructure projects.

Reinforcement Parameter
properties
Diameter 20mm
Vertical spacing 0.5 m
Horizontal spacing 0.5 m
Tensile capacity 100 kN
Bond Strength 10 kN/m

Table 2: Reinforcement Properties

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Soil nailing has been used extensively as an in-situ reinforcement technique in many
parts of the world (FHWA,2003). The design and analysis are essentially based on limit
equilibrium methods. One of the important aspects of the analysis of in-situ earth
reinforcement is in understanding the behaviour of soil-nailed retaining walls. In a soil-
nailed retaining wall, the properties and material behaviour of three components—the
native soil, the reinforcement (nails) and the facing element—and their mutual
interactions significantly affect the performance of the structure.

CONCLUSION

 Since this process is effective in cohesive soil, broken rock, shale, or

mixed face conditions it permits flexibility to conform to a variety of
geometric shapes to meet specific site needs.
 Due to its rather straightforward construction method and is relatively
maintenance free, the method has gained popularity in India for
highway and also hillside development projects. Soil nailing is an
economical means of creating shoring systems and retaining walls

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  Provision of facing results in the significant improvement of the
stability and performance of soil nail walls.
 Intermittent facing with a small offset in each construction stage is
found to be more effective in reducing the lateral deformation of soil
nail walls than regular continuous vertical facing.
 For soil nail walls with rigid facing the axial force developed at the
head (i.e. at facing end) of a given soil nail is generally 80-90% of the
maximum axialforce developed in it.
 In addition to the peak seismic acceleration, the overall stability (i.e.
external as well as internal) and performance of the soil nail walls is
dependant on the other spectral properties (e.g., strong motion
duration and peak displacement) of the time history data of an
earthquake.
 Pseudo-static analyses is found to provide conservative estimate of
displacements and factor of safety values.

REFERENCES

 British Standards Institute, “Code of Practice for Strengthened/Reinforced Soils and

Other Fills”, BS8006, 1995.
 British Standards Institute, “Code of Practice for Ground Anchorages”, BS8081, 1989,
 British Standards Institute, “The Structural Use of Concrete”, BS8110, 1997,
 Federal Highway Administration, 1998, Manual for Design & Monitoring Construction
of Soil Nail Walls,
 Special Project Report No. SPR 8/2004, Geotechnical Engineering Office, Hong Kong

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 International Journal of Advance Engineering and Research
Development (IJAERD) Special Issue SIEICON-2017, April -2017,e-
ISSN: 2348 - 4470 , print-ISSN:2348-6406

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