7/31/2010

Two-day Short-Course on Recent Development in Ground

Improvement
p Techniques
q and Case Histories,, 10-11 August
g 2010

Ground reinforcement methods

and Recent Development
Jian Chu
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Kenny Yee
Secretary General, Association of Geot Society of SEA (AGSSEA)
Menard Asia, Malaysia

C1. Vibro replacement or

stone columns
C2. Dynamic replacement

C3. Sand compaction piles

C3
C. Ground
improveme C4. Geotextile confined
nt with columns
admixtures C5. Rigid inclusions (or
or composite foundation)
inclusions C6. Geosynthetic
y reinforced
column
C7. Microbial methods
C8. Other methods
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C1. Vibro Replacement or Stone

Columns

www.ptc.fayat.com/1-2-11-78/Vibrolance.htm

Wet Top Feed

Merits Larger diameter and larger, stones 40 to 75mm water to stabilise

hole faster (200 – 250m per shift)
Limitations: source of water; desiltation, environmental issue.
Application: For sites with soft soils (cu < 30 kPa).
4

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Dry Bottom Feed

Merits collapse of hole minimised; no water; clean working platform.

Limitations: smaller column diameter; smaller size stones (15 -30mm);
slower installation
Application: For sites with firmer (cu >25 kPa) and low sensitivity.
5

70 – 110cm

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WET PROCESS – TOP FEED

DRY PROCESS - BOTTOM FEED

Crane or excavator-based rigs depends on the length of
stone columns to be installed.

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C2. Dynamic Replacement (DR)

1. Pre-excavation of column print

2. Fill with granular materials (fines < 5%)
3. Pounding to form a compacted “plug”
4. Further filling of granular materials
5. Increase pounding with more energy to
form column to ground level. DR columns are constructed according to a pre-
determined drop heights, blow counts and grid
spacing following a field calibration test.
9

Dynamic replacement
Merits:
•flexible choice of granular backfill (sand Æ
rock pieces of 300mm).
•larger diameter at the top decreasing with
depth (ideal for load distribution)
•fast production (10,000m2 per rig-mth)

Limitations:
•surface vibration may affect sensitive
structures less than 20m away.
• stable
t bl platform
l tf ((min.
i 11m above
b GWT)

Application:
For large sites with shallow depth of
improvement (< 6m).

1
0

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CHARACTERISTICS OF DR COLUMN

Amount backfill per column ~ 25 - 35m3

Typical “average” diameter ~ 2.5 – 3.2m
Typical spacing ~ 4 - 8m
Typical production ~ 10,000m2 per mth

11

DR METHOD – PUNCHING AND

COMPACTING

DR punching pounder to create DR compaction pounder to

columns compact surface after columns.
1
2

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DR COLUMNS – SAND BACKFILL

Av. column diameter ~ 3 m

Pre and post treatment CPT and PMT tests carried out.
Post treatment PMT: EY = 28 MPa PL = 1 MPa
PBT: 12mm at 180 kPa; 17mm at 270 kPa
1
3

DR COLUMNS – AGGREGATE
BACKFILL

Av. 2.8m diameter aggregate columns (3” – 6”) to support 6 – 12m

high road embankments over very soft soil deposit (cu < 10 kN
kN/m
/m2).
1
4

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DR AGGREGATE / SAND COLUMNS

1
5

Typical Column Properties

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Underwater Dynamic Replacement

MERITS OF DR
• The merits of stone columns are equally applicable to DR columns:
• DR has flexibility with backfill materials (sand, aggregate, rock
pieces).
i )
• DR has larger diameter and hence, a higher bearing load
(approx. 80 tons per column).
• DR column has better load distribution at the surface due to its
“inverted” conical shape.
• DR can be used in landfill, collapsible fill and non-engineered fill
in combination with DC.

1
8

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LIMITATIONS OF DR
• Organic soils if present in more than 1 column diameter thick
(> ~ 2m) are not suitable for DR sand column – aggregate
columns
l with
ith higher
hi h compaction
ti energy may bbe usedd instead
i t d
but limit to shallow depth < 6m.
• Surface vibration may cause damage to sensitive structures
within close distance; need to monitor PPV during pounding.
• Need minimum area (> 10 10,000
000 m2) in order to be cost
cost-effective
effective
due to mobilization of heavier base crane.
• DR columns are rather short columns; generally less than 6m.

1
9

King Abdullah Univ Sci Tech

(KAUST) site in Saudi Arabia

Sabkah N=1‐2
SM‐ML

Loose 
SM
M dense 
SM

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Dynamic replacement (DR) at

KAUST

C3. Sand Compaction Pile (SCP)

• SCPs are installed offshore
by driving a casing into the
soft ground to a
predetermined depth. Sand
is then forced through the
casing into the ground to
displace the soft soil and
thereby form a sand pile.
• SCP is a good alternative for
sandd key
k method
th d to
t avoid
id
dredging and disposing of
soft soil.

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Applications

Examples

After
Kitazume
(2005)

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Types of Installation

Pipe
Φ = 30 cm
SCP
Φ = 40 – 50 cm

After Kitazume (2005)

Hammer compaction
25

Pipe
Φ = 40-50 cm
SCP
Φ = 50 – 70 cm

Vertical vibrating compaction

26 After Kitazume (2005)

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Installation Patterns

as = (πd2/4)/D2 as = (√3πd2)/(8D2) as = (πd2/4)/(D1D2sinθ)

Replacement ratio as = As/A

as ≤ 0.3 for sand, 0.3 to 0.8 for clay. When as =
0.78, the SCPs are in contact with each other.

Stress concentration ratio

σA = σcAc + σsAs = σc (Ac + σs/σcAs) = σc (Ac + nAs)

Define stress concentration ratio n = σs / σc

The vertical stress on clay:

σc = σ/[1 + (n -1) as]

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Bearing capacity of a single pile

Vertical stress: P = σA = σc (As n + Ac)

Horizontal stress: σh = σs (1 – sin φs’)/(1 + sinφs’) & σh ≤ σc + σu

Stress concentration ratio σ s 1 + sin φs' ⎛ σ u ⎞

n= = ⎜1 + ⎟
σ c 1 − sin φs' ⎜⎝ σ c ⎟⎠

σu = upper yield stress of clay ground, may be taken as 2cu

The bearing capacity

1 + sin φs
P = σu ( As n + Ac )
(n − 1) + (n + 1) sin φs

Bearing capacity of SCP group

P = Pa + Pc = [asqs + (1 – as)qc] A

The capacity of the clay qc and the capacity of the SCP qs are
estimated separately using Terzaghi’s bearing capacity theory:

Clay: qc = cuNc/Fs
Sand: qs = 0.5BγsNγ/Fs

After Kitazume (2005)

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Stability - Overall

Circular slip method: Composite shear strength

τ = (1 − as )[c0 + kz + μc Δσ z (cu / p)U ]
Fs = R = ∑
M R (τΔl )
+ (γ s z + μ s Δσ z )as tan φs con 2θ
MD ∑ (Wx) c0 = cu at seabed; μc = σc/σ; μs = σs/σ;
U = degree of consolidation;
Δσz = surcharge; γs = unit weight of sand

Stability –Sliding failure

Ppc + Frf + Frc

Fs =
Pae + Pac

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Settlement – no good method yet

S = βS0
β = 1/[1 + (n – 1) as]
S0 = [Δe/(1 + e0)]H
= HCclog (σ2/σ1) or
S0 = mvσ H
Cc: compression index
mv: compression modulus

C4. Geotextile confined columns

(GCC)
A closed bottom geotextile “sock” is placed into a 80 cm 
diameter steel casing before a sand column is formed
diameter steel casing before  a sand column is formed.

34

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C4. GCC (con’d)

35

C5. Rigid inclusions

• Controlled modulus columns (CMC)

• Multiple stepped pile
• Grouted gravel or stone column
• Vibro-concrete column
• Cast-in-situ, large diameter hollow
concrete pile
• Y or X shaped pile

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Controlled modulus columns (CMC)

A borehole is formed using a pressing tool and a column of 
φ250‐450mm is formed by pressure‐grouting. The modulus of 
the column is controlled by varying the strength of the grout.
the column is controlled by varying the strength of the grout. 
 

Grout
fl
flow

Soft soil

CONSTRUCTION OF CMC COLUMNS

Penetration Withdrawal Completion

Soil Injection of Full

displacement cement grout Column

A displacement auger powered by a very large torque

and high static downward thrust is used. Soil is displaced
laterally with minimum spoil and no vibration. The
inclusion takes up 70 – 90% of the stress..
3
8

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Typical Design Parameters

Diameter: 250 – 450 mm; Length: typical 10m to 25m
Grout strength: 5 – 10 MPa
Allowable load: 15 – 35 tons per col.
col
Spacing: typical 1.2m to 3m
Area replacement as: typical 2% - 8%

3
9

Merits and Limitations of CMC

• Merits:
• Combined effect of densification and reinforcement to create a
composite soil-column mass.
• Flexible choice of grout strength to achieve a pre-determined
stiffness ratio with the surrounding soil.
• Miminimum spoil and no vibration – urban technology.
• Fast production (15,000m per rig-mth)
• Limitations:
Li it ti
• Delay caused by delivery of grout inside city.
• Relatively competent substrata to found columns.

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Hybrid or Bi-modulus method

Peat

CMC displacement aurger CMC bottom Stone columns top TSM drilling tool

The lower part of the column is performed by controlled 
modulus columns (CMC) and the upper part by stone columns. 

Cast-in-situ, large diameter hollow

concrete (PCC) pile

Liu et al. (03, 07)

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PCC pile construction process

Pile cap for PCC pile

0.3 0.5 m
m

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Design parameters of PCC pile

• The depth of vibro-sinking is up to 25 m

• Th outer
The t diameter
di t is
i ffrom 11.0
0 tto 1
1.5
5m
• The thickness of the wall is from 100 to 150 mm
• The grade for concrete is C10 to C15 for normal
soil improvement, and C30 for coastal
engineering
• Pile spacing is from 2.5 to 4 m for composite
foundation

Pile core excavation

void, necking or fractures?

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Grouted gravel/stone column

Y-shaped vibro pile technique

12cm
R
径
半
的
圆
包
外

弧度
模板
90°

中隔板

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Construction of Y-shaped vibro pile

Pile after extrusion

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Embankment Piles

51

Embankment Piles

After Bergado (2005)

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Example: Bridge Approach

Effective length of improved section, Le

Lc= Le/2 Ls= Le/2

Approach slab Design crown level

Vertical crest curve
Bridge Anticipated total settlement
PVC
of the improved
impro ed section
G1
S1 Vertical sag curve
S2 Existing ground level
PRVC
Estimated crown level after
20 years, for no soil improvement So
G2
EMBANKMENT
Anticipated crown level after primary
P3 PVT
consolidation (with soil improvement)

Weathered Crust

0.5m diameter DMM piles

Spacing:
S=0.50m
After S=1.0m
S=1.5m SOFT CLAY
Bergado
P2 Parabolic curve
(2005)

P1
x Ls/2 = Le/4 MEDIUM STIFF CLAY
Lc= Le/2

C7 Microbial method

• Bio-cementation (biogrouting) => strength

• Bio clogging =>
Bio-clogging > reduce permeability
• Bio-gas => produce tiny gas bubbles in sand to
increase liquefaction resistance

(van der Ruyt & van der Zon 09) Chu et al. (2008)

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GI TECHNIQUES
soft clay loose sand
REINFORCEMENT methods
CONSOLIDATION COMPACTION
methods Semi-Rigid Inclusions Non-Rigid Inclusions methods
(cement grout etc.) (sand, stone, etc.)

Prefab. Vertical Drains Controlled Modulus Dynamic Replacement Dynamic Compaction

Columns

Vacuum Consolidation Deep Soil Mixing Vibro Replacement Vibro Compaction

55 After Yee (2009)

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