AARON JAMES D.

CLIDORO

BRIDGE ENGINEERING: FINAL EXAM

Sites are underlain by compressible material such as clays, silts or organic soils.

In designing of a bridge with compressible soils are susceptible to large settlements and deformations
with time that can have a detrimental effect on pavement performance. Highly compressible soils are very
low density, saturated soils, usually silts, clays, and organic alluvium or windblown deposits and peats. If
these compressible soils are not treated properly, large surface depressions with random cracking can
develop. The surface depressions can allow water to pond on the pavement's surface and more readily
infiltrate the pavement structure, compounding a severe problem. More importantly, the ponding of
water will create a safety hazard to the traveling public during wet weather.

The selection of a particular technique depends on the depth of the weak soil, and the difference
between the in-situ conditions and the minimum compaction or strength requirements to limit the
amount of anticipated settlement to a permissible value that will not adversely affect pavement
performance. When constructing roadways in areas with deep deposits of highly compressible layers, the
specific soil properties must be examined to calculate the estimated settlement. Under these conditions,
a geotechnical investigation and detailed settlement analysis must be completed prior to the pavement
design. When existing subgrade soils do not meet minimum compaction requirements and are susceptible
to large settlements over time, like for example in removing and processing the soil to attain the
approximate optimum moisture content, and replace and compact.

Fill will be or has recently been placed adjacent to the piles or shafts, such as is frequently the case for
bridge approach fills.

For me, when bridge approach fills are to be constructed in the same contract as the bridge, and the
foundation conditions do not require full height fills to be placed prior to the construction of the pier, the
approach fill is constructed in two stages, i.e., constructed up to the bottom of footing or 1 foot above the
bottom of footing, and then completed after the bridge construction.

The structure excavation shall be computed from the top of the first stage fill. Prior to pier construction,
when a full height fill with or without surcharge is required for settlement, or the original ground line is
above the finish grade line, the upper limit of structure excavation shall be computed to 1 foot 0 inches
below the finish grade (pavement) line.
The groundwater is substantially lowered.

For me, around each pile foundation up to four bore holes will be drilled. The purpose of the bore holes
is to equalize the groundwater pressure around the pile to reduce the risk of the excavation collapsing. In
the drilling of the bores no additives will be used that could contaminate the groundwater. The bores will
also be screened to minimize the amount of suspended sediment in any groundwater discharged. Since
the deeper aquifers are artesian, any potential contaminants will be ‘flushed’ towards the ground surface
rather than migrate through the groundwater system. Consequently there is no risk of contaminating the
groundwater as a result of the proposed construction activities.

And the effect of any abstraction of water from the aquifers at this rate would not be able to be measured
and would therefore be less than minor. The use of bores surrounding each pile to allow the dissipation
of groundwater pressures will reduce any potential effect of excavating the hole for the pile.

Liquefaction of loose sandy soil can occur.

For me, sandy soil layers reduce the volume of the soil during and following liquefaction. This volume
reduction manifests as a downward movement, or settlement, of the overlying soil layers. Such movement
may affect the load distribution on deep foundations. Depending on the site conditions, the change in the
axial responses (i.e., drag load and downdrag) that result from liquefaction-induced settlement can have
a significant impact on the performance of piles or drilled shafts in seismic regions. The development of
drag load on piles and drilled shafts that have been constructed in consolidating soils (i.e., under static
loading) has been researched extensively for geotechnical design.