ANNEX

Ground Improvement Works at Changi East

Figure 1 Types of Ground Improvement Work at Changi East

1 In a large site like Changi East, wide variations in the condition of the underlying
sand and clay layers are to be expected. Depending on the underlying soil conditions and
site constraints, a mix of ground improvement methods (see below) will be adopted to treat
and strengthen the soil.

(a) Prefabricated Vertical Drain

This method is used to accelerate the consolidation process in soft clay. Prefabricated
Vertical Drains (PVDs) are installed at regular intervals into the soft clay layer by a machine
to create short horizontal drainage paths. Excess pore water in the clay layer then flows
horizontally to the nearest PVD, and vertically up to the pipeline.

PVD is a well-proven and a cost-effective treatment method for clay. It was also used to
improve the properties of the seabed soils (thick layers of highly compressible marine clay)
when Changi East was reclaimed in the 1990s.

(b) Earth/Fill Surcharge

The earth/fill surcharge method goes hand in hand with the PVD installation. Surcharge
mounds are overlaid on the soil improvement area as additional loading to add pressure to
the ground to speed up the consolidation process. The materials used for the surcharge are
sand and good earth materials. The duration of consolidation, the quantity of surcharge

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material and the height of the surcharge mound, will vary according to the soil conditions and
settlement criteria.

(c) Vacuum Preloading System

This method utilises suction force as a temporary surcharge instead of sand and good earth
materials. The vacuum preloading system works by applying a vacuum suction into an
isolated soil mass to reduce the atmospheric pressure and pore water pressure in the soil.
The entire system consists of the drainage system, isolation system and vacuum pumps,
generating vacuum suction and causing pore water to flow towards the PVD.

The vacuum preloading system will help to overcome the operational constraints of working
next to a runway where placement of earth surcharge mounds is not permitted.

(d) Deep Cement Mixing

The basic principle of deep cement mixing is to improve the engineering property of soft
compressible soil. Through the use of an auger penetrating into the ground, cement-based
solidifier slurry is mixed with soft soil to improve the shear strength. This method will help to
improve the bearing capacity and stability of the ground.

Because it is a mixing method, it provides an economical solution to strengthen soft soils

through adjustments to the optimum amount of cement to be used under different soil
conditions. However, to penetrate into the deep and thick soft soil layers, this method
requires the use of tall equipment which is costly to mobilize and operate. The equipment
can only be operated in areas where it can meet height constraints.

(e) Jet Grouting Piles

Jet Grouting Piles (JGP) employs a cement mixing technique in which cement is used as a
binding agent to mix with existing soil to achieve better strength. The piles are constructed
by applying high pressure cement grout that is injected into the designated soil strata at high
velocities. In this project, high–energy jet water will be used to first break the soil around the
drill string before the cement grout is injected into the soft soil.

For areas with thick soft soil layers, this method is considerably more expensive than other
ground treatment methods but it can overcome the height constraints when improving the
condition of the soil next to an operating runway.

(f) Vibro-flotation (Deep Compaction)

This ground improvement method aims to induce compaction of granular materials at a

certain depth and is rooted in the following principle: particles of non-cohesive soils can be
rearranged into a denser state by means of vibration. To achieve the densification, vibrating
probes are spaced to ensure that the zones of influence overlap sufficiently throughout the
area to be treated. This methodology is suitable for treating sand layers.

Vibro-flotation (deep compaction) will be adopted to densify the topmost sand layer
throughout the site.

2 The following diagrams show the combinations of ground improvement methods

adopted to improve the soil conditions at Changi East.

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Figure 2: PVD + earth surcharge (Source: Penta-Ocean - Koon Joint Venture)

Figure 3: PVD + vacuum preloading with vibro-floatation (deep compaction) (Source: Penta-
Ocean - Koon Joint Venture)

Figure 4: Cement treatment with vibro-floatation (deep compaction) (Source: Penta-Ocean -

Koon Joint Venture)

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About the Changi East “Land Preparation Works for Airport Development” Project

Total land area where the ground is to be 720ha, or equivalent to 667 football fields
improved:
Depth of underlying soft soil that requires Varies from 15m-60m, equivalent to a 4-16
improvement storey building
Number of services to be diverted More than 1,000 cables for 11 services
No. of PVD Machines required 52
No. of Vibroflotation/ Deep Compaction 56
Machines required
No. of Jet Grouting Piles Machines 15
required
No. of Deep Cement Mixing Machines 15
required
Total length of PVDs installed 74,000km
(or 1,728 PIEs (from Tuas to Changi) lined
up from end to end)
Amount of Cement required 330,000 m3
(enough to fill up 132 Olympic sized
swimming pools)
Amount of Surcharge Materials required 18,000,000 m3
(enough to fill up 4.3 MacRitchie
Reservoirs)