Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Vibro Ground Brochure
Vibro Ground Brochure
Vibro Ground Brochure
Deep vibro techniques present exible solutions for soil improvement. They are mainly used under foundations of structures that are to be constructed on soils of low bearing capacity or with liquefaction potential. Keller developed the depth vibrator (patented in 1934), which was originally used to compact granular soils such as sand and gravel. Today, throughout the world, Keller improves a variety of granular and cohesive soils employing a wide range of depth vibrator models and techniques.
Contents
3 4 6 8 10 11
Overview of deep vibro techniques Vibro Compaction Vibro Replacement Structural Foundation Elements Special Applications Quality Control
GROUND ENGINEERING
The third technique creates structural foundation elements in the ground which will allow comparatively high loads to be safely carried by soils where no adequate lateral support for Vibro Replacement columns can be mobilized.
The execution
The cylindrical depth vibrator is typically between 3m and 5m long and weighs approximately 2 tonnes. The core element of the vibrator is an electrically driven eccentric weight which induces the horizontal oscillation of the vibrator. The vibrator string is assembled with the vibrator and extension tubes to The benefits suit the improvement depth and suspended from a The deep vibro techniques provide a highly crane or mounted on a custom built base machine versatile ground improvement method that (such as the Keller Vibrocat). can be adjusted to a wide variety of ground conditions and foundation requirements. The techniques The depth vibrator is used for 3 distinct Its execution is comparatively fast even if techniques which differ both in their soil large volumes of soil are to be improved and improvement and in their load transfer mechanism. subsequent structural works can follow quickly. The foundation design is therefore frequently The soil improvement enables the contractor developed in close cooperation with both the to utilise standard shallow footings or ground consultants geotechnical and structural engineers bearing slabs which, in turn, leads to additional savings compared to suspended oor options. and Keller. The Vibro Compaction technique compacts granular soils with negligible fines content by rearrangement of the soil particles into a denser state. The Vibro Replacement technique builds load bearing columns made from gravel or crushed stone in cohesive soils and granular soils with high nes content. Another advantage is the environmental friendliness of the deep vibro techniques, as natural and in situ materials are used and a comparatively small quantity of soil is removed in the process.
For all techniques the vibro process starts with the penetration of the oscillating vibrator into the ground to the required improvement depth. The soil treatment is carried out on extraction by either compacting the soil or by building a stone column or structural element from the bottom up.
Silt
Sand
Transition zone
Gravel
Cobbles
100 80 60
40 20 0
0,002
0,006
0,02
0,06
0,2
0,6
2,0
6,0
GROUND ENGINEERING
Extension tube
Flexible coupling
Geotechnical aspects
Under the inuence of the induced vibration, the soil particles within the zone of inuence are rearranged and compacted. The range of this zone depends on the vibrator used, the soil and the method employed. The volume reduction of the compacted soil can reach values in the order of 10% depending on the soil conditions and the intensity of the compaction effort.
1 Penetration At full water pressure the oscillating vibrator penetrates to the design depth and is surged up and down as necessary to agitate the sand, remove nes and form an annular gap around the vibrator. When at full depth the water ow is reduced or stopped.
Eccentric Weight
Nose Cone
The extent of compaction for an individual point is governed by several parameters. Keller is able to draw upon a wealth of experience to propose a suitable foundation concept. The optimum arrangement of the vibro compaction points is usually best achieved by an on-site trial, where different compaction grids and methods can be tested and evaluated. After compaction, high loads can be safely carried and can reach foundation pressures up to 1MN/m2.
The layout of the compactions points can be adjusted in such a manner that soil volumes of any size are compacted. The achieved degree of compaction can be easily and economically veried using a range of different tests.
The process
GROUND ENGINEERING
Natural or man made deposits of sand and gravel are frequently not dense enough or are too inhomogeneous to allow a proposed structure to be safely and reliably founded. With Kellers depth vibrators the soil density can be increased and homogenized independent of the depth of the groundwater table.
Depth 0 -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 -7 -8 -9 ...
2 Compaction The compaction is carried out in steps from the maximum depth of penetration upwards. It encompasses a cylindrical soil body of up to 5m diameter.The increase in density is indicated by an increased power consumption of the vibrator.
3 Backlling Around the vibrator a crater develops which is backlled with sand, which is either imported (A) or taken from the existing soil (B). For this purpose a volume of up to 10% of the treated soil volume is required.
4 Finishing After completion of the compaction, the surface is re-levelled and, if required, compacted with a surface vibratory roller.
As early as 1939 a compaction depth of 35 m was reached on a site in Berlin. Nowadays maximum compaction depths beyond 50m can be achieved.
Special applications
With depth vibrators, slender elements such as dolphins, soil anchors or steel proles can be sunk into sandy soils and securely anchored. A further field of application is the densication of wall zones and excavation bases to reduce their permeability.
Vibrator in a compaction crater
-35
...
...
GROUND ENGINEERING
VIBRO REPLACEMENT
The Vibro Replacement method is used in granular soils with high nes contents and in cohesive soils.
Flexible coupling
Geotechnical aspects
The Vibro Replacement process, does not assume any compaction in the surrounding soil. The improvement relies on the higher stiffness and higher shear strength of the stone column.
Electrical motor Stone feeder pipe
1 Preparation
2 Charging The skip is lifted and empties its contents into the air chamber. Once the air lock is closed, the material ow towards the vibrator tip assisted by pressurized air.
6 5 4 3 2
B = 1/3
Eccentric Weight
S = 35.0
Nozzle
10
11
Area ratio A / A S
The process
S = 45.0
The Vibrocat positions the vibrator over the required location of the compaction point and stabilises itself using hydraulic supports. A wheel loader lls the skip with aggregate.
A ppl i c a t i o n s o f
GROUND ENGINEERING
Mixed grained and ne grained soils frequently do not possess a sufcient bearing capacity. For nes content in excess of 10% to 15% the soils cannot be effectively compacted without the introduction of additional material. For these cases the Vibro Replacement technique is a viable option. This technique is also suitable for the treatment of coarse lls such as rubble, building debris and slag heaps.
Depth 0 -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 -7 -8 -9
3 Penetration The vibrator displaces the soil and is lowered to the designed depth, aided by the compressed air and by the vibrocats pull-down.
4 Compaction After reaching the maximum depth the vibrator is pulled up slightly, causing the aggregate to ll the cavity so created. During re-penetration the aggregate is compacted and pressed into the surrounding soil.
5 Finishing The stone column is built up in alternating steps up to the designed level. During the nal levelling, the surface requires to be re-compacted or alternatively a blinding layer is provided.
The Vibro Replacement technique was developed in the late 1950s. Without any special modications the bottom feed setup the vibrocat can install columns up to 20 m depth.
...
GROUND ENGINEERING
Installation of grouted stone columns with in-situ grouting using cement slurry
Geotechnical aspects
The load bearing behaviour of the structural foundation elements is similar to the behaviour of piles.
Material charging
GROUND ENGINEERING
Geotechnical aspects
During the installation of Vibro Concrete Columns a high degree of improvement can be achieved at the toe of the column, thus attaining a particularly high capacity and low deformations under load.
Installation of Vibro Concrete Columns
Preparation
Pull down Vibrocat Concrete Pump Vibrator with concrete feeder pipe Readymixed concrete
GROUND ENGINEERING
SPECIAL APPLICATIONS
For Vibro Replacement offshore, such as for quay walls and bridge pillars, a gravel blanket can be placed which is then installed into the ground. Bottom feed systems are also available.
10
QUALITY CONTROL
GROUND ENGINEERING
For all vibro techniques, electronic measuring devices are employed to ensure and record constant high quality workmanship.
Vibration Process (3.0.0) Site: 1234173 Point: 241 Ref. No.: Time: 05:10:47 Interval:
Load tests are a suitable option to verify the improvement of the soil
Depth [m ]
Thrust [bar]
Power [A]
500
1000
1500
2000
Event No. Type 01 09 02 10
2
Time Description Point Start Point End Depth Electrical Susp. Energy Point [kVAh] [cbm] 0.1 0.1 0.00 21.03 0.00 0.00 Net Weight [Ton] 2.98 2.79 Total Weight [Ton] 2.98 5.77 Inclination Inclination Right/Left For/Back [Deg] [Deg] -0.2 -0.4 +0.3 +0.2
0 50 100 150
200
15
-40 -20 0 20 40
400
10
11
GROUND ENGINEERING