Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Geosynthetic-Reinforced Soil Walls with Sustainable Backfills

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Indian Geotechnical Journal Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Reinforced soil walls are cost-effective alternatives to earth-retaining structures which can accommodate more settlements than conventional retaining wall systems. Ideally, freely draining granular materials such as sand are used as the backfills. But, scarcity of ideal granular materials necessitated the researchers to explore other alternatives. A large quantity of construction and demolition waste (CDW) is being generated in India as well as in other parts of the world. In this study, the feasibility of using CDW as a backfill for geosynthetic-reinforced soil walls has been attempted. The geotechnical properties of CDW were determined in order to ascertain whether their properties comply with existing specifications. It was observed that the geotechnical properties of CDW meet the requirements of an ideal backfill material for MSE walls mandated by various standards. Further, the numerical studies were conducted to study the deformation behavior of reinforced soil wall with CDW backfill immediately after construction. The assumptions made in the conventional design regarding the failure mechanism were also investigated. The paper highlights the potential use of processed CDW as a sustainable backfill material for reinforced walls.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10
Fig. 11
Fig. 12

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Koerner RM, Koerner GR (2011) The importance of drainage control for geosynthetic reinforced mechanically stabilized earth walls. J Geoeng 6(1):3–13

    Google Scholar 

  2. Christopher BR, Elias V (1997) Mechanically stabilized earth Walls and reinforced soil slopes design and construction guidelines (No. FHWA-SA-96-071). Federal Highway Administration

  3. National Concrete Masonry Association (2010) Design manual for segmental retaining walls. National Concrete Masonry Association

  4. Pant A, Datta M, Ramana GV (2019) Bottom ash as a backfill material in reinforced soil structures. Geotext Geomembr 47(4):514–521

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Prasad PS, Ramana GV (2016) Feasibility study of copper slag as a structural fill in reinforced soil structures. Geotext Geomembr 44(4):623–640

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. CPCB (2017) Guidelines on environmental management of construction & demolition (C&D) wastes (prepared in compliance of rule 10 sub-rule 1(A) of C&D waste management rules, 2016)

  7. Vieira CS, Pereira PM (2015) Use of recycled construction and demolition materials in geotechnical applications: a review. Resour Conserv Recycl 103:192–204

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Santos ECG, Palmeira EM, Bathurst RJ (2013) Behaviour of a geogrid reinforced wall built with recycled construction and demolition waste backfill on a collapsible foundation. Geotext Geomembr 39:9–19

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Santos ECG, Palmeira EM, Bathurst RJ (2014) Performance of two geosynthetic reinforced walls with recycled construction waste backfill and constructed on collapsible ground. Geosynth Int 21(4):256–269

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Nawagamuwa UP, Madarasinghe DL, Goonatillake MD, Karunarathna HJ, Gunaratne M (2012) Sustainable reuse of Brownfield properties in Sri Lanka as a gabion fill material. In: ICSBE-2012: international conference on sustainable built environment Kandy, Sri Lanka

  11. Rahman MA, Imteaz M, Arulrajah A, Disfani MM (2014) Suitability of recycled construction and demolition aggregates as alternative pipe backfilling materials. J Clean Prod 66:75–84

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Suluguru AK, Surana SR, GuhaRay A, Kar A, Muktinutalapati J (2019) Experimental investigations on building derived materials in chemically aggressive environment as a partial replacement of soil in geotechnical applications. Geotech Geol Eng 37(2):947–963

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Arulrajah A, Piratheepan J, Aatheesan T, Bo MW (2011) Geotechnical properties of recycled crushed brick in pavement applications. J Mater Civ Eng 23(10):1444–1452

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Vieira CS, Pereira PM (2017) Use of mixed construction and demolition recycled materials in geosynthetic reinforced embankments. Indian Geotech J 48(2):279–292

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Cardoso R, Silva RV, de Brito J, Dhir R (2016) Use of recycled aggregates from construction and demolition waste in geotechnical applications: a literature review. Waste Manag 49:131–145

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Soleimanbeigi A, Tanyu BF, Aydilek AH, Florio P, Abbaspour A, Dayioglu AY, Likos WJ (2019) Evaluation of recycled concrete aggregate backfill for geosynthetic-reinforced MSE walls. Geosynth Int 26(4):396–412

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Arulrajah A, Rahman MA, Piratheepan J, Bo MW, Imteaz MA (2013) Interface shear strength testing of geogrid-reinforced construction and demolition materials. Adv Civ Eng Mater 2(1):189–200

    Google Scholar 

  18. BS-8006 (2010) British Standards. Strengthened/reinforced soils and other fills

  19. AASTHO (2002) American Association of state highway and transportation officials. Interims to standard specification for highway bridges, sixteenth edition. AASTHO, Washington

  20. SCDOTGDM (2010) South Carolina department of transportation geotechnical design manual

  21. IRC: SP: 102 (2014) Guidelines for design and construction of reinforced soil walls. In: Indian Roads Congress

  22. ASTM D6913(2009) Standard Test Methods for Particle-Size Distribution (Gradation) of Soils Using Sieve Analysis. ASTM International

  23. ASTM D4972 (2001) Standard test method for pH of soils. ASTM International

  24. IS 2720-Part 21 (1987) Methods of test for soils: determination of total soluble solids

  25. ASTM D698 (2012) Standard test methods for laboratory compaction characteristics of soil using standard effort. ASTM International

  26. Parsons AW (1992) Compaction of soils and granular materials: a review of research performed at the Transport Research Laboratory. HM Stationery Office, ISBN-0115510915

  27. ASTM D4253 (2000) Standard test methods for maximum index density and unit weight of soils using a vibratory table. ASTM International

  28. ASTM D4254 (2006) Standard test methods for minimum index density and unit weight of soils and calculation of relative density. ASTM International

  29. ASTM D3080 (2011) Standard test method for direct shear test of soils under consolidated drained conditions. ASTM International

  30. Vieira CS, Pereira PM, de Lurdes Lopes M (2016) Recycled construction and demolition wastes as filling material for geosynthetic reinforced structures. Interface properties. J Clean Prod 124:299–311

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. TIFAC (2001) Utilisation of waste from construction industry. TMS 150, environment and habitat. Technology information, forecasting and assessment council

  32. Hatami K, Bathurst RJ (2005) Development and verification of a numerical model for the analysis of geosynthetic-reinforced soil segmental walls under working stress conditions. Can Geotech J 42(4):1066–1085

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Allen TM, Bathurst RJ (2019) Geosynthetic reinforcement stiffness characterization for MSE wall design. Geosynth Int 26(6):592–610

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Mirmoradi SH, Ehrlich M (2015) Numerical evaluation of the behavior of GRS walls with segmental block facing under working stress conditions. J Geotech Geoenviron Eng 141(3):04014109

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Palakkad, Palakkad, Kerala, India

    S. Vibha & P. V. Divya

Authors
  1. S. Vibha
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. P. V. Divya
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to P. V. Divya.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Vibha, S., Divya, P.V. Geosynthetic-Reinforced Soil Walls with Sustainable Backfills. Indian Geotech J 51, 1135–1144 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40098-020-00450-2

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40098-020-00450-2

Keywords

Search

Navigation