Experimental study of embankments with different reinforcement materials and spacing between layers

Abstract

Worldwide, waste tires are being discarded in landfills at a huge environmental cost, therefore, their use as a three-dimensional reinforcement material is a wise solution to reduce their environmental impact, and fire risk in the case of shredded tires. In this research a series of experimental model tests of embankments reinforced with Geocell and tires were conducted to compare the performance of these types of reinforcement. The models tested had different Geocell embedment depths, number of Geocell layers, vertical spacing between Geocell layers and density or soil stiffness. Testing consisted of applying pressure at the crest of the embankment and monitoring the pressure distribution, as well as the vertical and horizontal deformations inside of the embankment. The results suggested that when compared with unreinforced embankments, reinforced embankments effectively improve the bearing capacity, thereby, reducing vertical and lateral displacements. This study also showed that an optimal embedment depth and spacing between Geocell reinforcement layers can further improve the slope performance. Comparisons between Geocell reinforced embankments and waste tire reinforced embankments, showed that waste tire reinforcement has a superior performance over the Geocell-reinforced embankments. This difference in performance between the two types of reinforcement is more apparent if the embankment backfill has lower stiffness. i.e. lower density.