Earthwork Construction Research Articles

Monitoring Study on Dust Dispersion Properties during Earthwork Construction

Dust generated in earthwork construction activities can seriously affect the air quality at a construction site and have adverse effects on the health of construction workers. To accurately and quantitively analyze the distribution characteristics of construction dust and the effect of dust prevention measures during earthwork construction under normal construction and construction with dust control measures, multiple collection points and one meteorological parameter collection point were placed at the construction site. From half an hour before the construction to half an hour after the construction, the particle concentration was recorded once every minute. The monitoring results indicated that there was a significant positive correlation between dust concentration during earthwork construction and the number of soil shipments. The dust concentration was highest at the earth excavation site, followed by the area of the waste truck’s transportation path. Earth excavation primarily resulted in the generation of many coarse particles, the concentration of which was the highest near the excavation site. The average concentration increments of PM2.5 and TSP (total suspended particulate) caused by earthwork construction were 55.06 and 375.17 μg/m3 at the construction site, respectively. The concentration increment of PM2.5 and TSP decreased by 72.01% and 40.16%, respectively, when a spray system and artificial sprinkling were adopted. Through the methodology and results of this study, construction companies can systemically plan their construction work by considering the key equipment to be used and can effectively manage the pollutants found within construction sites.

Influence of moisture and geofluids (GF) on the morphology of quarry fines treated lateritic soil

The influence of moisture migration in the form of GF on the morphology of lateritic soil has been studied with laboratory experiments. This was important due to the effect of adsorbed moisture during molding moisture addition in a stabilization protocol that gives rise to hydration. In addition, moisture adsorption and absorption play a very vital engineering role during the seasonal changes of wet and dry seasons when the water table rises and drops. This occurrence brings about alternate effects of wetting and drying of hydraulically bound structures like in pavement foundations. Therefore, it was pertinent to study how these changes affect soil microstructure to enable good design decisions. The soil used in this exercise was classified as highly plastic, poorly graded A-7-6 soil group according to AASHTO classification method. The soil was mixed with various proportions of quarry fines under different molding moisture conditions and the specimens were prepared for scanning electron microscopy (SEM) exposure. The results of the SEM exposure showed that GF applied here as molding moisture improve the agglomeration of treated soil particles to form flocs in a stabilization process. However, the microspores and crack propagation were observed more in the structure with less amount of quarry fine, i. e., at 2% QF than that at 4% QF. This showed the pozzolanic effect of QF on soil under the influence of GF. GF in all its forms should be studied for sustainable earthwork design and construction.

On the monumentality of ditches

Archaeologists have increasingly broadened considerations of what is “monumental” and what relations with art, architecture, and landscapes constitute monumentality. This article documents the monumentality of ditches through an examination of 11 Scioto Hopewell ditches. Well known for their ornate crafts of exotic raw materials and massive geometric earthworks – constructed of ditches and embankments, usually in tandem – Scioto Hopewell was comprised of small-scale societies of the Middle Woodland period (1950–1550 BP) of the Scioto River Valley of southern Ohio. Though garnering archaeological attention for over two centuries, most research directed at understanding earthwork construction in this region has been relatively recent and primarily focused on embankment wall construction. This article represents the first exploration of Scioto Hopewell ditch construction and demonstrates that these ditches are monumental architecture that carry various meanings and whose construction was ritualized. Establishing a basis for the monumentality of Scioto Hopewell ditches has broad implications, as there is a global record of ditches that were multivalent and multi-functional landscape features that remain understudied beyond their possible functional or pragmatic purposes. This article demonstrates the value of the systematic archaeological examination of these features and the informational potential they hold.

Prediction of maximum dry unit weight and optimum moisture content for coarse-grained lateritic soils

Abstract Laboratory compaction of soils is an important aspect in the selection of materials for earthwork construction. Owing to time constraints and concern for depleting resources, it becomes imperative that empirical relationships would be developed to predict compaction parameters, maximum dry unit weight (MDUW) and optimum moisture content (OMC) from easily measured index properties. The aim of this note is to develop empirical relationships between MDUW /OMC and logarithm of compaction energy (E)/fines content: sand content ratio (FC/SdC) for some lateritic soils. Index property tests were carried out on twenty (20) lateritic soils to classify them and obtain the FC/SdC. The soils were compacted at three compaction energies; British Standard Light (BSL), West African Standard (WAS) and British Standard Heavy (BSH). Two models were developed from relationships based on slopes and intercepts derived from MDUW/OMC versus log E plots; one model employs ‘FC/SdC’ and one compactive effort (BSL) while the other model employs only ‘FC/SdC’. The models were validated for robustness with soils used in the development of the models and six (6) other soils not used to develop the models. For the prediction of BSH, the model employing FC/SdC and one compactive effort showed typical errors of ±0.63 kN/m3 and ±0.76% for MDUW and OMC respectively. The model employing only FC/SdC showed typical errors of ±0.4 kN/m3 and ±0.83% for MDUW and OMC respectively. The typical errors are within allowed variations for projects and standards for MDUW and OMC, thus the models are quite robust.

Discussion on Earthwork Construction Technology of Water Conservancy and Hydropower Project

Discussion on Earthwork Construction Technology of Water Conservancy and Hydropower Project

Utilization Range of By-Products from Coal Combustion in Earth Structures of Transport Infrastructure

In transportation engineering, earthwork is the main structural material which geotechnical properties can be positively modified withadmixtures. This article focuses on the application of energy by-products in earthwork of transportation line structures and summarizes their advantages and define the scope of their utilization. Earthwork construction demands the considerable volume of qualitymaterial and therefore, the effort to optimize traditional material substitution is made. One possibility is to apply solid by-productsemerging when combusting coal, which is referred to as secondary energy products. These include various types of fly-ash, slag, bottomash or gypsum. Requisite for their further widespread utilization is the application in the construction and modernization of transportinfrastructure, including road and rail construction, or in the case of flood control dams within the framework of water managementmeasures against flooding. They can be utilized also as municipal waste dumps covering. However, the application of fly ashes inearthwork constructions delivers certain limits. When contacting with rain ingress or groundwater, the leaching containing heavy andtoxic metals depending on energy by-product type may occur. Alternatively, the limitation of their application can be relatively lowmechanical resistance to cyclic saturation and frost effect and consequent volume changes. This article deals with long-term observation results of the energy by-products saturation and additivity influence on volume changes. For the investigation purpose of failurecauses, the phase composition using X-ray crystallography and Raman spectroscopy was determined.

Optimization of an urban railway bypass. A case study in A Coruña-Lugo line, Northwest of Spain

This paper deals with a new mathematical model for designing railway bypasses. The model was developed with applications to urban areas in mind, and presents useful tools to avoid forbidden areas, buildings, and level crossings with secondary paths and other linear infrastructures. It takes into account technical constraints (minimum radii, minimum length of tangents and transition curves, maximum slopes, and also maximum azimuth changes), and ensure a suitable connection with the current layout, for both horizontal and vertical alignment. In addition, the model searches for the best bypass from an economical point of view, taking into account expropriation costs, cleaning and terrain preparation, earthwork (considering different type of materials), and railroad construction costs. This model is applied in a case study located at the Northwest of Spain, in a section of A Coruña-Lugo line, which is currently under consideration for its redesign. By using this model, a railway bypass without level crossings is obtained, avoiding the urban area of Parga and any buildings in the surrounding area, and which is optimal from an economical point of view.

Time necessary for microwave drying of mineral soils

Construction of large earthworks (cuts and embankments) brings the necessity of fast and reliable testing quality control procedures to be applied directly on the building sites. The paper presents a conventional, standardized method for determining soil moisture - consisting in drying a sample in a machine that circulates dry, hot air. This procedure is widely used and is considered to be very reliable and effective for any type of soil. Its main disadvantage is the time it takes to complete, as it takes a minimum of 24 hours to obtain the results of moisture content and consequently, to compute the compaction (density) indicator. An experiment was conducted, based on former Jastrzębska’s experiments and recommendations, consisting in drying soil samples in a microwave oven. The results were confronted and discussed with a special regard to necessary for microwave drying of mineral soils of different nature. Some recommendations were given in conclusions. As all the authors are still students, some remarks were juxtaposed concerning the importance of practical “experience-based” education within a frame of international exchange programs.

Continuous compaction control in the UK: history, current state and future prognosis

The UK Specification for Highway Works currently makes no specific provision for the use of continuous compaction control (CCC) in the construction of earthworks for roads and highways. Such techniques can be used by constructors, but the provisions of the specification take primacy, leaving little incentive to do so. In this paper the background to earthworks compaction is set out in the context of the potential beneficial use of CCC in the UK specification. Historic and current CCC specifications are then reviewed and examples of the use of CCC are provided. It is concluded there is no major technical obstacle to the introduction of CCC to road and highway earthworks in the UK. Work is required to produce integrate suitable specification clauses, including the provision of data from CCC in building information management. Major UK transport infrastructure projects offer excellent opportunities to develop and refine a specification and bring CCC into mainstream use.

An improved extreme gradient boosting approach to vehicle speed prediction for construction simulation of earthwork

Construction simulation is an effective tool to provide schedule plans. Vehicle speed is one of the most significant factors in earthwork construction simulation. However, neglecting the strong correlation with contextual factors, random distribution methods will lead to inaccurate prediction of vehicle speed. To address such issues, an improved extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) approach to vehicle speed prediction is proposed for earthwork construction simulation. Firstly, to improve the global searching ability, an improved grey wolf optimization algorithm (IGWO) is put forward. Secondly, XGBoost is optimized by IGWO to construct an IGWO-XGBoost model. Then, the prediction model is embedded in the earthwork construction simulation model. The case study proves that the simulation results of the proposed method are more consistent with an actual construction schedule. It is expected that the vehicle speed prediction embedded into a simulation program facilitated an accurate development of schedule plan, thereby improving the efficiency of construction management.

КРИТЕРИИ КОНТРОЛЯ ЗАЩИТНЫХ СООРУЖЕНИЙ МАГИСТРАЛЬНЫХ ТРУБОПРОВОДОВ

The purpose of this article is to select and substantiate the criteria for protective construction monitoring of main pipelines. Main pipelines are constantly exposed to influences of external and internal factors. Special protective constructions are being raised to ensure the continuous operation of the pipelines. The main goal of creating protective constructions is to minimize economic losses and preserve the environmental characteristics of the facility. All existing protective constructions can be divided into two large groups: earth work and engineering constructions. Each of these groups includes different types of the constructions. All of them are designed to ensure safety of main pipelines from a certain natural phenomenon. It is also necessary to ensure constant monitoring of their geometric state regardless the protective construction type. Various data can be used for monitoring, among which the Earth remote sensing data perform a special role. One of the main issues in the construction monitoring is the explanation of the arising measurement errors. This requires knowledge of complex precision calculations theory. It is also necessary to take into account that a visual inspection of the construction defects is imperative in any calculations. A classification of protective constructions is given. The base of the accuracy calculation theory that is necessary to substantiate the errors in the protective construction monitoring is discussed. The main accuracy standards based on this theory are highlighted. The results of the performed analysis are the numerical values of the accuracy criteria for various protective construction types.

Managing Earthwork Construction Business Institutions Applying Industry 4.0 Relating Technologies – The Case of German SMEs

Abstract The interest in Industry 4.0 relating technology in earthwork construction is increasing and continues to gain more and more in popularity. Earthwork contractors have begun to think about alternative and innovative ways to increase productivity by applying new ICT technologies. In this context they try e.g. to utilize sensors, software and information and communication tools to improve processes and to reduce workforce and total costs at the same time. However, as with many innovations, there exist companies that have not invested in these technologies yet. The objective of this paper is to investigate in technologies associated with Industry 4.0 and their potential future application-possibilities in the field of earthwork construction. Therefore, this paper conducted an in-depth literature review of relevant Industry 4.0 technology topics. Additionally, semi-structured interviews among German earthwork industry experts were conducted, which revealed several insights regarding benefits, challenges and barriers of managing relevant technologies.

Proposing a “lean and green” framework for equipment cost analysis in construction

One limitation of previous productivity-driven research on equipment selection and operation simulation lies in the fact that the green aspects of construction activities have been largely neglected in analysis of cost-efficiency of construction operations. On the other hand, studies attempting to measure greenhouse gas emission due to construction activities have yet to develop a methodology that correlates their findings and implications with construction productivity. In order to address the immediate need for improving the sustainability performance of construction projects, it is imperative for the construction industry to evaluate greenhouse gas emission as a cost factor in construction planning, equipment selection, and cost estimating. In this context, this paper formalizes an integrative framework for equipment cost analysis based on the concepts of lean construction and green construction, aimed to guide the selection of appropriate construction equipment considering exhaust emission and productivity performance at the same time. The framework is elaborated in earthwork construction in order to evaluate the impact of greenhouse gas emission in estimating equipment hourly rates and assessing greenness and sustainability for alternative equipment options.

Laboratory and field evaluation of modulus-suction-moisture relationship for a silty sand subgrade

Abstract A change in soil modulus in response to suction-moisture variation after compaction plays a vital role on modulus-based compaction control during earthwork construction. This study investigated the small-strain modulus-suction-moisture relationship for a silty sand subgrade using the laboratory free-free resonant frequency (FFR) and the in-situ spectral analysis of surface waves (SASW) in a trial section of highway construction project in Thailand. The post-compaction soil water retention curves (SWRCs) at different compaction states were investigated over the entire range of suction. Relationships between the SWRC parameters, i.e., air-entry suction, water-entry suction, residual suction etc., and as-compacted dry density and water content were obtained using the multiple-linear regression analysis. Such relationships are useful for the prediction of post-compaction suction in the field. The variation of SASW and FFR shear moduli with the suction stress, inferred from SWRCs, was found to be linear. A modified model was proposed, considering the combined effect of void ratio and the suction stress on the shear modulus, represented as Parameter A which was found to decrease as suction increased. The inclusion of suction stress and void ratio within the model variables yields better accuracy of prediction as compared to those models that considered either only suction or water content.

A unified approach to earthworks for residential, industrial and commercial developments consistent with AS3798-2007

ABSTRACTThis paper presents an approach to earthworks design and construction for residential, industrial and commercial developments in the eastern states of Australia, mostly for Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne. This approach has been implemented successfully over a range of projects and development types, for various ground conditions, over a period of 15 years. The approach has benefited from the Authors’ experience with claims and disputes arising from earthworks. It is acknowledged that there are many possible approaches to earthworks projects, and the intention of the paper is to raise awareness of the importance of a unified approach to earthworks design, construction, testing and documentation, auditing and certification consistent with AS3798-2007. The paper argues that whilst the ‘earthworks specification’ is a major component of the earthworks approach, it is only part of the approach. Far too often a few notes on a civil drawing represent the entire thinking regarding the earthworks component of a project/development. Often drawings and specifications are prepared with little evidence that the works have been designed for particular end use. Included in this paper is an example earthworks specification, and discussion of various clauses in these, in light of usual practice and the Authors’ experience with earthworks.

The Study on the Earthworks of Green Construction based on Value Engineering

Earthwork construction brings many phenomena like the destruction of the natural structure of the land, the damage of the surface vegetation and soil exposed etc. These phenomena result in numerus environmental problems, such as dust pollution and soil erosion. Therefore, during the period of earthwork construction, it is practically meaningful to implement the concept of Green Construction, establish a scientific evaluation system for Green Construction, evaluate the Green Construction degree of each construction plan. This paper use two concepts, Value Engineering Theory and Analytic Hierarchy Process to create a Green Construction evaluation system basing on Value Engineering. Furthermore, the paper takes the earthwork of transportation and leveling construction for a real the large-scale grid conversion station as an example to illustrate the method of calculating the value coefficient of each Green Construction project and the decision optimization process for multiple value coefficient based construction schemes.

Decision of mechanical allocation in subgrade earthwork construction under uncertainty

Decision of mechanical allocation in subgrade earthwork construction under uncertainty

Decision of mechanical allocation in subgrade earthwork construction under uncertainty

There are two common phenomena in a subgrade earthwork construction, one is the queuing problem caused by mechanical resource confliction, and the other is the hysteresis of construction schedule caused by uncertainties. These two phenomena will have a huge impact on the mechanical allocation. Based on the Petri net, queuing theory and uncertainty theory, we firstly establish the whole construction process model under uncertain conditions. Secondly, we solve the mechanical configuration problem according to a designed construction progress. Thirdly, we add some uncertain factors into the mechanical allocation. Finally, through a numerical application, we verify and compare the decisions above.

Practical issues in design and construction of dam earthworks

The paper describes examples of common pitfalls in design and construction of earthworks to construct dam embankments retaining large raised reservoirs, focusing mainly on new flood storage reservoirs. It concludes with key considerations for clients, engineers and contractors. It is intended as a briefing to less-experienced colleagues, rather than repeating information in standard textbooks. It is structured to follow the process from initial planning of the source(s) of earthworks through design and construction to operation and maintenance issues.

Identification of the artifact contribution to two urban Technosols by coupling a sorting test, chemical analyses, and a least absolute residual procedure

In the context of urban extension, the depletion of natural resources for construction constitutes a crucial issue. Specifically, in the field of earthworks, the amounts of materials can be massive and pose the crucial problem of resource shortage. Therefore, the reuse of excavated urban soils from foundation layers as new earthwork construction materials appears to be a sustainable and promising solution. Before repurposing, a better knowledge of urban soils and their potential pollutant load is compulsory. In this paper, two soils excavated from the town of Paris are studied. After the stripping of their surface, to remove organic matter and surface pollution, the matrixes were submitted to elemental analyses using ICP-OES, C/S measurements, and XRF techniques. The elemental analyses were carried out on the whole materials, on three granulometric fractions ( 400 μm) and on the families of artifacts (i.e., construction and demolition wastes, natural gravel, industrial wastes, magnetic, and non-magnetic slags) found in the soils. The combination of elemental analyses and a least absolute residual (LAR) procedure were used to quantify artifact contributions in all granulometric fractions. The soils exhibit evidence of anthropic inputs with high contents of pollutants under the forms of carbonaceous, sulfur mineral and metallic alloys. Carbonaceous and trace pollutions are concentrated in magnetic and non-magnetic slags, while sulfur and strontium pollutions are concentrated in gypsum components. In both cases, all the granulometric fractions (including whole material) can be retrieved as a combination of artifact composition, suggesting that the Technosols mainly result from the mixture of these artifacts. The amounts of natural material, gypsum components, and magnetic slags increase with the fineness of the fractions. In contrary, the amount of non-magnetic slags decrease with the fineness of the fractions and suggests that the processes of slag weathering are not similar: carbonaceous slags are more stable than iron-enriched slags. The elemental analyses of granulometric fractions of soils and the artifacts using LAR analyses help in identifying the compositions of each granulometric fraction and give insight into the evolution of artifacts in the soil. These tools are also promising regarding the assessment of geo-environmental characteristics of urban soils, which in turn provides relevant information regarding management and reuse.