Field Of Engineering Geology Research Articles

A Proposed Process-Landform-Material (PLM) System for Engineering Geology Field Mapping

A Proposed Process-Landform-Material (PLM) System for Engineering Geology Field Mapping

Application of borehole cameras in the field of Engineering Geology and Hydrogeology

The use of borehole cameras in Bulgaria is increasingly used in hydrogeology and engineering geology. The resulting photographs and movies contribute to solving problems related to the study and assessment of the condition of water supply wells, as well as to obtain a clear picture on the assessment of rock massifs for their suitability for various types of construction. Borehole cameras on the territory of our country are more widely used in the field of hydrogeology compared to engineering geology. The purpose of this article is to present the possible applications of this technology, which has been improved over the years, for the study of rock massifs in their study for various infrastructure objects. Also. to shed light on the benefits of using boreholes in surveying the various water sources.

Remote Sensing and Geovisualization of Rock Slopes and Landslides

Over the past two decades, advances in remote sensing methods and technology have enabled larger and more sophisticated datasets to be collected. Due to these advances, the need to effectively and efficiently communicate and visualize data is becoming increasingly important. We demonstrate that the use of mixed- (MR) and virtual reality (VR) systems has provided very promising results, allowing the visualization of complex datasets with unprecedented levels of detail and user experience. However, as of today, such visualization techniques have been largely used for communication purposes, and limited applications have been developed to allow for data processing and collection, particularly within the engineering–geology field. In this paper, we demonstrate the potential use of MR and VR not only for the visualization of multi-sensor remote sensing data but also for the collection and analysis of geological data. In this paper, we present a conceptual workflow showing the approach used for the processing of remote sensing datasets and the subsequent visualization using MR and VR headsets. We demonstrate the use of computer applications built in-house to visualize datasets and numerical modelling results, and to perform rock core logging (XRCoreShack) and rock mass characterization (EasyMineXR). While important limitations still exist in terms of hardware capabilities, portability, and accessibility, the expected technological advances and cost reduction will ensure this technology forms a standard mapping and data analysis tool for future engineers and geoscientists.

UAV-Based Evaluation of Rockfall Hazard in the Cultural Heritage Area of Kipinas Monastery, Greece

Rockfall events consist one of the most hazardous geological phenomena in mountainous landscapes, with the potential to turn catastrophic if they occur near an anthropogenic environment. Rockfall hazard and risk assessments are recognized as some of the most challenging surveys among the geoengineering society, due to the urgent need for accurate foresight of likely rockfall areas, together with their magnitude and impact. In recent decades, with the introduction of remote sensing technologies, such as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, the construction of qualitative and quantitative analyses for rockfall events became more precise. This study primarily aims to take advantage of the UAV’s capabilities, in order to produce a detailed hazard and risk assessment via the proposition of a new semi-quantitative rating system. The area of application is located in the cultural heritage area of Kipinas Monastery in Epirus, Greece, which is characterized by the absence of pre-existing data regarding previous rockfall events. As an outcome, it was shown that the suggested methodology, with the combination of innovative remote sensing technologies with traditional engineering geological field surveys, can lead to the extraction of all the necessary quantitative data input for the proposed rating system for any natural slope.

Rock Emissivity Measurement for Infrared Thermography Engineering Geological Applications

Infrared thermography is a growing technology in the engineering geological field both for the remote survey of rock masses and as a laboratory tool for the non-destructive characterization of intact rock. In this latter case, its utility can be found either from a qualitative point of view, highlighting thermal contrasts on the rock surface, or from a quantitative point of view, involving the study of the surface temperature variations. Since the surface temperature of an object is proportional to its emissivity, the knowledge of this last value is crucial for the correct calibration of the instrument and for the achievement of reliable thermal outcomes. Although rock emissivity can be measured according to specific procedures, there is not always the time or possibility to carry out such measurements. Therefore, referring to reliable literature values is useful. In this frame, this paper aims at providing reference emissivity values belonging to 15 rock types among sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic categories, which underwent laboratory emissivity estimation by employing a high-sensitivity thermal camera. The results show that rocks can be defined as “emitters”, with emissivity generally ranging from 0.89 to 0.99. Such variability arises from both their intrinsic properties, such as the presence of pores and the different thermal behavior of minerals, and the surface conditions, such as polishing treatments for ornamental stones. The resulting emissivity values are reported and commented on herein for each different studied lithology, thus providing not only a reference dataset for practical use, but also laying the foundation for further scientific studies, also aimed at widening the rock aspects to investigate through IRT.

少子高齢化時代における応用地質学分野の課題と取り組み

少子高齢化時代における応用地質学分野の課題と取り組み

Blast-induced liquefaction in silty sands for full-scale testing of ground improvement methods: Insights from a multidisciplinary study

In the engineering geology field increased attention has been posed in recent years to potential liquefaction mitigation interventions in susceptible sand formations. In silty sands this is a major challenge because, as the fines content increases, vibratory methods for densification become progressively less effective. An alternative mitigation technique can be the installation of Rammed Aggregate Pier® (RAP) columns that can increase the resistance of the soil, accounting for its lateral stress increase and for the stiffness increase from soil and RAP composite response. To investigate the influence of these factors on liquefaction resistance, full-scale blast tests were performed at a silty sand site in Bondeno (Ferrara, Italy) where liquefaction was observed after the 2012 Emilia-Romagna earthquake. A multidisciplinary team of forty researchers carried out devoted experimental activities aimed at better understanding the liquefaction process at the field scale and the effectiveness of the treatment using inter-related methods. Both natural and improved areas were investigated by in-situ tests and later subjected to controlled blasting. The blast tests were monitored with geotechnical and geophysical instrumentation, topographical surveying and geological analyses on the sand boils. Results showed the RAP effectiveness due to the improvement of soil properties within the liquefiable layer and a consequent reduction of the blast-induced liquefaction settlements, likely due to soil densification and increased lateral stress. The applied multidisciplinary approach adopted for the study allowed better understanding of the mechanism involved in the liquefaction mitigation intervention and provided a better overall evaluation of mitigation effectiveness.

Development of an Engineering Geology field trip for Civil Engineering students

This paper describes and discusses the various elements of a one-week Engineering Geology field trip that has been developed for second-year undergraduate students studying Civil Engineering at Imperial College London. It is an essential component of the education of civil engineers and, as such, is a requirement of the accreditation defined by the Institution of Civil Engineers Joint Board of Moderators (ICE JBM). The trip is structured to develop the students' awareness of geological features and their ability to record and sketch key observations in the field. Having described the geological features, the students are prompted to think about consequent potential engineering hazards relating to them and also the influence of human activity, past and present, on the ground and environment. During the course of the week the students develop their observational and logging skills, with constant staff feedback both outdoors and during summary student presentation sessions in the evenings. A marked progressive improvement has been noted as a consequence of this approach. On the final day of the week the students have to map a coastal section, observing and recording the stratigraphy and significant features such as bedding, discontinuities and faulting, with the latter quantified by measuring quantities such as dip, strike and plunge, as appropriate. The students' work, assessed as part of the field trip, is completed by them and handed in just before final departure at the end of the week, most of it being completed in the field.

Engineering geology of cinder gravel in Ethiopia: prospecting, testing and application to low-volume roads

Expansion of the rural road network in Ethiopia requires the availability of low-cost materials for road construction, including capping layer and subgrade improvement, sub-base, base course, gravel wearing course and bituminised surface treatment. A reluctance to use cinder gravels for these purposes in the past has stemmed from the view that their properties, in terms of grading and CBR strength, are marginal and highly variable when compared to international specifications for road works. The geographical variability in Ethiopian cinder gravel geochemistry and engineering properties is described and comparisons are made with engineering geological field descriptions and cinder cone morphology, leading to the conclusion that maars and steep-sided, well-defined cones tend to yield the better-quality materials. The performance of trial sections of road constructed using cinder gravel is assessed and combined with the results of laboratory testing to develop a guideline for the wider use of the material in roadworks, either directly or through processes of blending, alternative compaction methods and cement stabilisation to yield a product that can be considered “fit for purpose” for a range of uses in low-volume road construction.

The Study of Engineering Geology Teaching Based on the Creativity Thinking Training

This article analyses the characteristics of the engineering geology and engineering geological thinking connotation: geological evolution thinking, geological structure thinking, the combination thinking of geology, engineering and the environment, and systems thinking, discusses the relation of engineering geological thinking and innovative thinking (associative thinking, integrated thinking divergent thinking and systems thinking). The analysis and discussion fits to the current higher education requirements of innovation capacity. It comes to a conclusion that practice of engineering geology teaching can gradually develop correct professional thinking and completes the transformation the professional thinking and innovative thinking. At the same time, the students can grasp professional quality and master the entire engineering geology field of thought patterns and characteristics by the teaching. So the teaching can build the solid foundation that they can become high-quality engineering geology workers with the truly innovative ability.

Research on the Spacing of Structural Plane Used in Rock Mass Structure Classification

Great achievements have been made in rock mass structure research to evaluate engineering properties of rock mass in the engineering geology field. In fact, rock mass structure can not only indicate the quantity of structural planes (discontinuities) and size of rock blocks, but also indicate the integrity and mechanical properties of the rock mass. More and more attention has been paid to rock mass quality classification by using rock mass structure. During the past 40 years, rock mass structure research has been carried out by many scholars, and various standards of rock mass structure classification have been proposed in different industries of different countries. In these standards, the most widely used index was the spacing of structural plane. However, it is a pity that the method of determining the spacing value is not unified in different standards, therefore, the structure type of a rock mass may be different according to different standard. But which kind of method to determine the spacing value is most reasonable It becomes an important problem to be solved. In this paper, rational method of determining the spacing of structural planes is demonstrated based on lots of statistical data in dam abutment rock mass of one large-scale hydroelectric project in Southwest China.

Research on the Spacing of Structural Plane Used in Rock Mass Structure Classification

Great achievements have been made in rock mass structure research to evaluate engineering properties of rock mass in the engineering geology field. In fact, rock mass structure can not only indicate the quantity of structural planes (discontinuities) and size of rock blocks, but also indicate the integrity and mechanical properties of the rock mass. More and more attention has been paid to rock mass quality classification by using rock mass structure. During the past 40 years, rock mass structure research has been carried out by many scholars, and various standards of rock mass structure classification have been proposed in different industries of different countries. In these standards, the most widely used index was the spacing of structural plane. However, it is a pity that the method of determining the spacing value is not unified in different standards, therefore, the structure type of a rock mass may be different according to different standard. But which kind of method to determine the spacing value is most reasonable? It becomes an important problem to be solved. In this paper, rational method of determining the spacing of structural planes is demonstrated based on lots of statistical data in dam abutment rock mass of one large-scale hydroelectric project in Southwest China.

A2 Project phasing and procurement in relation to slope management

Road construction and improvement projects (usually comprising widening, pavement reconstruction or resurfacing and improvements to horizontal geometry) are conventionally subdivided into the following stages: Low-cost road projects located in flat or gently rolling terrain typically incur costs in the following proportions (though percentages can vary significantly from project to project): For new roads in hilly and mountainous terrain several alignment options may exist, each with its own implications for length, ease of construction, stability and cost. Decisions made over alignment selection and the choice of cross-section can have profound effects on the cost of construction and the performance of the works during operation and maintenance. Investments in desk studies and engineering geological field investigations during the feasibility study and design stages can assist this decision-making and help avoid otherwise unforeseen ground conditions and stability problems during later stages. It is recommended that the opportunity be taken during these early stages to carry out these studies, especially in difficult and complex terrain. A cost distribution between the three main project stages might then be of the order of 5%, 5% and 90% respectively. For example, in the case of the Arun III hydropower access road in Nepal, where comprehensive preparatory studies were undertaken, the combined cost of the feasibility study and design amounted to a little under 9% of the tendered construction price. Additional costs incurred in the procurement of aerial photography, detailed terrain classification and engineering geological mapping (Sections B2.5 & B3.4) and the monitoring of landslides and floods for design purposes probably raised this figure to over 10% (Hearn & Lawrance 2000). These investments enabled geohazards to be identified, assessed and compared for different corridor options and assisted in the …

To what degree can historical seismicity records assist in seismic microzonation?

It is well known that historical data of seismic effects in urban areas can be useful in seismic microzonation, but we must consider how to make the most of available documentary sources and assess to what degree historical information can help us. From this starting point, this paper deals in a more objective manner with the potential contribution of macroseismic site data, suggesting the compilation of an ad hoc questionnaire. In this way, the two main aims of this paper can be achieved: to make the most of available documentary sources, and to quantify the usefulness of macroseismic information for microzonation analysis via a ‘Site Normalised Utility and Reliability Parameter’ (SNURP). This second aim resolves, for example, the question of priority in resource allocation for microzonation site surveys. On the whole, the proposed approach will provide an easily used tool to deal with historical accounts, especially for professionals in the engineering geology field.

Experience in pursuance of engineering geological research and realization of special monitoring during construction and operation of dams and reservoirs

To monitor the behaviour of a dam during and after construction, a large variety of instruments is available and have proven useful, in many cases even indispensable. Based on the results of the engineering geological field work, instrument systems to be installed both in dam and below it or in its abutments should be chosen carefully depending on the nature of the dam, on the specific geotechnical circumstances at the dam-site, and on the type of data processing.