Jute Geotextile Research Articles

Electrokinetics in a Stone Column Encased by a Conductive Jute Geotextile: The Role of Anode Materials

Electrokinetics in a Stone Column Encased by a Conductive Jute Geotextile: The Role of Anode Materials

Present Status and Future Prospects of Jute Diversified Products in Domestic & Export Markets

"Now a day’s products diversification and commercialization are very challenging work in the field of agriculture. Jute is one of the cheapest as well as the strongest amongst the all other natural fibres. India is the largest producer of jute followed by Bangladesh and China and world leader in manufacturing jute goods. Tremendous competition from synthetic materials as well as declining demand for traditional jute goods, demand is expected to rise in respect of its value-added diversified products like fine yarn, blended yarn, specialty fabrics and non-woven based on jute and jute waste. Lots of innovative new products have been developed with high value-addition by the researchers now a days, viz., home textiles, jute composites, jute geo-textiles, paper pulp, technical textiles, chemical products, handicrafts and fashion accessories etc. Globally, demand for diversified jute products is growing particularly in developed country markets such as USA, Canada, Australia and Japan, where peoples are becoming increasingly conscious about carbon footprint of consumer goods."

Numerical Studies on the Reinforced Fly Ash Wall in Tiered Configuration

This paper presents the findings of the numerical studies performed on a two-tiered reinforced fly ash wall. Fly ash was used as backfill material and jute geotextile was used as reinforcement as well as facing material. Wrap-around facing was used in which the jute geotextile was folded at the face. Three-dimensional models of fly ash walls showing offsets at varying distances between the two tiers and the length of reinforcement were prepared. The horizontal displacement on the wall face, tensile forces on reinforcement, and settlement behavior of the backfill wall were analyzed. Further, the wall model was scaled 10 times to generate large-scale fly ash models to understand the behavior of a life-size reinforced fly ash tiered wall. The displacement in the horizontal direction at the face of the wall reduced with the increase in length of the reinforcement and the distance between the tiers. The influence of the offset distance between the tiers on the tensile forces acting on the reinforcement was also investigated. The critical distance between the offsets was identified as 0.6 times the lower tier height. The tiered wall in the present study showed significant reduction in mobilized tensile force in the reinforcements especially at the lower tier as compared with a single (without tier) reinforced fly ash wall of the same height. The maximum tensile force for a single wall was observed to be 1.25 times and 5.35 times the two-tiered wall with D/L = 0.6 for upper and lower tiers, respectively, where D = distance of the offsets between the two tiers and L = height of lower tier. The safety factors were determined by using strength reduction factors. The factor of safety increased with an increase in the offset distance. Similar trends were observed for large-scale models.Practical ApplicationsJute geotextile reinforced fly ash models were analyzed using finite-element analysis. The results are relevant for the construction of fly ash wall reinforced with jute geotextile. The distance between the offsets was varied and a critical distance between the offsets was identified as 0.6L. The practical implication of the study is a reduced offset distance. The previous studies have identified a larger value of such distance. The current ratio for offset distance should be considered while designing the reinforced fly ash wall in tiered configuration. A change in position as well as value of tensile force acting on reinforcement was observed with the change in the distance between the offsets, thereby changing the location of failure plane. This should be taken in to account while designing the reinforcement for the wall.

Creep Response of Untreated and Additive Treated Jute Geotextiles in Isothermal Condition

Creep Response of Untreated and Additive Treated Jute Geotextiles in Isothermal Condition

Case study on soil-reinforced embankment slope stability with natural fibre additives

In this work, an attempt was made to study the influence of jute fibre reinforcement with the help of three case studies. The first case study described laboratory model testing and numerical analysis performed on a modelled slope that simulated an existing embankment that failed on many occasions following overnight heavy rainfall. The second case study discussed how vegetation may minimise the likelihood of soil separation and the velocity of surface run-off by decreasing surficial soil erosion. Jute geotextiles have excellent hydrophilic characteristics that aid plant development; for this reason, they were used in the case study. The third case study developed a multi-fibre approach to traditional geotextiles to create an eco-sustainable product(s) with superior geotechnical qualities for improving the efficiency of earthen structures using soft revetments. The conclusion of these case studies expressed the novel objective of improvement of embankments with stability analysis. This research also involved soil sample testing and numerical modelling using the GeoStudio software suite. The slope model considers reinforcement with different numbers of rows of jute tassels on the embankment for enhanced stability and factor of safety. The presence of jute fibre geotextiles results in better performance in the stabilisation of soil and the minimum value of deformation and maximum value of the factor of safety.

Erosion and runoff reduction potential of vetiver grass for hill slopes: A physical model study

Severe erosion is caused by intense rainfall in tropical regions. The erodible soil of steep hill slopes, accompanied by destruction of vegetation due to human interventions results in accelerated erosion. A sustainable and cost-effective solution such as vetiver grass (Chrysopogon zizanioides) is, thus, required to control the erosion process. In the current study, 6 small-scale glass models: 1 bare and 5 with vetiver grass, having a slope angle of 37° have been constructed. One year after planting, artificial rainfall of extremely high intensity was applied to all 6 small models and the role of vetiver canopy and roots in erosion and runoff control was observed. To see the effect of soil texture, one among these 5 models was made with silty sand and others contained sandy silt. The results demonstrated that, for sandy silt, the inclusion of vetiver reduced the soil loss by 94%–97%, and soil detachment rates were lowered by 95%. The average runoff also was reduced by 21%. The canopy cover showed a positive impact on reducing both quantities. An increase in average root diameter from 1.6 to 2.5 mm increases the soil loss due to its negative impact on added cohesion. The added cohesion showed a linearly negative correlation with soil loss. A composite system of vetiver and jute geotextile was most effective in erosion reduction among 4 vegetated models with sandy silt. Under same vetiver planting layout, the grass covered model of silty sand yielded 84% lower erosion and 62.5% lower runoff than the grass covered one with sandy silt. Thus, vetiver was more effective in erosion and runoff reduction for soil with a greater percentage of sand, and soil type dominated the erosion process.

Effective utilization of natural fibres (coir and jute) for sustainable low-volume rural road construction – A critical review

• Various treatment techniques for improving the strength and durability of natural fibres. • Correlations between physical and mechanical properties of coir and jute geotextiles. • Comprehensive laboratory and field studies pertaining to low-volume rural roads. • Efficacy of the natural geotextiles in enhancing the performance of low-volume rural roads​. Geo-reinforcement is one of the most important utilities whose primary function is to mechanically enhance the strength of soil specifically engineered for the construction of geo-structures. Utilizing polymer-based geosynthetic reinforcement for various applications in pavements has been successfully used for the past few decades. However, with the growing awareness towards the environment and climate change, there is a constant lookout for energy-efficient and sustainable reinforcing materials for road construction. Lignocellulosic fibres are sustainable and have the potential to replace synthetic reinforcing materials, especially for low-volume rural road construction (expected commercial vehicles less than 450 per day) wherein traditional ground improvement techniques are considered to be expensive. Extensive studies have focused on the enhancement of mechanical properties of subgrade by the inclusion of natural reinforcing materials based on laboratory and field studies without comprehensively understanding the problems associated with the durability and field compatibility in low-volume roads. Lack of clear understanding of these lignocellulosic fibres and the fibre-based geotextiles resulted in the reluctance in the material usage in most applications. An extensive review of the existing studies from the last 30 years was used to obtain a relationship between the physical, biochemical and mechanical characteristics of the lignocellulosic fibres to efficiently utilize them as reinforcing materials. Further, the various treatment techniques required to enhance the strength, stiffness, and durability of these fibres are critically examined. In addition to a complete understanding of the properties and treatment techniques for lignocellulosic fibres, the factors affecting the mechanical performance of coir (CGT) and jute (JGT) fibres-based geotextiles have been analyzed using regression techniques to efficiently utilize them as a reinforcing material in low-volume rural road construction. Finally, the increase in soil properties due to the presence of CGT and JGT is examined using extensive laboratory and field investigations/ case studies, thereby mitigating rutting, cracking, differential settlement, and other major failures in the flexible pavement. Based on this study, the scope for future research is also outlined.

Performance of jute geotextile treated with bitumen emulsion for subgrade improvement

Performance of jute geotextile treated with bitumen emulsion for subgrade improvement

Experimental Investigations on Strength and Durability of Alkali-Activated Binder-Treated Natural Jute Geotextile

Experimental Investigations on Strength and Durability of Alkali-Activated Binder-Treated Natural Jute Geotextile

Performance enhancement of encased stone column with conductive natural geotextile under k0 stress condition

In this study, the performance of the stone column encased with conductive jute geotextile in improving the characteristics of soft clay under k0 stress condition was evaluated using a custom-designed large-scale consolidation test setup. The electrokinetic-encased stone column (e-ESC) was designed as a cathode, while mild steel rods were chosen as anodes, and by applying a voltage gradient of 0.1 V/mm between the electrodes, electrokinetic processes were initiated. The efficacy of using the e-ESC in improving the performance of soft clay was assessed by comparing the results with an ordinary stone column (OSC) and encased stone column (ESC) reinforced soft clay. The results from the study reveal that the inclusion of stiffer material like OSC and ESC in soft clay has significantly increased undrained shear strength and modulus of subgrade reaction of the composite ground with a reduction in settlement and compression index. Due to the application of the voltage gradient between the electrodes, the rate of consolidation settlement of composite ground has significantly increased when compared to the OSC/ESC case. Further, it was confirmed from the chemical and mineralogical analysis that the pH, chemical composition, mineral phases, and microfabric of soft clay were altered with the voltage gradient.

Effect of soil burial exposure on durability of alkali-activated binder-treated jute geotextile

The use of natural fibers for ground improvement has gained a lot of popularity in the present world in order to achieve sustainability. However, the major problem of using a natural fiber in soil is its biodegradability within a short period of 6–12 months. Research has proved that the life span of natural jute can be improved by treating them with antimicrobial chemicals. But these chemical treatments are expensive as well as lead to leaching. The present paper proposes a sustainable and environment friendly method to improve the strength and durability properties of jute geotextiles by treating it with alkali-activated binder (AAB). Reaction between an activator solution of sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate and an aluminosilicate precursor (Class F Fly ash) lead to the formation AAB. The water to solid ratio is varied in the present study from 0.35 to 0.45 to obtain the optimum workable solution. A series of microstructural (Stereomicroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscope) and mechanical characterization (thickness, mass density and aperture opening size) tests along with durability tests (soil burial) are conducted for both untreated and treated jute. Locally available red soil is used for the soil burial study. It is inferred from microstructural studies that the lignocellulosic structure present in jute fiber is not fully altered by AAB treatment. From durability test, it is observed that the tensile strength of AAB-treated jute improves almost twofold in comparison to untreated jute. The durability tests indicate that after a burial period of 6 months, the tensile strength AAB-treated jute is significantly greater than untreated jute.

CA-Chitosan effect on the time dependent serviceability of jute geotextile under unpaved roads

ABSTRACT Biodegradable jute geotextiles (JGTs) are an effective reinforcing material for unpaved roads, but its serviceability is limited because of faster microbial degradation. Different methods are in use to improve the serviceability of jute geotextiles. In this paper, the influence of CA-chitosan treatment, road design, and rainfall intensity on the time-dependent serviceability of JGTs has been studied. Chemically treated jute geotextiles are laid in unpaved road designs with and without sand layer, for 30, 60, and 90 days’ duration, and are exposed to simulated rainfall intensities of 50 and 100 mm/hr. With an increase in time of usage, breaking load and puncture resistance decrease due to microbial attack, and pore size decreases due to clogging of soil in JGTs. Chemical treatment is observed to have a greater influence on the serviceability, followed by the presence of a sand layer in road design and the rainfall intensity and shows retention % in tensile strength of 87.42% and 91.21% after 30 days duration. Further, the overall performance of CA-chitosan treated JGTs is observed to be better than untreated JGTs.

Application of Latex Backed Jute Geotextiles in Flexible Pavements: A Macroscale Study.

ABSTRACT In this paper the feasibility of using latex-backed jute geotextiles in flexible pavements were studied using a series of laboratory experiments. Latex backed jute geotextiles are composite materials obtained by providing a latex backing under jute geotextiles. The strength characteristics and drainage characteristics of latex-backed jute geotextile reinforced flexible pavement system was evaluated by conducting a modified CBR test, transmissivity test, and permeability test, respectively. The evaluation of the rutting behavior of geotextile-reinforced pavement system was carried out experimentally by using a wheel track apparatus. The results indicate that latex backed jute geotextile reinforced soil-aggregate system shows a 62% increase in CBR and a 38% reduction in rut depth compared to the one without backing. Latex backing has a significant effect on drainage characteristics of the jute geotextile which enhances the transmissivity and retards the permeability of the geotextile. Latex backed jute geotextile shows a 20% increase in in-plane permeability and a 60% reduction in cross-plane permeability compared to the one without backing. The experiment results analyzed indicate that latex backed jute geotextile-reinforced system shows superior performance compared to the one without backing.

Development of Design Chart for Jute Geotextiles Reinforced Low Volume Road Section by Finite Element Analysis

A 3D finite element (FE) analysis has been carried out to propose a design chart for Sand-Jute geotextiles-Sand (SJS) reinforced low volume road section on soft subgrade foundation. The SJS (Jute geotextile with a thin layer of sand on each side of it) layer has been placed in between the subgrade soil and the top granular layer. In the present FE analysis, nonlinear behaviour of low volume road materials has been considered. The rutting behaviour of a low volume road section with jute geotextiles reinforcement layer has been investigated. Results of the FE analysis reveal that the improvement due to jute geotextiles is more pronounced in road sections with thin top granular layer than in other sections. An attempt has also been made to study the mobilization of tensile strength of jute geotextiles under small and large rut depths. In the case of large rut depth (75 mm), it has been found that a minimum thickness of the top granular layer of 0.2 m is adequate for woven jute geotextiles with stiffness of 20 kN/m. For benefit of the practising engineers dealing with designing jute geotextiles reinforced low volume road section, a design chart has been proposed for 50-mm rut depth.

Effect of different geotextile treatments in soil to increase the yield and yield attribute of capsicum (Capsicum annuum)

Geotextiles are textile like materials of natural product of eco-friendly and biodegradable in nature and act as useful ameliorative towards alleviating soil related constrains of crop production and improve soil structural performance. Application of suitable ameliorative thus necessitates for improving the growth of plant towards increasing the crop yield. In order to assess the effectiveness of various geotextiles on the improvement of growth of crop and enhancement of crop productivity, the present study has been undertaken. with five treatments combinations viz. T1 -non woven jute geotextile, T2 - non woven dry grasses geotextile, T3 - non woven coco coir geotextile, T4 - non woven banana leaf fibre geotextile and T5 - farmers practices (i.e. control). All geotextile materials @ 5 ton /ha were spread on the soil after final land preparation and before seedling or planting of capsicum. The results reveals that the jute fibre geotextile, dry grasses geotextile, coco coir geotextile, and banana leaf geotextile show much better performance than control (farmers practice) in respect of yields, yield attributes and growth parameters. Among the various geotextiles treatments, the jute fibre geotextile proves much superior performance for growth, yield and yield attributes of capsicum.

Study on comparative performance of different pavement models incorporated with newly developed jute geotextiles under static loading

This research paper describes a laboratory-based unpaved pavement model study incorporating new types of jute geotextiles (JGTs) intended for low-volume roads under static loading. Tests on the pavement models were carried out to evaluate the performance of four types of JGTs, viz. (1) grey (untreated) JGT, (2) rot-proof treated JGT (using reasonably eco-friendly chemicals) and (3) two types of jute–polypropylene (PP) blended geotextiles laid in between a modelled Wet Mix Macadam layer and a suitably compacted subgrade layer. Three types of subgrade soils were used from different geo-climatic regions of the Indian subcontinent including Black Cotton soil. Model tank preparation was done by judiciously selecting some combinations of JGT and subgrade soil based on the outcome of a fundamental study on biodegradability behaviour of these JGTs in the experimental saturated soils. Model tanks were water-treated for different durations up to six months to keep the subgrade soil and the JGT 100% saturated uninterruptedly before testing to study the effect of time-dependent biodegradability behaviour of the pavement models with and without JGT both. Experimental results clearly indicate that there is a substantial improvement in stress–strain behaviour of the pavement models due to incorporation of any type of the experimental JGTs over control models. The time-dependent model study reveals improvement in stress–strain behaviour of the system in spite of degradation of the JGTs, and jute–PP blended JGT is most effective in improving the pavement models. This indicates that consolidation of subgrade has occurred within a period of 3–6 months.

Development of sustainable jute geotextiles by bitumen emulsion and polyester resin: Effect of gamma radiation

Jute fibers can be an alternative solution to replace synthetic fibers for temporary sustainable geotextiles applications. To produce sustainable geotextiles, jute fabrics were treated first by bitumen emulsion (BE) and unsaturated polyester (UPE) resin then γ-radiation (2.5, 5, and 10 kGy doses) applied to increase its durability and performance. The resulting samples were J0 (raw jute), J1 (20% BE + 10% UPE), and J2 (30% BE + 10% UPE). It was revealed that γ-irradiation significantly decreased the moisture sensitivity and water absorbency. Tensile strength (TS) improved at 2.5 and 5 kGy doses of irradiation and then decreased at 10 kGy in both directions. The highest increase of TS found for 5 kGy dose in both directions of J1 (27.1% in warp and 27.7% in weft) and J2 (16.0% in warp and 23.8% in weft). After 120 days of soil burial test, biodegradation occurred for all the specimens except 2.5 kGy irradiated sample which retained its TS, however, TS dropped remarkably such as 71.9% and 85.1% in warp and weft directions, respectively for J1 sample, and 90.7% and 94.1% in warp and weft directions, respectively for J2 sample. Antimicrobial resistance of jute fabrics was assessed against gram-positive S. aureus and gram-negative E. coli bacteria. Further, FTIR, thermogravimetric analysis, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were also investigated in this study.

Bearing Capacity of Jute Geotextile-Reinforced Sand Bed

This paper evaluates the optimum geometrical parameters of jute geotextile reinforcement for the load-bearing capacity based on the laboratory model tests carried out on 50, 100 and 150 mm diameter (D) circular footings resting on sand bed. These footing sizes were obtained using a scaling down factor of 4 for the prototype foundations so as to obtain the behavior of an actual prototype structure. Geotextile reinforcement was also scaled down using appropriate scaling factors. The natural jute geotextile reinforcement layers were placed as planar sheets and the optimum reinforcement geometrical parameters were evaluated using 150 mm diameter circular footing for the load-bearing capacity of sand. Further, the effect of the footing size on improvement of load-bearing capacity of both unreinforced and reinforced sand beds was brought out using circular footings of 50, 100 and 150 mm diameter. The experimental results showed that the optimum depth and vertical spacing of jute geotextile reinforcement layer(s) for the load-bearing capacity were found to be 0.31–0.32D and 0.28–0.3D, respectively, depending on the settlement criteria. The optimum width of reinforcement layer was found to be 3.5D, while the optimum number of reinforcement layers was found to be 4. The surface deformations are also in conformity with the optimum geometrical parameters obtained from the load-bearing tests. Further, the load-bearing capacity of unreinforced and reinforced sand beds increased with the increase in footing size. However, the bearing capacity ratio decreased with the increase in size of footing.

Performance Assessment of Square Footing on Jute Geocell-Reinforced Sand

Incorporation of three-dimensional geocell is a soil reinforcement technique which is extensively used today and has proved to be reliable due to its confining capability which increases the load-carrying capacity of the soil. The concern over the deterioration of soil and the escalating costs of the presently used synthetic geocells has steered the need for a natural replacement. This research provides a precis of the sand bed being reinforced with jute geocell, developed with jute geotextile and its effectiveness evaluated through model plate load tests in the laboratory using a square footing. The parameters administering the performance, such as the depth of sand cushion above geocell (u), width of geocell (b), and height of geocell (h) with respect to the width of the footing (B) are varied to realize the optimum of the ratios. The results obtained from the test conducted to optimize the ratios are scrutinized to study the improvement in bearing capacity of soil. The bearing pressure of the jute geocell-reinforced soil at 10% settlement is 3.5 times higher than that of the unreinforced soil. The inherent properties of natural fibres like jute can meet the requirement of synthetic geocells and their eco-compatibility make them to rule over existing geocells. According to the procured results and discussion through the study, it is proven that jute geocells could very well be an alternative for reinforcing the soil.

Parametric studies on two-tiered model fly ash wall

ABSTRACT The multi-tiered wall is earth-retaining structure, similar to a reinforced wall, constructed by providing offsets between the tiers at a certain height of the reinforced wall. The current study makes an effort to employ fly ash as a backfill material for the multi-tiered reinforced wall. The behaviour of laboratory models has been studied. Single and two-tiered models were prepared for the study. The effect of the reinforcement length, reinforcement spacing and the offset distance between the tiers on the failure pattern, horizontal displacement and normalized surcharge pressure was determined. From the experimental investigation, it was observed that the critical offsets between the tiers of the wall increase due to the introduction of reinforcement, as offsets between the tiers, D was observed 0.4L and 0.6L for the wall model without any reinforcement and the wall model with reinforcement, respectively, where L is the lower tier height. The failure patterns were found to agree with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) guidelines for tiered wall except for the unreinforced wall model at the 0.4L offset distance. There was an increase in normalized surcharge pressure due to the introduction of jute geotextile reinforcement up to 68.75% at the 0.7H length of reinforcement, where H = total wall height. As the jute geotextile reinforcement length increases, the horizontal displacement of the wall facing reduces up to 98% as compared to unreinforced model whereas, the increase in spacing between the reinforcing layers increased the horizontal displacement of the wall facing.