Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract Seismic tomography has been extensively used in geophysics for different purposes, including geological mapping, characterisation of inner earth structure and prospecting for oil and gas. In geophysics, seismic or electromagnetic waves are commonly used to provide tomographic information. In the geotechnical area, seismic tomography is emerging as a promising technique that can be used to determine the spatial variability of shear wave velocities and hence the small strain stiffness of geomaterials, especially when used in the centrifuge where in-situ stress conditions can be mimicked closely. This paper describes the development of a seismic tomography technique in the centrifuge. This technology can be used to image variations of soil stiffness under various mechanical, chemical and physical conditions. The paper describes the various components of the system, which includes arrays of small-size bender elements, hardware and software used to transmit, receive and acquire the shear wave signals during a centrifuge test. The paper illustrates the performance of the system at both 1g and in the centrifuge. Results of tomographic inversion performed on travel-time data obtained from these tests are discussed.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract The foundry industry generates large amounts of residual byproducts, such as waste foundry sand (WFS). This high generation has motivated studies concerning the disposition of WFS, which in turn can be used for road subbases. Nevertheless, paving applications are still limited, especially regarding the behavior of WFS when added to a mixture of crushed materials. Hence, the objective of this study was to evaluate WFS reuse in mixtures with crushed materials, applied as granular layers of granulometric stabilized pavements. The crushed materials and WFS were characterized by size distribution, physical aspects, and different mixtures, and later submitted to mechanical testing. Initial tests were utilized to define mixtures (crushed material + WFS) that fulfilled the technical requirements for road subbases. California bearing ratio and resilient modulus tests indicated that WFS additions up to 12% for “A” grading improved the bearing capacity of the mixture; while in “E” grading, WFS additions up to 38% resulted in no expressive improvement in bearing characteristics. Thus, for both gradings, a structure with high density, strength, and low susceptibility to deformations can be used for road subbase construction without technical issues. Finally, the highest WFS content (38%) mixture was environmentally classified as a Class II A non-inert waste, indicating its environmental viability for road applications.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract The improvement of sandy soils by incorporating new stabilizing agents in a physical and/or chemical process has become the subject of many studies in recent decades. In addition, the use of industrial wastes in this process can bring significant benefits to the environment and savings in natural resources. This work aims to evaluate the implications of incorporating porcelain polishing waste (PPW) and hydrated lime on the mechanical properties of an aeolian dune sand from the city of Natal/RN. Tests of unconfined compressive strength and split tensile strength were performed on compacted soil specimens with different contents of PPW (10%, 20% and 30%), hydrated lime (3%, 5% and 7%) and relative densities (25%, 50% and 75%). To evaluate the effects of each factor, the Response Surface Methodology with Central Composite Design was used. The results have shown that all three factors have a positive effect on the response variables. The highest strengths were obtained in regions combining high values of relative density and PPW content and an optimum lime content was found. An inversely proportional correlation and good fit to the experimental data was obtained between the strength values and the porosity/binder index (η/Biv). The strength gains were attributed to densification of the soil structure and cementation of the particles by the compounds formed in the reaction between lime and PPW. The results also showed an increase in the strength with curing time, indicating a pozzolanic activity of the mixtures.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract Negative traits of bauxite residue (BR) include low shear strength, inconsistent compaction characteristics and dispersion, render it unsuited geomaterial for engineering applications. The present study aims at stabilizing BR with the combination of lime (L) and graphene oxide (GO) in suitable proportions and investigating their impact on improvement in engineering properties (viz., density, unconfined compressive strength (UCS), dispersion, and durability). Lime of 2-10% and GO of 0.05-0.1% dosages (% weight of BR) are selected for experimentation purpose. Results demonstrate that L and GO together, not the individual additive, is effective to stabilize BR. A substantial improvement in UCS from 710 kPa of raw BR to 3890 kPa after treating with 10% L and 0.1% GO with 60 days curing period has been observed. 6% L and 0.05% GO for strength only in the short-term, and 10% L and 0.05% GO in durability aspect in the long-term are found as optimum dosages. Drastic decline in turbidity from 453 to 83 NTU establishes that L (6%) and GO (0.05%) addition completely alleviates dispersion behavior in BR. Though GO addition is trivial, its effect on strength and durability enhancement of BR is significant. Cementitious gel formations and bonding mechanism leading to particle aggregations are evidenced as the reason behind the improvement in strength and durability of BR. To verify the applicability of amended BR, the obtained findings are compared vis-à-vis with standards, which illustrated that the amended BR could be an excellent resource material in road construction, especially in base or sub-base courses.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract The application of alkali-activated industrial by-products for the stabilization of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP), can become a sustainable solution to reduce the carbon footprint of road construction and maintenance activities. Furthermore, this approach can also reduce the increasing depletion of natural resources. Thus, the durability and long-term mechanical performance of RAP stabilized with alkali-activated fly ash were assessed in this study. The alkaline activator was a solution composed of sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate. To this extent, unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and durability tests were conducted in this research. The proposed alkali-activated binder significantly increased the UCS of RAP mixtures, with long-term (365 days) results reaching values up to 32 MPa; fulfilling the strength requirements for cement-stabilized soil mixtures and even stable inorganic binder materials for road base and sub-base layers of pavements. These results indicate that when stabilized with an alkali-activated fly ash binder, RAP presents several applications for road engineering; even when subjected to seasonal variations in humidity and temperature, as shown by the durability tests.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract The behavior of pile foundations under axial loading is directly influenced by the effects that its installation process induces in the surrounding soil. Consequently, the consideration of these effects is essential for the correct numerical modeling of these geotechnical structures. In the present study, numerical simulations of driven cast-in-situ piles under axial loading have been carried out using finite element analysis. Three 3.5 m long piles with diameters ranging from 114.3 to 219.1 mm were analyzed. The pile installation effects have been considered indirectly by employing two distinct approaches, both based on the concepts of cylindrical cavity expansion. The behavior of the tropical soil profile is described with the Hardening Soil constitutive model. The load-displacement response and load distribution along the pile obtained with the numerical simulations have been analyzed and compared with in-situ load tests results. In the failure conditions, both approaches accurately predicted the bearing capacity of the piles, with an average error of only 2% compared to the measured values. The results in terms of load distribution over depth were also satisfactory. The difference between measured and numerical ultimate base resistance values ranged from 0% to 30%. The good agreement between the numerical and experimental results indicates that the proposed numerical approaches have been effective in simulating the piles installation process and reinforces the importance of considering the installation effects in the numerical modeling of these geotechnical structures. Both approaches can also be used to predict the bearing capacity of displacement piles.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract The improper disposal of water treatment plant sludge (WTPS) into the environment can cause irreparable damage. One way to minimize this negative impact is to mix the sludge with the soil, applying the materials in engineering works. In this research, the objective was the use of WTPS for soil stabilization purposes, verifying the improvement of the characteristics and properties of a stabilized clay soil with different sludge percentages for application in waterproofing layers of bottom and final coverage of landfills. Formulations were prepared with additions of 0, 15, 30 and 50% of WTPS. Characterization, compaction, permeability and simple compression resistance tests were carried out. All mixtures met the Brazilian requirements for use in landfill layers, but the mixture composed of 70% soil + 30% WTPS was defined as the best for application in bottom layers and final coverage for the following reasons: it meets the coefficient of permeability and has the highest simple compression resistance of all blends. Furthermore, it is noteworthy that the use of the mixtures, especially 50% soil + 50% WTPS, in daily (intermediate) layers would be an environmentally beneficial alternative that would contribute to the circular economy and to achieving sustainable development goals 11, 12 and 15 by 2030. These applications would bring advantages in the destination of WTPS and reduced consumption of natural resources (soil).

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract This paper presents an experimental and numerical study for the effect of the cavity on the behaviour of a strip footing positioned on a reinforced sand slope. This study used a new type of geosynthetics called fiber carbon and fiber glass. These components have the potential to isolate the soil inside the geosynthetic and prevent shears stress mobilization. The investigation aimed to determine the effect of cavity depth (h) and the number of reinforcing layers (N) on the bearing capacity and settlement characteristics of footing, empirically for investigating the effect of cavity on the bearing capacity, some parameters were assumed constant in all tests, for example, relative density, a distance of the footing from the slope edge, and length between layers of reinforcement. The variable parameters are the distance between footings and centre of cavity and the number of reinforcing layers. The results show that the settlement behaviour of footing adjacent to a soil slope is significantly affected by h and N. It is observed that qu, which represents the ultimate bearing capacity, improves with an increase in N. The influence of the cavity appeared insignificant when it was positioned at a depth equal to twice the width of footing.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract The goal of this study was to improve the understanding of the soil-structure interaction mechanisms at the interface of bored concrete piles cast in sandy soils. In addition, this study aimed to quantify the interface shear strength and identify the factors that influence the response. Roughness measurements and direct shear tests were performed at the interface between two samples of sand (medium and coarse) and concrete cured under stress. The influence of the mean grain diameter, relative density, water content, concrete curing time and normal stress on the interface shear strength were statistically analyzed. The results showed a consistent behavior with the technical literature, but with higher values, which can be attributed to the concrete curing time, a factor not studied by other authors.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract The offshore industry has been challenged with the necessity to build structures with foundations on carbonate soils, found in extensive areas of the tropical and intertropical zones of the planet. As a better understanding of the behavior of these soils becomes more and more indispensable, this paper presents equations to predict the dynamic behavior of carbonate sands, in which two expressions (G/Gmax versus γ and D versus γ) were obtained via multiple linear regression using data from resonant column tests carried out on carbonate sands from Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico (Cataño & Pando, 2010). The proposed equations agreed well with experimental data. The error for the expressions G/Gmax versus γ was less than 10%, while the expressions D versus γ trended to underestimate the values for the loose condition (Dr = 24%), presenting an effective confining stress of 50kPa. Furthermore, the proposed equations were compared with predictions exhibited by Javdanian & Jafarian (2018) of G/Gmax versus γ and D versus γ for carbonate sands, also yielding fairly concordant results.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract The stress-strain behaviour of 85 overconsolidated clay samples from Campo de Gibraltar Flysch Through Domain (Algeciras Unit, South Spain) is presented and discussed. The samples were identified and classified following ASTM standards while their chemical and mineralogical composition were determined by chemical and X-ray techniques. Several samples were tested under triaxial as well as oedometric conditions. Given the results, a detailed comparison was made between different theoretical constitutive models and real testing data, using the finite-elements method. The comparison indicated a good fit between experimental data and those found with finite-elements modelling when the Hardening Soil constitutive model was used. This model showed a better fit than did the Modified Cam-Clay model (historically used for modelling clayey soils), although the latter fit proved better for lower strain values (<5%) than higher ones. These results clarify this intermediate material (hard soils - weak rocks) behaviour and will help in Strait of Gibraltar tunnel project design, as these materials are widely involved in this tunnel design.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract The effect of soil constitutive models, nonlinearity of the barrette material, loading direction as well as the cross-sectional shape and second moment of inertia on the response the barrette foundation under lateral loading is investigated in this research. The numerical analyses were conducted on a well-documented barrette load test using Plaxis 3D. The investigation results revealed that the response of the barrette is significantly affected by the direction of the applied load and nonlinear behavior of the soil and barrette materials. For rectangular, square, and circular piles with different cross-section areas and same second moment of inertia, the square and circular piles exhibit similar behavior but different from that of the rectangular pile. However, when these piles have the same cross-section area and different second moments of inertia, the behavior of rectangular pile is close to that of square pile when the load is applied along the x direction and is close to that of circular pile shape when the load is applied along the y direction.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract The need to develop and commercialize materials incorporating vegetable fibers has risen over the last 20 years to decrease environmental impact and achieve sustainability. In geotechnical engineering, soil reinforcement with plant-based fibers has gained a lot of interest, especially in temporary earthworks. Soil reinforcement with plant-based fibers is a low-cost, environmentally friendly method with excellent reproducibility and accessibility. In this context, growing appeals for using plant-based fibers such as sisal, coir, curauá, and kenaf for manufacturing new geomaterials have been verified. This paper aims to evaluate the mechanical behavior of soil-fiber composites by insertion of natural coir fibers into a sandy soil matrix with different fiber lengths and contents, where the fibers were randomly distributed in the soil mass. Large-scale direct shear test evaluated the strength-displacement behavior in samples with dimensions of 300 x 300 mm and 200 mm in height. The tests were carried out using fibers with 25 and 50 mm lengths, in 0.50 and 0.75% of fiber contents (in relation to the dry weight of the soil), in a relative density of 50% and 10% moisture content. The overall analysis of the results showed that the coir fibers addition in the well-graded sand increased the shear strength parameters and the ductility, compared with the unreinforced sand.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract Maximum shear modulus (G0) has been used in various geotechnical jobs (e.g., seismic site assessment, machine vibration and pile driven). Laboratory and in situ determination of G0 is not a current practice in Brazil. G0 can be estimated from empirical correlations based on in situ tests like Standard Penetration Test (SPT) and Cone Penetration Test (CPT) in the preliminary design phase. Several empirical correlations to estimate G0 from SPT N value have been developed and are available in the literature. However, most of these correlations were established based on experience with well-behaved soils formed in temperate and glacial zones, which may not always be used for tropical soils. This paper assessed and discussed the applicability of some correlations for G0 estimative from SPT data in lateritic and saprolitic soils. The classical correlations for sedimentary soils underestimated G0 of tropical soils. After updating the database, the tropical soils correlations reasonably estimated G0 for the lateritic ones, which was not the case for the saprolitic soils. It was observed that differentiating the soils only as lateritic or saprolitic was not adequate for a good G0 estimate for the saprolitic sandy soils. It was found that only the lateritic soils correlation can be used with caution as a preliminary attempt to estimate G0 from SPT N value in soils with similar characteristics to the ones presented in this paper.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract In engineering practice, loading varies with time. However, the classical one-dimensional theory of consolidation assumes the stress increase is instantaneously applied. Many approaches to the problem of time-dependent loading have been proposed over the years, from approximate methods to full developments of differential equations. The paper presents a simple method for finding a closed-form consolidation solution for time-dependent loading without the need for differential equations. Two sets of general equations were derived for both excess pore pressure and average degree of consolidation. Equations were solved for linear, parabolic, sinusoidal, and exponential load functions. Stepped and cyclic loads were also addressed and a numerical solution was developed to verify the obtained result. The method proved to be easy to apply and provides solutions with great simplicity. A case study of non-instantaneous loading on soft clay was also analyzed, and settlement prediction showed good results when compared to readings of the settlement plates.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract Shallow geothermal energy systems (SGES) are being widely recognized throughout the world in the era of renewable energy promotion. The world is aiming to promote and implement the concept of nearly zero energy consumption in the building sector. Shallow geothermal energy systems have huge potential to meet the heating and cooling demand of a building with low carbon emissions. However, the shallow geothermal system exploration rate and its global contribution to renewable energy used in the buildings sector is yet relatively low. Therefore, this study explores specific barriers which hinder the promotion of shallow geothermal energy systems through a systematic review of the literature. The study was carried out by investigating published papers indexed in Scopus and Web of science core collection databases. The selected papers are focused on shallow geothermal energy systems and barriers to their promotion. Only review and research articles types were included in the analysis and constrained to the topic of closed-loop shallow geothermal energy systems. This system’s promotion has been influenced by the lack of legislation, little knowledge about the conductivity of soil and by high initial investment cost at its topmost. The least influencing barrier is considered to be the heating and cooling efficiency of shallow geothermal energy systems.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract Soft ground improvement techniques have evolved substantially in Brazil in recent years. However, their application in soft and very soft clays requires a good understanding of the fundamentals of ground improvement techniques suited to the problem as well as the actual field behavior when implemented on a real scale. This paper describes some of the most widely used ground improvement techniques in the context of very soft clays in Brazil. The techniques described in the paper use prefabricated vertical drains (PVD) such as vacuum preloading; or combine PVD and rigid inclusion, such as CPR grouting; or are purely column-like elements such as piled embankments (including those executed with the deep mixing technique, DSM); or combine column-like elements with the drainage function, such as stone columns and geosynthetic encased columns; or use cementitious binders such as shallow soil mixing. The paper reference condition is a soft clay foundation in which no strengthening is implemented, such as, an embankment with basal reinforcement or soft clay with vertical prefabricated drains, or the use of vacuum preloading to speed up the consolidation rate. The applications of the ground improvement techniques are illustrated by case histories, numerical analyses, or physical models. Different types of measurements are used to evaluate the performance of each technique, including settlements, horizontal displacements, excess pore pressures, embankment applied stresses, stress concentration factors, and clay strength following the ground treatment. The settlement improvement factor β, the ratio between the settlements for untreated and treated conditions, is shown to be a suitable parameter to assess the degree of improvement imposed in the soft foundation by ranking the various methods in increased order of strengthening effect.