TEXTILES.ORG
More than 100 visitors came to Germany’s Bauhaus University Weimar in June for a Department of Civil Engineering event entitled “Energy. Experiment. Experience.”
One of the event’s highlights included a public demonstration of geogrid-reinforced stone columns using a 2.4-ton vehicle. NAUE GmbH & Co. KG, an international manufacturer of geosynthetics, worked with Prof. Dr.-Ing. Karl Josef Witt and Dipl.-Ing. Mary Noack from the university to create the four geogrid-reinforced stone columns on which the vehicle was supported. The geogrid used in the experiment was NAUE’s Secugrid.
The four columns, each 40 x 40 x 40 cm (16 x 16 x 16 in.), were constructed in front of the audience. Crushed gravel 8 mm-32 mm (0.3 in.-1.25 in.) was placed into the square forms, with the geogrid inserted every 10 cm (4 in.) to create three layers of reinforcement.
When the forklift was ready to place the vehicle on the reinforced columns, some doubting voices were heard in the audience. Two television crews were on hand to capture what would happen when the forms were removed. As the formworks were dislodged and the vehicle weight was observed settling in the tires, the reinforced columns held. More than 2,200 kg (4,800 lbs) stood firmly upon the geogrid’s strength.
The audience, media representatives, and civil engineering professors were enthusiastic as the civil engineering faculty demonstrated how well modern geosynthetic reinforcement techniques can perform.
See the video: www.naue.com/video-en
For more information: info@NAUE.com; www.naue.com; www.secugrid.com
Source: NAUE GmbH & Co. KG