August 1, 2017
The regulation of coal ash (coal combustion residuals or CCR) has significantly expanded the market for geosynthetics within the United States. Further, there is interest in these regulations around the globe in every country using coal as an energy source. These regulations are the result of recent environmental incidents. The regulations call for the increased …
Liner repair? Pullout tests? Sewn seams? Shear strength of sludges? Geomembrane liner repair Q: I have a facility that has submitted liner repair documentation for the repair of a high-density polyethylene (HDPE) liner for a leachate/stormwater pond at an industrial landfill site. The repairs were performed using either a patch or, for indentations and small …
Introduction Since the late 1800s, coal has played a leading role in U.S. production of electrical energy. Coal-fired power plants have provided reliable electrical power from the earliest days when power plants were run with hand-fed coal to heat boilers to produce steam. The introduction of pulverized coal led to improvements in the electrical-generation process …
Coal combustion residuals (CCR) have been used for many years in the construction of berms and engineered structural fill applications, including embankments for highways, dikes, and levees. However, large, unencapsulated structural fill projects have become a focus of environmental concerns due to potential leaching of metals and structural failures. Cap-in-place of CCR surface impoundments is …
June 1, 2017
For more than 30 years, the geomembrane industry has been told that “all geomembranes leak” (Giroud 1984), as if this were some foregone conclusion no matter what might happen from geomembrane manufacturing to the time it is put into service. But recently, the idea of “zero leaks” has been a hot topic at industry conferences, …
Introduction The objectives of this article are to document the long history of geosynthetic materials used in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service and other rural roads, to document the many creative and useful ways geosynthetics have been used, and to promote the cost-effective uses of geosynthetics in road projects today, particularly on …
Resisting animal and insect attacks on geomembranes is an interesting problem. Geomembrane installers and manufacturers have had numerous geomembranes damaged by bears, deer, coyotes, birds, beavers, and ground squirrels (Figures 1 and 2). In most cases, the damage is incidental to something else the animal is seeking. Deer damage the liner with their hooves trying …
Introduction The design of many geotechnical structures is based on limit-state conditions. For example, in designing gravity walls, the load exerted by the retained soil on the wall is based on an assumed active state of stresses. That is, the wall moves sufficiently outward, enabling the retained soil to mobilize its shear strength along a …
April 1, 2017
Introduction Part 1 of this article provided an overview of the various functions that geosynthetics can fulfill in roadway applications. These functions include separation, filtration, reinforcement, stiffening, drainage, hydraulic/gas barrier, and protection. Table 1 in that article identified a total of five roadway applications involving geosynthetics. For each of the five roadway applications, the table …
Introduction The design of many geotechnical structures is based on limit state conditions. For example, in designing gravity walls, the load exerted by the retained soil on the wall is based on an assumed active state of stresses. That is, the wall moves sufficiently outward, enabling the retained soil to mobilize its shear strength along …