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The importance of correctly protecting EPS geofoam blocks
September 29th, 2021
Photograph courtesy of e2 Technical Textiles Construction-grade expanded polystyrene, better known as EPS geofoam, is the go-to material for a variety of applications due to its low weight and superior properties. Today, it’s used in building foundations, landscaping, road construction, bridges and numerous other applications. EPS geofoam, however, has a significant drawback that limits its […]
Constructing a refuge for healthcare staff: Geofoam backs plaza renovation
August 23rd, 2021
Photograph courtesy of InsulFoam The University of Utah, bound by mountain ranges and the city of Salt Lake City, offers one of the nation’s top academic healthcare systems. The college’s Health Business Services Building (BSB), the system’s primary administration office, houses 1,400 board-certified physicians and more than 5,000 support staff. On the perimeter of the […]
Ground improvements using geofoam: A case history
October 14th, 2020
By Javaid M. Alvi, Ph.D., and Jahangir J. Kabir, Ph.D., P.E The project site is a triangular-shaped property located at the intersection of Raleigh Avenue and West Liberty Avenue in the Borough of Dormont, Allegheny County, Pa. (Figure 1). The site housed two Nissan buildings, one with a showroom at the top floor and the […]
Infrastructure funding remains uncertain
April 1st, 2019
Nearly a year has gone by since we published the June/July 2018 issue with a theme of “Geosynthetics Used in Highways and Bridges.” The editorial in that issue noted, “As of this writing, the White House and U.S. Congress are working on an infrastructure bill or bills after President Donald Trump released an infrastructure proposal […]
Yeager Airport: Deconstruction and reconstruction of the side of a mountain
April 1st, 2019
Yeager Airport is located on top of a series of leveled mountains in Charleston, W.Va. Completion of the original airport construction in the 1940s required 9 million cubic yards (6.9 million m3) of soil and rock earthwork (Keller 2017). In 2005, due to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) safety requirements, it was necessary to construct a […]
Geosynthetics use expands in mining and ore processing
August 1st, 2018
The estimated value of nonfuel mining of raw materials in the United States alone totaled $75.2 billion in 2017, according to an annual report by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Everything from aluminum to zinc falls into this massive category, but that dollar figure is dwarfed by the USGS’s estimate in that same report of […]
Case studies using EPS geofoam for mining and energy
August 1st, 2018
The complexities of the built environment continually challenge the limits of engineering and construction. For infrastructure built-in areas with settlement-prone soils or other hazardous geological conditions, assembling a team of experts to plan for challenges is essential. Industries like mining, oil and gas, and utilities must often bore through earth and rock to build tunnels, […]
Update: High-elevation geofoam at Snowbird
October 1st, 2017
All projects have challenges, purpose and meaning, yet some projects mean a lot more to owners than others. It takes a visionary to leave a legacy, and Richard Bass, founder of Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort in Utah, was such a man. For starters, Bass is acknowledged as the first person in the world to […]
GMA Techline
August 1st, 2017
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 […]
TRB offers webinar on geofoam applications for slope stability
July 18th, 2017
The Transportation Research Board (TRB) will conduct a webinar on July 27, 2017, from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. EDT, that discusses ways to use geofoam to address slope-stability problems. Moderated by Mohammed Mulla of the North Carolina Department of Transportation, the webinar panel includes David Arellano of the University of Memphis, Steven Bartlett of the […]