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National Conference on Recent Advancements in Civil Engineering & Infrastructural Developments (RACE-InD 2011) 21-22 December, 2011 Department

of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Engineering & Technology, Guna, MP, India

Deep Soil Mixing: An untapped technique of soil improvement in India


Eshan Ganju, Himneet Singh
Students, Dept. Of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat, Solan, H.P. 173234

S.K. Jain
Associate Professor, Dept. Of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat, Solan, H.P. 173234

Keywords: Deep Soil Mixing (DSM), Treated railway embankment, DSM pile-foundation. ABSTRACT: The use of Deep Soil Mixing (DSM) technology of soil improvement has steadily grown throughout the world during the past four decades. Despite its vast array of applications, the technology is yet to enter India. India has a coastline of over 7500 km where soft marine clays are often encountered; the method can be very useful in the construction of foundations, embankments and roads on these soft soils. The focus of this paper is to explain the DSM technology. Two case histories, to illustrate the use of the technology in ground improvement, have also been included.

1 Introduction:
DSM (Deep Soil Mixing) is a method of ground improvement, which employs the construction of soil-binder columns within the soil. The concept behind DSM was developed about 50 years ago in the USA, when an American contractor (Intrusion Prepakt Co.) developed a "mixed-in-place (MIP) piling technique using a single auger" (Bruce, 2000). Although the technique found sporadic use in USA, other countries became keen on it especially Japan and Sweden. Japan in particular used it for soil treatment in their transportation and harbor facilities, which were located on soft soils. The actual development of the technique started in 1961 in Japan, where 300,000 linear meters of pile were cast by the MIP technique, under license from USA geotechnical firms. By the late 1960's Japan's Ministry Of Transport through its Port and Harbour Research Institute (PHRI) began lab tests on DSM using powered lime to treat soft marine clays, with favorable results. At the same time, experiments and research studies were also carried out by the Swedes on the Swedish Lime Column Method and by 1974 intensive trials were conducted on 15 m deep lime columns. By 1975, PHRI started testing on cement as a possible binder for DSM columns, leading to the development of Cement Deep Mixing (CDM) technology. 1976 saw the first commercial use of DSM technology both in Japan and Sweden. Hereafter, different geotechnical firms started coming into existence, bringing with them newer methods and techniques of mixing soil and stabilizing agents to make stronger and more widely useable columns. The technology went through almost 60 years of industrial research and development. Today, with over 25 variations to the DSM technology (Bruce 2001), all in the form of patented techniques developed and used by practicing geotechnical firms, the technology finds myriad applications in the form of:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Hydraulic cut off walls. (Yang, 1997) Excavation support walls. (Chew et al., 1993) Ground treatment. (Uchida et al., 1996) Liquefaction mitigation. (Matsuo et al., 1996) In-situ reinforcement, pile and gravity walls. (Dong et al., 1996) Environmental remediation. (Yang et al., 1995)

Despite DSM's vast array of applications and huge possible applicability in India, the equipment has not as yet come to the country, where jet grouting is still the method used for ground improvement. In the present paper, we describe the method itself, how it works and the equipment used for it, later looking into case studies that show how the DSM columns were successfully used in various ground improvement operations.

National Conference on Recent Advancements in Civil Engineering & Infrastructural Developments (RACE-InD 2011) 21-22 December, 2011 Department of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Engineering & Technology, Guna, MP, India

2 The method and Equipment:

The DSM method involves the introduction and blending of cementitious material (stabilizing agents) into the soil through hollow rotated shafts, equipped with cutting tools and mixing paddles or augers that extend for several meters above the cutting tip (Bruce, 2001). The stabilizing agent is widely referred to as Binder and can be introduced in to the soil in dry or slurry form, the dry form generally being used when the water content of the soil to be treated is from 60 to over 200%. The binder material is sprayed through a nozzle located at either the tip of the shaft, at the cutting end, or near the mixing paddles. The Binder can be cement, slag cement, bentonite, lime, fly-ash, chemical or a combination of the above, designed according to: (1) The intended use, (2) The ground to be treated and (3) Local availability of materials. The rotating shafts are positioned vertically on a crawler-mounted carrier (caterpillar tracks). As the shaft rotates the cutting tool cuts and loosens up the soil while the nozzle sprays the binder. The rotating paddles move up and down along with the shaft, thoroughly mixing the soil and binder, creating the soil-binder column. In some patented techniques, a jet of binder material or pressurized air is used to loosen up the soil. The DSM rig comes with two or three shafts which can simultaneously dig and create the soil-binder columns. These columns can be arranged in various patterns depending on their desired use and the condition of the soil in which they are to be constructed. Some of the patterns of DSM pile arrangements have been shown here (Figure 2). Figure 1. DSM Equipment and rig

Figure 2. DSM Pile arrangements

National Conference on Recent Advancements in Civil Engineering & Infrastructural Developments (RACE-InD 2011) 21-22 December, 2011 Department of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Engineering & Technology, Guna, MP, India

3 Case History: DSM Columns as foundation for Building


In Singapore, DSM technique was used to construct the foundation of a six storey condominium (Raju, 2011). The construction of the superstructure was preceded by the construction of DSM columns. These columns served as load bearing foundation for the building. Due to the quick nature of their construction, the DSM columns comparatively reduced the construction time of the structure.

Figure 3. Plan of the construction zone (Raju, 2011)

The construction zone was a 40m by 26m piece of land situated on soft clays. The soil profile (average) of the construction zone showed deposits of Sand (2 m thick), lying on top of Clayey-silt (3 - 7.5 m thick), with Clay deposits below it. The sand layer had an average SPT value of 2, while the Clayey-Silt layer has an SPT value ranging from 1 to 5. The Clay layer at the bottom had an average SPT value of 50 (Figure 4).

Figure 4. Soil profile of the construction zone (Raju, 2011)

For the construction of the foundation, square column (Figure 2) type of DSM arrangement was followed, using circular columns. The columns had an area ratio (ratio of total area of columns to area of the treated land) of 25% for column loads of up to 130 kPa and an area ratio of 35% for column loads of up to 180 kPa. The depth of treatment varied from 5 m, in the region with thin clayey silt layer, to more than 8 m in the region with a thick clayey silt layer.

National Conference on Recent Advancements in Civil Engineering & Infrastructural Developments (RACE-InD 2011) 21-22 December, 2011 Department of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Engineering & Technology, Guna, MP, India

Figure 5. Plate load test results (Raju, 2011)

Due to the installation of the DSM columns, the stability of the ground improved and the settlement of the soil was reduced under the load of the building. A total settlement of just 10mm was measured under the design load of 180 kPa, confirming the results of the plate load test, conducted earlier (Figure 5).

4 Case History: DSM Columns as Ground Treatment for Railway Embankment


In Malaysia, DSM columns were used for ground treatment for railway embankment. The geotechnical design involved ground improvement on existing foundation to take the dead and live loads for trains travelling at over 160 km/h. The design requirements of the project were: (1) A maximum construction settlement of 25mm in 6 months. (2) A maximum differential settlement of 1 in 1000. (3) A factor of safety of 1.5 for the permanent embankments. The treated area was an 800 m long stretch of land, with a width varying from 20 m to 25 m (Figure 6). CPT carried out at 25 different locations on the area revealed a soil profile having a clayey silt layer (5 m thick) lying on top of about a meter thick layer of sand, placed above indiscreet layers of soft clayey silts and loose siltysands up to a depth of 11 m. This was followed by dense sand deposits below. The ground water level was found to be 1 m below the surface.

Figure 6. Plan of the area to be treated (Raju et al., 2004)

National Conference on Recent Advancements in Civil Engineering & Infrastructural Developments (RACE-InD 2011) 21-22 December, 2011 Department of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Engineering & Technology, Guna, MP, India

To carry out ground improvement, dry DSM was used to produce stabilized soil columns to interact with the surrounding soil mass. The applied load was carried partly by the columns and partly by the natural soil between the columns. The applied technique not only helped to improve the surrounding soil mass, but also helped in reducing the adverse effect of vibration on the stability of the soil mass (Holm, 1999 and 2002) From the aspect of design, a column diameter of 600 mm was chosen for the project. The design shear strength of the treated soil below the rails was 250 kPa and 150 kPa for the remaining area of the embankment. The live load was estimated at 30 kPa. Based on the estimated load and and the embankment height of 1.5 to 3m, the DSM columns were placed 1-1.3 m c\c below the rails and 1.4-1.5 m c\c in the remaining area below the embankment. The columns were installed to a depth ranging from 7 to 14 m, down to the dense sand layers below. To assist in the load transfer, geo-textile reinforcement was also placed above the level of the columns.

Figure 7. Cross section of treated area (Raju et al., 2004)

After the treatment was completed, plate load tests were carried out on the treated soil. One carried out every 2 5000 m of treated area. The maximum design load was estimated at 74 kPa and tests were carried out at 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%, 125% and 150% of the maximum design load in two load cycles. The settlement was observed to be within 10 mm for 150% of maximum design load (Figure 8).

Figure 8. Typical Plate load test result (Raju et al., 2004)

National Conference on Recent Advancements in Civil Engineering & Infrastructural Developments (RACE-InD 2011) 21-22 December, 2011 Department of Civil Engineering, Jaypee University of Engineering & Technology, Guna, MP, India

5 Conclusion
The technology of DSM has gone through 60 years of research and development and has today emerged as a prominent technique in the treatment of soft soils. The technology has been extensively used in Japan, Sweden, Singapore and Malaysia to treat soft soils and has so far shown promising results. Despite the methods vast applicability and its efficacy to deliver on stringent design requirements, the technology has not yet arrived in India, where jet grouting is still the method used for soil treatment. The technology can be most attractive in projects where the ground is neither very stiff nor very dense, nor contains boulder or other obstructions to depths of less than about 30m (Bruce, 2011). In India, which has a coastline of over 7500km and where soft marine clays are often found, the method can prove to be very useful in infrastructure development projects. Further studies should be carried out in DSM technology and its applicability be assessed for India. The regions where the technology can potentially be used for infrastructure development should be identified.

6 Acknowledgements
The authors express their gratitude to Dr. V.R. Raju, Managing Director, Keller-Asia, for providing case histories of DSM from Malaysia and Singapore.

7 References
Bruce D.A. (2000). An introduction to deep soil mixing methods, as used in geotechnical applications. Publication number FHWA-RD-99-138, Federal Highway Administration, US Dept. of Transport. Bruce D.A. (2001). Practitioners guide to deep mixing method, from Thomas Telford co, (1365-781X). Chew H.H., Takeda T., Ichikawa K., Hosoi T. (1993). Chemico lime pile soil improvement used for soft clay ground. Proceedings, 11th Southeast Asian Geotechnical Conference, Singapore, pp. 319-324. Dong J., Hiroi K., Nakamura K. (1996). Experimental study on behavior of composite ground improved by Deep Mixing Method under lateral earth pressure. Grouting and Deep Mixing, Proceedings of IS-Tokyo 96, The Second International Conference on Ground Improvement, Geosystems Tokyo, May 14-17, pp. 585-590. Holm G. (1999). Application of Dry Mix Methods for deep soil stabilization, Proceedings of the International Conference on Dry Mix Methods for deep soil stabilization, Stockholm, Sweden. Holm G. et al (2002). Mitigation of track and ground vibrations induced by high speed trains at Ledsgard, Sweden, Swedish Geotechnical Institute, SD Report 10, Sweden, pp. 1-44. Matsuo O., Shimazu T., Goto Y., Suzuki Y., Okumura R., Kuwabara M. (1996). Deep Mixing Method as a liquefaction prevention measure. Grouting and Deep Mixing, Proceedings of Tokyo 96, The Second International Conference on Ground Improvement Geosystems,Tokyo, May 14-17, pp. 521-526. Raju V.R. (2011). Deep Soil Mixing Techniques and Applications, Presentation at Seminar on Grouting and Deep Mixing Central Board of Irrigation & Power, 25th August 2011, New Delhi, India. Raju V.R., Abdullah A., Arulrajah A. (2004). Ground Treatment Using Dry Deep Soil Mixing For a Railway embankment in Malaysia. Technical Paper 31-52E, Keller-Asia. Uchida K., Imai K., Tatsuoka F., Kohata Y. (1996). Ground improvement by cement treatment in Trans-Tokyo Bay Highway Project, Grouting and Deep Mixing, Proceedings of IS-Tokyo 96, The Second International Conference on Ground Improvement Geosystems, Tokyo, May 14-17, pp. 669-674. Yang D.S., Takeshima S., Delfino T.A., Rafferty M.T. (1995). Use of soil mixing at a metals site. Air and Waste Management 88th Annual Meeting, June. Yang D.S. (1997). Chapter 25: Deep Mixing, In Situ Ground Improvement, Reinforcement and Treatment: A Twenty-Year Update and a Vision for the 21st Century, Ground Reinforcement Committee, American Society of Civil Engineers, GeoInstitute Conference, Logan, UT, July 16-17, pp. 130-150.

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