A

Brief
Overview
of
Geosynthetics
and Their Major Applications*
1. Geosynthetic Materials
2.
Transportation
and
Geotechnical
3. Geoenvironmental
4. Hydraulic Engineering
5. Private Development
6. Concluding Comments
1. GEOSYNTHETIC MATERIALS
Polymer Background

geosynthetics
are
really
geopolymers
Geosynthetic (GS) Materials
geotextiles (GT)
geogrids (GG)
geonets (GN)
geomembranes (GM)
geosynthetic clay liners (GCL)
geopipe (GP)
geofoam (GF)
geocomposites (G C)
Geotextiles (GT)
majority are made
polypropylene fibers
Geogrids (GG)
unitized, woven
bonded straps

from

yarns

or

Geonets (GN)
all are made from high density
polyethylene
Geomembranes (GM)
function is always containment
represents a barrier to liquids
and gases
many types: HDPE, LLDPE, fPP,
PVC, EPDM, etc.
Geosynthetic Clay Liners (GCL)
function is always containment
common product is bentonite
between 2-GTs
Geopipe
its really buried plastic pipe!
function is always drainage
HDPE and PVC most common
Geofoam (GF)
EPS or XPS in block form
lightweight fill on soft
sensitive soils

or

Geocomposites (GC)
array of available products
GT/GM; GT/GG; GT/GN; etc.
Function vs. Geosynthetic Type

Design-by-Function
where
test Methods are from ASTM,
ISO or GRI

FS=

Required ( design ) Property

Allowable ( Test ) Property

Application Areas
Transportation/Geotechnical GT,
GG & GC mainly
Geoenvironmental GM, GCL &
GN mainly
Hydraulic Systems GM, GP & GC
mainly
Private Development all types
of GSs
2. TRANSPORTATION AND
GEOTECHNICAL
APPLICATIONS
GTs as filters
GTs and GGs as wall
reinforcement
GTs and GGs as slope
reinforcement
GC Wick Drains (also called
PVDs)
GC Erosion Control Systems
Geotextile Filtration
refers to cross-plane flow, i.e.,
GT is acting as
a filter not as a drain
three design requirements:
1. adequate flow
2. proper soil retention
3. long-term flow equilibrium
Wall
Reinforcement
Design
Concepts
internal design results in:
spacing of GT or GG
length of GT or GG
facing connection stress
external design used to
assess:
overturning stability
sliding stability
bearing capacity
Segmental
Retaining
Walls
(SRWs)
(also called modular block walls)
Reinforcement for Soil Slopes
use GT or GG reinforcement to
increase
Geocomposite Wick Drains
also called prefabricated
vertical drains (PVDs)
used for rapid consolidation of
saturated fine grained
soils
Geocomposite Erosion Control
Systems
slope protection modify USLE
channel protection increase
shear stress

Design Methods
(a)Cost
(b) Specification
(c)
Function
applications

permanent

3.GEOENVIRONMENTAL
APPLICATIONS
Landfill liner systems
Landfill cover systems

Vertical Cutoff Barriers

Liners
for
Surface
Impoundments
Liners for Heap Leach Ponds
4. HYDRAULIC ENGINEERING
APPLICATIONS
Waterproofing of Dams
Waterproofing of Canals

Reservoir
Liners/Floating
Covers

Tunnel
Waterproofing
&
Rehabilitation

Pipe
Rehabilitation
&
Remediation
5. PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT
APPLICATIONS
various dwellings
industrial buildings
storage/staging areas
tank farms
parks and playgrounds
pools and lakes
sport fields
golf courses
airfields
agriculture
aquaculture
liquid transportation
Selected Areas of Focus
6. CONCLUDING REMARKS
Organizations
Publications
Current Status
Summary

Functions of geosynthetics
Filtration
Separation
Drainage
Protection
Impermeabilization
Reinforcement of
walls/steep slopes
Reinforcement of
soft soil
Reinforcement of
concrete, asphalt
Erosion control or surfacial
Stabilization
Confinement
APPLICATIONS
GEOSYNTHETICS
*reservoirs dams
*liquid waste
*solid waste
*cannals
*roads
*railroads
*retaining walls
*erosion protection
*tunnels
*drainage systems

OF

Hydraulic
Engineering
Applications
Waterproofing of Dams
Waterproofing of Canals

Reservoir
Liners/Floating
Covers
Tunnel Waterproofing &
Rehabilitation

Pipe
Rehabilitation
&
Remediation

Characteristic Properties
Mechanical short/longterm
Hydraulic short/longterm
Durability
Damage during installation
General Product Identification
Polymer identification
Geometrical information
**Thickness
**Grid opening size / pitch
dimensions
Mass per unit area
Geometric Information
Measuring thickness at 2 kPa
The test is performed to EN964
part 1 for a
single layer
products and to EN964 part 2
for multi-layer
25 cm thickness metal base
Mass / Unit Area (mua)
Mass per unit area (mua) (ISO
9864; EN 965 : 1995 ASTM)
the mass per unit area is one of
the
most
often
used
characteristic values, giving the
price creating mass of the raw
material
Specimens are cut preferably
with a circular cutter, the
number
depends
on
the
specimen size; Minimum 3,
each 100 cm to a maximum of
10 specimen, and then weighed
to accuracy of +
0.001g and calculate the mua.
100 cm mua = 123.4 g/m
Mechanical Properties
Short-term tensile strength
and dependent deformation
Long-term tensile behaviour
(creep/creep rupture)
Long-term compressive creep
behaviour (with/without
Shear stress)
Resistance against impact or
punching
** Static puncture test, rapid
puncture
Resistance against abrasion
Friction properties
** Direct shear, inclined plane
test, pullout resistance
Protection efficiency
Damage during installation
Geosynthetics or composites
internal strength
Geosynthetic reinforcement
segmental retaining wall unit
connection testing
Short-term tensile strength and
dependent deformation

Creep Test Rigs

set up in
environment,
vibrations

a controlled
free
from

Isochronus curves
From creep curves at different
stress
grades
isochronous
stress strain curves may be
derived or extrapolated for
calculation
of
structures
deformation at a given time.
Resistance To Static Puncture
Static Puncture Test:
The Test CBR (EN ISO 12236 :
1996)
The use of soil mechanics
California Bearing Ratio (CBR)
apparatus
for
this
static
puncture test, has resulted in
the unusual name for this test.
A plunger of 50mm diameter
is pushed at a speed of 50 +/10mm min onto and through
the specimen clamped in the
circular jaws.
The test is widely used for
geotextiles, it is not applicable
to grids, and the test provides
useful data for geomembranes.
CBR device in testing machine
Inserting specimen in hydraulic
CBRclamps
PYRAMID
5494-93)

PUNCTURE

(ASTM

Dynamic Puncture Test :

Cone Drop Test (ISO 13433, EN
918 : 1995)
A 1kg pointed cone is dropped
from a height of 1m onto a
specimen, held tight in a
circular clamp
Impact Resistance Test
(CEN TC 189 WI 14; ISO 13428
draft)
A heavy drop weight (67.5 kg)
is dropped from 2 m height on
the geosynthetic placed on
sand and fixed in a ring. The
result is a penetration yes or
no decision.
Abrasion Resistance
(EN ISO 13427 : 1995)
Emery cloth of a specific
grade is moved linearly along
the specimen. After 750 cycles
the abraded specimen is tested
to measure the residual tensile
strength or hydraulic properties
Direct Shear Friction
(EN ISO 12957 : 1998)
Direct shear (EN ISO 12957-1)
The friction partners are placed
one in an upper box, the other
in the lower box. The lower box
is moved at a concentrate of
displacement (index testing: 1

mm/min) while recording force

and displacement. The results
for
three normal stresses (50, 100,
150 kPa) are plotted, the value
of friction angle is calculated
Inclined Plane Test
(EN ISO 12957-2)
The friction partners to be
tested
(geomembrane/geosynthetic;
geomembrane/soil;
geosynthetic/soil) are set up on
a inclinable steel table.
Movement of the upper box
and inclination are measured
while lifting the table by 3
degrees/min.
When the upper box moves
50mm the test is stopped and
the angle of the table is taken
as the angle of friction for the
chosen materials combination.
Pullout Resistance (1)
A strip of the geosynthetic,
just narrower than the width of
the box, is pulled out of a soil
filled box. A load is applied to
the
soil
geosynthetic
by
pneumatic, hydraulic system or
deadweight system. Force and
deformation are recorded for
several
points of the material inside the
box.
Protection Efficiency
The ability of a geotextile to
protect a
geomembrane
The deformation of a lead
plate, loaded with standard M10
nuts, used as a consistently
reproducible granular
material. The efficiency of the
geotextile
toprotect
a
geomembrane is calculated
from the depth and width of the
indentations.
Damage During Installation
The CEN-ISO standard applies
a cyclic load to a platen (100 x
200) pressing via a layer of
Corundum aggregate placed on
top of the geosynthetic being
tested. (Corundum is a trade
name for a sintered aluminium
oxide.
After 200 cycles between 5
kPa and 900 kPa maximum
stress the specimen is exhumed
and may be subject to a tensile
test for the residual strength for
reinforcement applications, or
for filtration the hydraulic
properties
for
filtration
applications.
(ENV ISO 10722-1 : 1997)
The forces applied to a
geosynthetic

during installation can be the

most severe loading that will be
applied to the material,
It is therefore necessary to
have a
test
which
simulates
the
installation
process.
Geosynthetics (composites
internal strength)
(EN ISO 13426-1)
If a failure of internal
junctions may cause failure of a
structure, the strength of these
junctions can be tested.
CEN WG 3 is developing a 3
part test.
Geocells: The loading of a
internal geocell-connection may
be of:
- a tensile shear type
- a peeling type
- a splitting type
or of combinations.
Hydraulic Properties

Water
permeability
characteristics
normal to plane, without load
Constant head
Falling head
Water flow capacity in their
plane
Characteristic opening size
Constant Head Test
In Darcys equation v = kv . I
v = speed of flow (m/s)
i = hydraulic gradient = head
difference/specimen thickness
De-aired water passes the
specimen charged with normal
stresses from top to bottom
(multilayer specimen of 20-40
mm are used), flow vs time is
measured and expressed as a
kv (kn)-factor.
Falling Head Method
De-aired water passes the
specimen charged with normal
stresses from top to bottom
(multilayer specimen of 20 - 40
mm are used), flow vs time is
measured and expressed as a
kv (kn)-factor.
Water Flow Capacity in the
Plane
(EN ISO 12958 : 1999)
In drainage applications water
needs to flow in the plane of
the
geosynthetic.
Tests
according to EN-ISO
or ASTM differ in specimen size,
but use the same basic
principles.
Flow is measured at constant
water head and expressed
either as kH (kp), unit m/s, or as
flow capacity, unit l/s per m

width of the product at given

gradient.
Characteristic Opening Size
(EN ISO 12956 : 1999)
To determine, which grain size
can
passing through a geosynthetic
and which is retained, a wet
sieving test is used with a
standard soil.
The soil passing the
geotextile is extracted from the
water and sieved again.
A characteristic value O90- is
calculated according to EN ISO
12956.
O90 = d90 of the soil
passing the
geosynthetic.
Durability Properties
Resistance to weathering
Resistance to microbiological
degradation (soil burial)
Resistance to liquids
Resistance to hydrolysis

Resistance
to
thermal
oxidation
Functions of a Filter
**Avoid internal clogging
**Avoid piping

Filtration Behaviour
Clogging: the voids of a
medium are
progressively filled by solid
matter to the point that the
passage
of
water
is
compromised
Internal clogging
Applications:
*drainage
*erosion control
Filter Applications
Wrapping of trench drains
(Koerner, 1998)
Wall drains
Erosion protection
Earth and rockfill dams
Vertical consolidation drains
Granular filter design
criteria
a)Retention Criteria:

d 15( filter)
<4 5
d 85( soil)
b)Permeability Criteria:

d 15( filter)
<4 5
d 15( soil)
Geotextile filter requirements:
Retention criteria
Permeability criteria
Anti-clogging criteria
Serviceability criteria
Durability criteria
Soil retention
A process in which the particle
movement is resisted by
granular forces
Useful design parameters
1. Coefficient of Uniformity, Cu
2.
Linear
Coefficient
of
Uniformity, Cu
3. Coefficient of Curvature, Cc
Design Charts
Determination of soil retention
requirements such as particle
size
distribution,
Atterberg
limits, dispersion potential, soil
density conditions indicating
the effect of confining stress,
are all considered and design
charts are prepared by Giroud
(1988).

Retention Criteria:
Oe(geotextile) < B D(soil)
where:
Oe = effective opening size in
the geotextile for which e is the
present openings that are
smaller than the
opening size O (mm), usually
the O90 or O95;
B
=
a
coefficient
(dimensionless); and
D(soil)=
representative
soil
particle size (mm), usually the
medium to larger fractions or
D85.
Laboratory Filter
Characterization

 Opening size O90 by wet

sieving

ksoil Min. permittivity

conditions > 0.1 to 1 sec-1

Permeability criteria
Giroud Criteria Kg > is Ks
Where is > 1.0
FWHA Criteria Kgeotextile> FS
ksoil
allow > FS required
For less critical conditions
Kgeotextile > ksoil For Severe
conditions Kgeotextile > 10

Anti - Clogging Criteria

Use
the
largest
available
opening size satisfying the
retention criteria
For nonwovens, porosity > 30%
For woven geotextiles percent
open area 4%
The porosity of a nonwoven
geotextile is given by

n = (1-/(tg)) * 100
is the mass per unit area of
geotextile
tg is the geotextile thickness
and is the density of filament