Extreme Foundations for Peat Deposits: Conceptual Model, Creative Thinking and Learning Process

As engineering is essentially an application of science and mathematics to resolve real-life, practical problems, incorporation of actual field encounters or case histories in the teaching process can facilitate better understanding among students by providing a link between the theories and the applied solutions. It is the same for geo-engineering courses, like Advanced Foundation Engineering. By introducing the study of a relevant existing case in the course, the gap between theories and field applications can be effectively bridged. It is therefore no wonder that recent years have seen increased emphasis on problem-based learning in the delivery of engineering courses. In this paper, the implementation of a group project in the final year Advanced Foundation Engineering course in the form of a case study is discussed. Set against the background of challenging foundation issues on deep peat deposit at Sibu, Sarawak state of East Malaysia, students were required to examine the underlying problems and to propose an effective solution. Individual groups of 4-5 students exercised critical thinking in systematically analyzing the causes of foundation failures in the area and formulating suitable solutions based on lectures, extra reading and talking to the experts. Weekly discourse was held with the lecturer throughout the 12-week endeavour to ensure satisfactory work progress as well as to provide guidance where necessary. At the end of the project, each group constructed a scaled model to demonstrate the conceptual model of their respective foundation design and solution to the problematic soil. Documentation included the Project Folder, which chronicled the development of the conceptual model and design (i.e. project management); and the Technical Report, which elaborated and explained the creative work of the students (i.e. technical writing). In a nutshell, the embedded case study approach enlivened the learning process of an otherwise ‘dreary’ subject, and helped to enhance the students’ soft skills often overlooked in the delivery of geo-engineering courses

Oedometric study of dredged marine soils admixed with sand for settlement reduction

Dredged marine soils (DMS) can be reused as fill materials for land reclamation project other than dump back to the open sea. However, in Malaysia, dredged marine soils were considered as a geowaste because of it has poor engineering properties. In the present study, dredged marine soils were excavated from the dredging works near the jetty of Kuala Perlis, Malaysia. To investigate the settlement reduction of DMS, a sand-mixed was used in this study and these results were compared with natural DMS (without sand). Oedometer test were conducted to calculate the consolidation properties of DMS and k-value can be obtained from the test. The test results showed that the dissipation of water from soils occurs faster in the sand-mixed compare to the control sample (without sand) due to the drainage path that have been reduced (two-way drainage)

Shear resistance of rubber-ballast composites in simulated water and acid soaked conditions

Ballast is one of the main structures for the railway tracks. It can resist the lateral movement under dynamic loading transferred by the passing trains with repeatedly. Under some circumstances, ballast can suffer degradation or breakdown due to the repeated loading and maintenance. Ballast is easily exposed to the weather because it is laid on the track. Acid rain affects the performance of the railway track near the industrial and urban area. As a result, it starts to foul and the small chips from ballast filled the void, as well as reduce the shear strength of ballast particles. This situation can contribute into the increasing of maintenance frequency and costing. This paper examines the potential of rubber inclusions in increasing the shear resistance of rubber-ballast composites in simulated water and acid soaked conditions with several configuration. This lab-based exploratory work is only static load simulation in conventional shear box setup measuring 60 mm × 60 mm. The aggregates size is 10 times smaller than actual size of ballast. In order to identify the shear resistance deterioration of rubber-aggregates mixture under poor drainage conditions by soaked a batch of aggregates in water and acid solution for 2 weeks to simulate accelerated weathering effects. The shear resistance did not rise dramatically with the rubber reinforcement. This susceptible shear strain plots indicate ductile behaviour on the aggregates-rubber composites. This is evident by the linear rise of shear stress with strain up to approximately 10% for the control samples (CS) until it reaches a constant value. Note that all the specimens including CS are in a loose state during the testing because there were no tamping been applied on the samples. Overall the circular patch (CP) specimen was the most favourable than the other configurations. Both mechanisms contributed to the reduced overall subsistence, accompanied by an increase in the shear resistance. The inclusion of rubber elements apparently prevented the dilation of the granular material when approaching the shear failure and the reducing the settlement

Oedometric study of dredged marine soils admixed with sand for settlement reduction

Dredged marine soils (DMS) can be reused as fill materials for land reclamation project other than dump back to the open sea. However, in Malaysia, dredged marine soils were considered as a geowaste because of it has poor engineering properties. In the present study, dredged marine soils were excavated from the dredging works near the jetty of Kuala Perlis, Malaysia. To investigate the settlement reduction of DMS, a sand-mixed was used in this study and these results were compared with natural DMS (without sand). Oedometer test were conducted to calculate the consolidation properties of DMS and k-value can be obtained from the test. The test results showed that the dissipation of water from soils occurs faster in the sand-mixed compare to the control sample (without sand) due to the drainage path that have been reduced (two-way drainage)

Shear resistance improvement of oil-contaminated ballast layer with rubber shred inclusions

Railway ballast, which form an integral part of rail tracks, is highly susceptible to subsistence due to both vibration transmitted by the passing trains, as well as the breakage of ballasts with repeated impact. The resulting subsistence necessitates regular monitoring and maintenance, involving cost- and time- consuming remedial actions, such as stone-blowing and ballast renewal. Measures to minimize the wear and tear effect are therefore desirable to prolong the lifespan of the ballast layer. It is even more critical when the ballast is contaminated with oil and grease from braking wheels and leakages. This paper describes the inclusion of rubber shreds (≤10 mm in length, 1.5 mm thick) derived from the inner tubes of motorcycle tyres in oil-contaminated ballast layer for shear resistance improvement. The tests are mainly carried out in a standard direct shear test setup, i.e. shear box measuring 60 mm x 60 mm. Granitic stones of suitable sizes were sieved and used as representative samples of typical ballast. The samples were soaked in lubricant oil for 14 days to simulate the contamination. The direct shear test results indicated rubber shreds inclusion could effectively improve the shear resistance of ballast and expedient in deformation control with increased ductility of the composites. This could potentially improve absorption of impact, hence reduction of breakages of the ballasts. Clearly both mechanisms contribute to the overall reduced subsistence, accompanied by an increase in the shear resistance. However, further investigations in a dynamic test setup are necessary for verifications prior to field implementation

Shear resistance of rubber-ballast composites in simulated water and acid soaked conditions

Ballast is one of the main structures for the railway tracks. It can resist the lateral movement under dynamic loading transferred by the passing trains with repeatedly. Under some circumstances, ballast can suffer degradation or breakdown due to the repeated loading and maintenance. Ballast is easily exposed to the weather because it is laid on the track. Acid rain affects the performance of the railway track near the industrial and urban area. As a result, it starts to foul and the small chips from ballast filled the void, as well as reduce the shear strength of ballast particles. This situation can contribute into the increasing of maintenance frequency and costing. This paper examines the potential of rubber inclusions in increasing the shear resistance of rubber-ballast composites in simulated water and acid soaked conditions with several configuration. This lab-based exploratory work is only static load simulation in conventional shear box setup measuring 60 mm × 60 mm. The aggregates size is 10 times smaller than actual size of ballast. In order to identify the shear resistance deterioration of rubber-aggregates mixture under poor drainage conditions by soaked a batch of aggregates in water and acid solution for 2 weeks to simulate accelerated weathering effects. The shear resistance did not rise dramatically with the rubber reinforcement. This susceptible shear strain plots indicate ductile behaviour on the aggregates-rubber composites. This is evident by the linear rise of shear stress with strain up to approximately 10% for the control samples (CS) until it reaches a constant value. Note that all the specimens including CS are in a loose state during the testing because there were no tamping been applied on the samples. Overall the circular patch (CP) specimen was the most favourable than the other configurations. Both mechanisms contributed to the reduced overall subsistence, accompanied by an increase in the shear resistance. The inclusion of rubber elements apparently prevented the dilation of the granular material when approaching the shear failure and the reducing the settlement

Indicators for measuring satisfaction towards design quality of buildings

Design quality is an important component in measuring satisfaction towards total product quality (TPQ) of buildings, the product of construction projects. Design Quality Indicator (DQI), developed by the Construction Industry Council (CIC) in the UK looking at three quality fields, i.e. functionality, build quality, and impact of building in measuring the quality of design embodied in the buildings through feedback and perceptions of all stakeholders involved in the production and use of buildings. Design quality is always a major concern in the Malaysian construction industry. With inspiration from this DQI, this study was carried out to identify indicators for measuring the satisfaction towards design quality of buildings and to evaluate the suitability of the indicators for application in the context of Malaysian construction industry. Through literature survey, 32 indicators of design quality were identified and grouped into the three design quality fields. A questionnaire survey was carried out among Malaysian construction professionals (architects, engineers, quantity surveyors, contractors and developers) to assess the identified design quality indicators in terms of their relevance and significance in the context of construction industry in Malaysia. The survey reveals that access, natural lighting, access and use, structure element, landscape, finishes, location, external environment, urban and social integration and noise are among the design quality indicators that were perceived as the most important to be looked at. In overall, all the indicators are relevant for adoption in the Malaysian construction industry to measure the satisfaction towards design quality of buildings

Preliminary Study of S-Wave Velocity and Unconfined Compressive Strength of Cement- Palf Stabilised Kaolin

Clays are notoriously well known for giving rise to myriad problems and difficulties inconstruction due to excessive settlement and limited strength. Hence, there is a need to pretreatthe soils prior to construction, such as improving the engineering properties via thestabilisation technique, before additional load can be applied on it. In soil stabilisation,cement is commonly used as a stabilizing agent, to simultaneously increase the strength andstiffness of the originally weak, soft material. However cement is relatively expensive andpotentially harmful to the environment when admixed with soils. The need for alternativestabilizing agents which could reduce the use of cement is therefore apparent. In this study,natural fibres were retrieved from pineapple leaves, an agricultural waste product typical ofJohor. Next pre-determined quantities of pineapple leaf fibres (PALF) were added to anartificial clay, kaolin, together with cement. The mixture was formed into specimens of 38mm diameter and 76 mm high, cured in dry condition before being subjected to the s-wavevelocity and unconfined strength measurements. A range of curing period was introduced toexamine the effect of time on the performance of the stabilised specimens too. It was foundthat the fibres function as a form of reinforcement to the soil. Also, the test data revealed thatPALF alone makes negligible contribution to the improved properties, where cement isnecessary to act as a binder to strengthen the soil matrix. Nevertheless the potential of usingPALF as an additive to cement in soft soil stabilisation is promising, though further work isnecessary to better understand the stabilised material and its long term performance

Structural analysis of long arm excavator boom for optimization performance under maximum breakout condition

Long Arm Excavators are widely used in the construction site for excavating deep holes or trenches. However, due to the often-severe work conditions, such as large lifting loads, poor ground conditions to sustain the machine’s self-weight, Long Arm Excavator parts are subjected to constant wear and tear, incurring downtime losses and safety issues. The boom is considered the most critically affected part of the machine in these work conditions, where the high forces and unpredictable elements at the worksite could severely affect the machine’s overall performance. A potential solution is the reinforcement of the boom to improve its robustness. As an industrial collaborative project, the present study examines the performance of an existing machine with simulated improvement of the boom with such an approach, i.e. incorporation of stiffener reinforcement. Simulation works were carried out with Ansys Workbench 19.2 to assess the boom’s performance in terms of resulting stress, strain and deformation under a series of improved conditions, which include varying the dimensions and positions of the stiffeners on the boom. The improved conditions were Improvement I: stiffeners thickness reduction to 10mm, Improvement II: a combination of different stiffeners thickness reduction which 10mm and 8mm at critical and non-critical part of the boom, Improvement III: removal of half intermediate stiffeners thickness 12mm and Improvement IV: removal of half intermediate stiffeners thickness 8mm. Structural analysis was conducted based on the maximum breakout condition in which the excavator generates maximum digging force. From the analysis, it was found that the maximum equivalent stress of the boom decreased with the number of stiffeners. The combination of different stiffeners thickness could also increase the boom’s strength while decreasing the maximum equivalent stress. The lowest maximum equivalent stress of the boom was achieved via Improvement II with a reduction of 26.1% maximum equivalent stress. Removal of non-critical part stiffeners also kept stress values under the designated stress limits against fatigue failure, i.e. 44.49 MPa and 42.47 MPa (Improvement III and IV). In summary, the optimal design could be obtained with improvement II. This would effectively save on the manufacturing costs while maximizing the machine’s performance on-site, simultaneously reducing downtime and hence operating costs and time

Protective coating for gabion wires against weathering elements and site conditions

Gabions are one of the most essential elements in the geotechnical field for their versatility and strength in slope stabilization. According to BS 8002:2015, gabions are rectangular large cages or baskets made of either steel wire or square welded mesh, and are usually filled with stones. Besides slope stabilization, gabions have been widely used for various purposes, including closing of river banks, road construction, landslide consolidation and hilly terrain reclamation [1]