General Report Session 3: Deformation and Liquefaction of Sands, Silt, Gravels and Clays

It has been almost 27 years since the damaging earthquakes of 1964 which occurred in Niigata, Japan and in Alaska, USA, focused the geotechnical engineers\u27 attention to liquefaction as a major problem in earthquake engineering. Considerable research and studies have been conducted on the subject of earthquake induced liquefaction since that time and these have included field observations, laboratory experiments and model tests, and theoretical studies. Progress in understanding the liquefaction phenomenon, in the assessment of liquefaction potential, and in the solutions to mitigate the liquefaction hazard has been made, yet the problem remains controversial in many respects, as reflected by the many stimulating papers presented in this session. The word liquefaction has been associated with many phenomena observed in the field during and after earthquakes such as sand boils, flow slides, lateral spreads, loss of bearing capacity and porewater pressure rise. In laboratory tests, liquefaction has been defined in several ways relating to pore pressure buildup under undrained cyclic straining or loading, or the development of a specified amount of shear strain in a fixed number of cycles of loading. Laboratory studies have also shown that the liquefaction phenomenon can be divided into three different behaviors, namely, true liquefaction, limited liquefaction and cyclic mobility. In theoretical studies, liquefaction occurs when the seismic-induced cyclic shear stress exceeds the cyclic shear resistance, or when the seismic porewater pressure increases to equal the effective stress. To compare the results from different papers, one must bear in mind the different definitions used by the various authors. Liquefaction-caused failure is really the result of excessive permanent deformation, e.g. tilting, settlement or heave of structures, excessive slumping or distortion, and sliding of slopes. Liquefaction-induced ground deformation is receiving more attention in the last decade. Soil failure due to liquefaction was the most dominant cause of damage in the recent M 7. 7 Luzon earthquake of July 16, 1990 in the Philippines. Remedial measures or ground improvement techniques to reduce the liquefaction hazards are becoming more common in recent years, not only for seismic rehabilitation of existing sites but also for newly developed sites. Refinements in equipment and techniques of existing methods are being developed. As well, new methods of ground improvements are being introduced. The M 7.1 Lorna Prieta earthquake of October 17, 1989 showed convincingly that liquefaction hazard can be avoided or effectively mitigated by soil densification prior to earthquake

An Alternative Method of Measuring SPT Energy

Despite problems associated with its repeatability and reliability, the standard Penetration Test (SPT) continues to be the most widely used in-situ test for liquefaction potential assessment. There are many factors known to influence the SPT results but the most significant factor affecting the N value is the amount of hammer energy delivered into the drill rods. The existing method of SPT energy measurement consists of attaching a load cell near the top of the drill rods and measuring the force time history during hammer impact. An alternative method of SPT energy determ1nat1on based on measurement of both force and acceleration time history is described. It is shown that the proposed method is more fundamental and avoids several shortcomings in the existing method. Field measurements are presented and SPT energies calculated by both methods are compared

Current Trends in Design and Analysis of Paper Machine Foundations

Current trends in the design and dynamic analysis of paper machine foundations to ensure satisfactory performance are presented in this paper. Space frame foundations for modern high speed paper machines are governed by the requirements to meet stringent alignment/deflection tolerances and dynamic stiffness requirements specified by the machine manufacturer. The current design approach considers the complete machine-foundation-soil interaction. The dynamic response analysis is commonly conducted using a suitable finite element computer code in which the soil is modelled by equivalent springs. Damping is also included in the response calculation. Appropriate stiffness and damping parameters to model the foundation soil or soil/pile system are obtained from complex, frequency-dependent impedance functions derived from analytical and numerical solutions of continuum foundation models. Two case histories are presented to illustrate the use of forced vibration testing to aid in the machine foundation design process

I Am as Incompetent as the Prototypical Group Member: An Investigation of Naturally Occurring Golem Effects in Work Groups

Over four decades, research has demonstrated Pygmalion and Galatea effects (positive expectations leading to high performance) across various settings. In contrast, research on the parallel notion of Golem effects (negative expectations leading to low performance) has been largely overlooked. This study is the first to examine the relationship between group-level Implicit Followership Theories (GIFTs) and naturally occurring Golem effects. Integrating the literature on Implicit Followership Theories, self-fulfilling prophecies, and social identity, we propose that negative GIFTs can serve as proxies of expectations for followers that trigger Golem effects in workgroups. Data from 202 followers and 101 leaders provide support for our hypothesized multi-level model, revealing a top-down relationship between negative GIFTs and follower performance through their self-efficacy and effort. Findings highlight the importance of GIFTs in the Golem process, showing that followers’ cognitions and behaviors are shaped by the group’s prototypical attributes. Suggestions for future research are offered, including interpersonal Golem effects, negative GIFTs and negative outcomes, and influence of organizational culture

Ground Improvement by Dynamic Compaction at a Tailings Disposal Facility

This paper presents two case histories of ground improvement by dynamic compaction (DC) at the Myra Falls mine in Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Dynamic compaction was employed to densify soils at two sites within the operating mine: a waste rock dump beneath a new processing plant to reduce settlements beneath the structure foundations (Site A); and coarse fluvial and colluvial soils at the toe of an existing tailings embankment to improve seismic resistance against liquefaction (Site B). At Site A, the variable plant loadings required variable compaction energy to achieve uniform foundation performance. At Site B, the foundation soils contained some fine grained soils that dictated a time-controlled sequential DC approach to allow excess pore pressures to dissipate between passes. Because of large uncertainties in the expected performance of DC at both sites, a fair and cost effective DC contract based on unit price per energy was adopted, instead of the traditional performance-based lump sum price contract. This paper describes the ground conditions at the two sites, DC methodologies employed, and ground improvement performance based on measurements of crater volumes and pre- and post-densification in-situ testing by Becker Penetration Tests

The feasibility of age-specific travel restrictions during influenza pandemics

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Epidemiological studies have shown that imposing travel restrictions to prevent or delay an influenza pandemic may not be feasible. To delay an epidemic substantially, an extremely high proportion of trips (~99%) would have to be restricted in a homogeneously mixing population. Influenza is, however, strongly influenced by age-dependent transmission dynamics, and the effectiveness of age-specific travel restrictions, such as the selective restriction of travel by children, has yet to be examined.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A simple stochastic model was developed to describe the importation of infectious cases into a population and to model local chains of transmission seeded by imported cases. The probability of a local epidemic, and the time period until a major epidemic takes off, were used as outcome measures, and travel restriction policies in which children or adults were preferentially restricted were compared to age-blind restriction policies using an age-dependent next generation matrix parameterized for influenza H1N1-2009.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Restricting children from travelling would yield greater reductions to the short-term risk of the epidemic being established locally than other policy options considered, and potentially could delay an epidemic for a few weeks. However, given a scenario with a total of 500 imported cases over a period of a few months, a substantial reduction in the probability of an epidemic in this time period is possible only if the transmission potential were low and assortativity (i.e. the proportion of contacts within-group) were unrealistically high. In all other scenarios considered, age-structured travel restrictions would not prevent an epidemic and would not delay the epidemic for longer than a few weeks.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Selectively restricting children from traveling overseas during a pandemic may potentially delay its arrival for a few weeks, depending on the characteristics of the pandemic strain, but could have less of an impact on the economy compared to restricting adult travelers. However, as long as adults have at least a moderate potential to trigger an epidemic, selectively restricting the higher risk group (children) may not be a practical option to delay the arrival of an epidemic substantially.</p

Carriage of linezolid-resistant enterococci (LRE) among humans and animals in Nigeria: coexistence of the cfr, optrA, and poxtA genes in Enterococcus faecium of animal origin

Objectives: In contrast to increasing reports of the emergence of linezolid-resistant enterococci (LRE) emanating from many countries in Europe, Asia, and North America, data on its status and dissemination from the African continent remain scarce, with the information available limited to countries in North Africa. This study investigated the carriage of LRE and the genetic mechanism of resistance among Enterococcus faecium and Enterococcus faecalis strains recovered from humans and animals in Makurdi, Nigeria. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study between June 2020 and July 2021 during which 630 nonduplicate human and animal faecal samples were collected and processed for the recovery of LRE. The genetic mechanisms for resistance were investigated using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Sanger sequencing. Results: Linezolid-resistant enterococci were recovered from 5.87% (37/630; 95% CI: 4.17–8.00) of the samples, with the prevalence in animals and humans being 6.22% [(28/450); 95% CI: 4.17–8.87] and 5.00% [(9/180); 95% CI: 2.31–9.28], respectively. All isolates remained susceptible to vancomycin. No known point mutation mediating linezolid resistance was detected in the 23S rRNA and ribosomal protein genes; however, acquisition of one or more potentially transferable genes (cfr, optrA, and poxtA) was observed in 26 of the 37 LRE isolates. Co-existence of all three transferable genes in a single isolate was found in four E. faecium strains of animal origin. Conclusion: This study provides baseline evidence for the emergence and active circulation of LRE driven majorly by the acquisition of the optrA gene in Nigeria. To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first to report a co-carriage of all three transferable linezolid resistance determinants in E. faecium. Active LRE surveillance is urgently required to understand the extent of LRE spread across sub-Saharan Africa and to develop tailored mitigation strategies