Investigations on soft clay subgrade strengthening using geocells

Abstract In the last two decades geotextiles are being increasingly used as tensioned/tensile members. When used for reinforcement functions, a geotextile has to yield high resistance at low strains, especially for structures where allowable rut depths are low and the life span of the structure is long. This necessitates the use of high modulus geotextiles with adequate roughness. The present study aims at investigating the efficacy of the geocell alternative and the effect of the cell geometry and relative density of the backfill. Experimental and finite element procedures have been adopted to study the above parameters. Soft saturated marine clay was used as subgrade while sand was used as backfill material. Monotonic loading was applied in plate load tests. The experimental results were simulated in a three-dimensional finite element ( fe ) procedure using ANSYS, a general purpose package. Considerable improvement in the load and reduction of settlement was observed from the experimental results. The results of the fe analysis were used to study the improvement in stiffness and stress distribution.