Foundation systems for reactive soils using scarification and screw piles. This project will investigate the use of soil scarification, in combination with screw piles, as a reliable option for light-weight foundations on damaging reactive (expansive) clay soils. It will validate an innovative foundation alternative that will result in significant cost savings for residential foundations on reactive soil.
Lightly Loaded Energy Farm Foundations in Cracked Desiccated Soil. This project aims are to understand the effects of seasonal changes in moisture on piles in clayey soils that develop desiccation cracks during dry times of the year. The project is significant because the economics of energy farms requires low cost foundations for their viability, but current methods of foundation design require long piles to overcome uncertainties in capacity and serviceability when soil shrinks in dry periods ....Lightly Loaded Energy Farm Foundations in Cracked Desiccated Soil. This project aims are to understand the effects of seasonal changes in moisture on piles in clayey soils that develop desiccation cracks during dry times of the year. The project is significant because the economics of energy farms requires low cost foundations for their viability, but current methods of foundation design require long piles to overcome uncertainties in capacity and serviceability when soil shrinks in dry periods and swells in wetter periods. The main outcome of the project will be recommendations for the design of lightly loaded pile foundations in soils that shrink and swell significantly. The benefits will be the reduced risk and cost associated with the geotechnical aspects of foundation design.Read moreRead less
Sustainable planting of trees in suburban environments on shrinkable clays. Sustainable planting of trees in suburban environments on shrinkable clays. This project aims to develop a rational and reliable model to reduce the risk of damage to structures and increase tree plantings in suburban environments. Trees are vital to urban environmental sustainability, but local government, house-owners, engineers and the building industry are concerned about building damage and settlement from tree root ....Sustainable planting of trees in suburban environments on shrinkable clays. Sustainable planting of trees in suburban environments on shrinkable clays. This project aims to develop a rational and reliable model to reduce the risk of damage to structures and increase tree plantings in suburban environments. Trees are vital to urban environmental sustainability, but local government, house-owners, engineers and the building industry are concerned about building damage and settlement from tree root drying. If tree water needs and patterns of moisture extraction were predictable, house footings could be designed reliably. This research will provide such understanding through field experiments on suburban sites with trees, investigating damaged structures and numerical modelling. An anticipated outcome of this research is to develop a rational and reliable model to reduce the risk of damage to structures and increase tree plantings in suburban environments. Guidelines for both footing designers and local government.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE120100011
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$700,000.00
Summary
The national geotechnical centrifuge facility. A new geotechnical centrifuge will enable the modelling of complex offshore and onshore structures. The new facility will support many geotechnical fields, associated with the economical and geographical development of Australia, and ensure that Australia will maintain its leadership within the international physical modelling community.
Measuring and modelling the mechanical response of soils incorporating recycled tyres. Civil engineers use backfill to refill excavated areas around new structures. They have found recently that rubber chips and shredded rubber make excellent backfill when combined with a small percentage of cement to make ‘rubber soil’. The widespread use of rubber soil therefore offers a tremendous opportunity to make use of a serious waste product to achieve important engineering outcomes. However, too little ....Measuring and modelling the mechanical response of soils incorporating recycled tyres. Civil engineers use backfill to refill excavated areas around new structures. They have found recently that rubber chips and shredded rubber make excellent backfill when combined with a small percentage of cement to make ‘rubber soil’. The widespread use of rubber soil therefore offers a tremendous opportunity to make use of a serious waste product to achieve important engineering outcomes. However, too little is known about the technology. This project will model the behaviour of rubber soil in order to introduce it as an environmentally sustainable, cost-effective and technically sound choice of geomaterial for both standard and non-standard geotechnical structures.Read moreRead less