geotechnical engineering practices in canada - the Office of ...

simulate traffic loads. This equipment has also
been used to evaluate pavement-thickness
requirements over geofoam. BASt also has the
ability to freeze soil and has conducted
research in this area.
The BASt has developed a new soil-stiffness
device that uses a falling-weight input
measuring system. After applying a dynamic
force, a readout device gives both a
deformation value and a stiffness modulus
value.
In the 1980s, an interesting research project
was performed on an instrumented MSE wall
using nonwoven geotextile reinforcements. An
instrumented, steep-sloped (5V:1H), geogridreinforced
soil wall with a vegetated face was
also presented. BASt is also evaluating
geosynthetic reinforcing materials that are not
affected by adverse pH values in the soil. A
recent book (available only in German)
incorporates a limit-state design approach to
geosynthetic reinforcements (Empfehlungen
fuer Bewehrungen aus Geokunststoffen –
EBGEO; Deutsche Gesellschaft für
Geotechnik e.V. - DGGT, 1997, ISBN
3-433-01324-1).
Figures 6 and 7 show
a full-scale test pit and
compaction equipment
for full-scale studies at
the BASt.
CHAPTER 4
Figure 6. Full-Scale test pit at BASt.
Figure 7. Compaction equipment for full-scale studies at BASt.
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