Category: Geotechnical

What are Floating Caissons? Advantages and Applications

What are Floating Caissons? Advantages and Applications

 

Floating caissons are an essential innovation in marine construction, providing robust and reliable solutions for building underwater foundations. Used extensively for docks, piers, bridges, and offshore structures, floating caissons are large, watertight chambers that can be floated to the desired location and then sunk into place. This article delves into the various aspects of floating caissons, highlighting their advantages, applications, and the technology behind their construction.

What are Floating Caissons?

Floating caissons, also known as floating cofferdams, are prefabricated hollow structures typically made of reinforced concrete or steel. These caissons are floated to the construction site and then gradually filled with water or other ballast materials to sink them into position. Once in place, they provide a dry working environment for the construction of foundations and other substructures.

Types of Floating Caissons

  1. Open Caissons: These are simple, box-like structures open at the top and bottom. They are floated to the site and sunk into position, where the excavation continues through the open bottom until the caisson reaches the desired depth.
  2. Box Caissons: These are closed at the bottom and open at the top. Box caissons are floated into position and sunk by filling them with ballast. They are then filled with concrete to create a solid foundation.
  3. Pneumatic Caissons: These are similar to open caissons but include an airtight working chamber at the bottom. Compressed air is used to keep water out of the working area, allowing for excavation and construction in dry conditions even below the water table.

Advantages of Floating Caissons

  1. Versatility: Floating caissons can be used in a wide range of marine construction projects, from small docks to large offshore platforms. Their adaptability makes them a go-to solution for various underwater construction needs.
  2. Ease of Installation: Prefabricated offsite, floating caissons can be transported to the construction site and installed with relative ease. This reduces on-site construction time and minimizes environmental disruption.
  3. Cost-Effectiveness: By reducing the need for extensive underwater excavation and complex temporary structures, floating caissons offer a cost-effective solution for creating robust foundations.
  4. Durability: Constructed from reinforced concrete or steel, floating caissons provide long-lasting, durable foundations that can withstand harsh marine environments.
  5. Environmental Impact: Floating caissons can be installed with minimal disturbance to the seabed and surrounding marine ecosystems, making them a more environmentally friendly option compared to traditional methods.

Applications of Floating Caissons

  1. Bridge Foundations: Floating caissons are widely used for constructing bridge piers in deep water. Their ability to provide a stable, dry working environment is crucial for the safe and efficient construction of bridge supports.
  2. Harbors and Docks: Caissons are ideal for creating sturdy foundations for docks, wharves, and other harbor structures. They offer the strength needed to support heavy loads and withstand marine conditions.
  3. Offshore Structures: In the oil and gas industry, floating caissons are used for the foundations of offshore platforms. Their robustness ensures the stability of these critical structures.
  4. Seawalls and Breakwaters: Floating caissons are also employed in the construction of seawalls and breakwaters, providing essential coastal protection against erosion and storm surges.

Construction Process of Floating Caissons

  1. Design and Prefabrication: The design of floating caissons is tailored to the specific requirements of the project. They are prefabricated in a controlled environment, ensuring high quality and precision.
  2. Transportation: Once completed, the caissons are floated to the construction site using tugboats or other means of marine transport.
  3. Positioning and Sinking: At the site, the caissons are carefully positioned and gradually filled with water or ballast to sink them into place. Precision is key to ensure they are correctly aligned and at the desired depth.
  4. Final Construction: After sinking, the caissons may be filled with concrete or other materials to complete the foundation. Any additional construction work, such as building piers or supports, is carried out within the dry environment provided by the caisson.

Conclusion

Floating caissons represent a revolutionary advancement in marine construction, offering a versatile, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly solution for underwater foundations. Their ease of installation, durability, and wide range of applications make them an indispensable tool in modern civil engineering projects. As technology and materials continue to improve, the use of floating caissons is likely to expand, further enhancing their role in building the infrastructure of the future.

By understanding the benefits and applications of floating caissons, engineers and construction professionals can make informed decisions to ensure the success and longevity of their marine projects. Whether for bridge foundations, offshore platforms, or harbor structures, floating caissons are a cornerstone of effective and efficient underwater construction.

What is Jet Grouting? Common Uses and Advantages

What is Jet Grouting? Common Uses and Advantages

 

Jet Grouting is a procedure for the insitu construction of solidified ground of pre-determined shape, size and depth. This solidified ground is often known as Soilcrete. Jet Grouting is commonly used to underpin major structures such as quay walls, bridges and large building foundations in advance of excavation or to treat ground ahead of tunnelling.

Jet grouting uses high-velocity fluid jets to construct cemented soil of varying geometries in the ground.


Common uses

  • Often the preferred solution in any situation requiring control of groundwater or excavation of unstable soil (water-bearing or otherwise)
  • Underpin foundations such as quay walls and heavy structures
  • Provide excavation support
  • Seal the bottom of planned excavations


Advantages

  • Effective across the widest range of soil types of any grouting system, including silts and most clays
  • Ability to construct soilcrete in limited spaces and around subsurface obstacles such as utilities, provides unique design flexibility
  • Low headroom equipment enables construction of soilcrete in limited spaces such as basements
  • Ability to work around subsurface obstacles such as utilites, provides unique design flexibility
  • Can target specific soil layers at depth without having to treat soils above and many more…..

Read More :  Jet Grouting Calculation Spreadsheet

Soft Clay Engineering And Ground Improvement PDF

Soft Clay Engineering And Ground Improvement PDF

 

This book covers the design and implementation of ground improvement techniques as applicable to soft clays in the eyes of experienced geotechnical personnel, from academics to practitioners.

Soft soils and ground improvement have become major challenges to geotechnical engineers during the last three decades. Planners, architects, consultants, and contractors are now aware what soft soil is and the risks associated with development in areas where soft soil is encountered. They know that ‘good’ land is limited and, therefore, marginal lands need to be improved.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction (J Ameratunga, N Sivakugan & B M Das)

2. Engineering Geology of Soft Clay (I Shipway)

3. Basic Soil Mechanics (N Sivakugan and J. Ameratunga)

4. Geotechnical Testing (J Ameratunga & N Sivakugan)

5. Parameter Derivation (J Ameratunga & N Sivakugan)

6. Ground Improvement Methods for Soft Clays (J Ameratunga & N Sivakugan)

7. Replacement (J Ameratunga & N Sivakugan)

8. Preloading (S Iyathurai & J Ameratunga)

9. Preloading with Wick Drains (S Iyathurai)

10. Stone Columns (K Chan & B Poon)

11. Semi-Rigid Inclusions (Thayalan Nall)

12. Lightweight Fill (J Ameratunga)

13. Deep Soil Mixing (T Muttuvel, S Iyathurai & J Ameratunga)

14. Basal High Strength Geotextiles for Ground Improvement of Soft Foundation Soils (C Lawson)

15. Mass Stabilization (A O′Sullivan)

16. Observational Approach and Geotechnical Instrumentation (K A Dissanayake & C A Bridges)

17. Geotechnical Risk Management (C A Bridges)

 

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Geotechnical Engineering Rule of Thumb – Rajapakse – Free PDF

Geotechnical Engineering Rule of Thumb – Rajapakse – Free PDF

 

“Geotechnical Engineering Calculations and Rules of Thumb, Second Edition, offers geotechnical, civil and structural engineers a concise, easy-to-understand approach to selecting the right formula and solving even most difficult calculations in geotechnical engineering.

A “quick look up guide”, this book places formulas and calculations at the reader’s finger tips. In this book, theories are explained in a “nutshell” and then the calculation is presented and solved in an illustrated, step-by-step fashion.

In its first part, the book covers the fundamentals of Geotechnical Engineering: Soil investigation, condition and theoretical concepts. In the second part it addresses Shallow Foundations, including bearing capacity, elastic settlement, foundation reinforcement, grillage design, footings, geogrids, tie and grade beams, and drainage.

This session ends with a chapter on selecting foundation types. The next part covers Earth Retaining Structures and contains chapters on its basic concepts and types, gabion walls and reinforced earth walls.

The following part covers Geotechnical Engineering Strategies providing coverage of softwares, instrumentation, excavations, raft design, rock mechanics, dip angle and strike, rock stabilization equipment, soil anchors, tunnel design, seismology, geosynthetics, and slurry cutoff walls.

The final part is on Pile Foundations including content on design on sandy soils, clay soils, pin piles, negative skin friction, caissons and pile clusters. In this new and updated edition the author has incorporated new software calculation tools, current techniques for foundation design, liquefaction information, seismic studies, laboratory soil tests, geophysical techniques, new concepts for foundation design and Dam designs.

All calculations have been updated to most current material characteristics available in the market. Practicing Geotechnical, Civil and Structural Engineers may find in this book an excellent companion to their day-to day work, benefiting from the clear and direct calculations, examples, and cases.

 

 

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Advanced Soil Mechanics – Braja.Das – Free PDF

Advanced Soil Mechanics – Braja.Das – Free PDF

 

Soils are aggregates of mineral particles, and together with air and/or water in the void spaces, they form three-phase systems. A large portion of the earth’s surface is covered by soils, and they are widely used as construction and foundation materials. Soil mechanics is the branch of engineering that deals with the engineering properties of soils and their behavior under stress.

This book is divided into eight chapters—“Soil aggregate, plasticity, and classification,” “Stresses and strains—elastic equilibrium,” “Stresses and displacement in a soil mass,” “Pore water pressure due to undrained loading,” “Permeability and seepage,” “Consolidation,” “Shear strength of soils,” and “Settlement of foundations.”

 

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An Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering – Holtz & Kovacs Free PDF

An Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering – Holtz & Kovacs Free PDF

 

An Introduction to Geotechnical Engineering is intended for use in the first of two-course sequence in geotechnical engineering usually taught to third- and fourth-year ungraduate Civil Engineering students.

We assume that students have a working knowlege of ungraduate mechanics, especially statics and mechanics of materials (including fluids).

A knowledge of basic geology, although helpful, is not essential. We introduce the « language » of geotechnical engineering in the first course, that is, the classification and engineering properties of soils.

Once the student have a working knowledge of how soil behaves as an engineering material, he/she can begin to predict soil behavior, and in the second course , to carry out the design of simple foundations and earthquake systems.

 

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Pile Design and Construction Practice 6th Edition Free PDF

Pile Design and Construction Practice 6th Edition Free PDF

By Michael Tomlinson

 

Piling is both an art and a science. The art lies in selecting the most suitable type of pile and method of installation for the ground conditions and the form of the loading. Science enables the engineer to predict the behavior of the piles once they are in the ground and subject to loading.

This behavior is influenced profoundly by the method used to install the piles, and it cannot be predicted solely from the physical properties of the pile and of the undisturbed soil. Knowledge of the available types of piling and methods of constructing piled foundations is essential for a thorough understanding of the science of their behavior.

For this reason, the author has preceded the chapters dealing with the calculation of allowable loads on piles and deformation behavior by descriptions of the many types of proprietary and non-proprietary piles and the equipment used to install them.

In recent years, substantial progress has been made in developing methods of predicting the behavior of piles under lateral loading. This is important in the design of foundations for deep-water terminals for oil tankers and oil carriers and for offshore platforms for gas and petroleum production.

The problems concerning the lateral loading of piles have therefore been given detailed treatment in this book.

 

Content :
  • General principles and practices
  • Types of pile
  • Piling equipment and methods
  • Calculating the resistance of piles to compressive loads
  • Pile groups under compressive loading
  • Design of piled foundations to resist uplift and lateral loading
  • Some aspects of the structural design of piles and pile groups
  • Piling for marine structures
  • Miscellaneous piling problems
  • The durability of piled foundations
  • Ground investigations, piling contracts, and pile testing
  • Appendix A: Properties of materials
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Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering Handbook by Robert W. Day

Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering Handbook by Robert W. Day

 

The purpose of this book is to present the practical aspects of geotechnical earthquake engineering. Because of the assumptions and uncertainties associated with geotechnical engineering, it is often described as an “art” rather than an exact science.

Geotechnical earth- quake engineering is even more challenging because of the inherent unknowns associated with earthquakes. Because of these uncertainties in earthquake engineering, simple analy- ses are prominent in this book, with complex and theoretical evaluations kept to an essen- tial minimum.

Content :
  • Introduction
  • Basic Earthquake Principles
  • Common Earthquake Effects
  • Earthquake Structural Damage
  • Site Investigation For Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering
  • Liquefaction
  • Earthquake-induced Settlement
  • Bearing Capacity Analyses For Earthquakes
  • Slope Stability Analyses For Earthquakes
  • Retaining Wall Analyses For Earthquakes
  • Other Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering Analyses
  • Grading And Other Soil Improvement Methods
  • Foundation Alternatives To Mitigate Earthquake Effects
  • Earthquake Provisions In Building Codes

 

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