Geotechnical Design Project Team 4 Individual Section Reinforced Earth The project brief for the Middlehaven Re-Development

t Scheme signifies a number of design constraints which must be adhered to. The first of these constraints is related to the cost when comparing different methods for the design. The chosen solutions must be cost-effective. Another important constraint is that related to the limited available space on the site, due to this vertical sides will be required for significant lengths of the higher parts of the embankments. The additional information in the brief that is associated to the reinforced earth walls is; Slopes with embankment heights of 2.5m and greater must not exceed a gradient of 1:3. When the confines of the site prevent compliance with the above compliance with the above criteria, the embankment slopes must be reinforced. All materials to be used in the construction works are to be new. No reclaimed or recycled materials may be incorporated in the works without prior consent. The appearance of the structure is considered to be important as it serves the prestigious redevelopment of the Middlehaven area of Middlesbrough and will also provide access to the new Middlesbrough football stadium. Points 1 & 2 above show the need for reinforced earth walls in the scheme. Point 3 shows that without the use of reinforced earth walls there will be a vast amount of material needed in order to provide an embankment which satisfies point 1. This shows that the use of reinforced earth walls may be a very cost effective solution for the project. Reinforced earth walls would also be an important consideration in order to satisfy point 5 as from an aesthetics point of view a reinforced earth wall is more visually impressive than a 1:3 embankment. After considering the project requirement and the advantages and disadvantages of using reinforced earth walls the decision has been made to use vertical reinforced earth walls over the length of the embankment when the height is greater than 2.5m. This decision was made as it was felt that when the embankment height increased over 2.5m the necessity to use a 1:3 slope called for the use of too much fill material which would have to be purchased. Reinforced earth walls have the potential to

Figure 1: Reduction in footprint of embankment.

Geotechnical Design Project Team 4 dramatically reduce the effects of slope stability, bearing capacity and settlement on the embankment. The reason for this is because the use of vertical reinforced walls removes the need for 1:3 slopes when the embankment height is greater than 2.5m which would reduce the footprint of the embankment, see Figure 1. The Principle of Reinforced Earth The principle of reinforced earth deals with overcoming the fact that earth structures are inherently weak in tension. The method consists of placing tensile reinforcement strips within a compacted soil mass providing a simple, cheap and aesthetically pleasing solution to stability problems. The stability of earth is improved by utilizing the improved tensile characteristics of the reinforcement which can be in the form of strips, rods, grids or meshes. The reinforcement is most commonly metallic or plastic and is placed in the direction of the maximum tensile strains.