Geosynthetic Reinforced Soil: From the Experimental to the Familiar
46th Terzaghi Lecture
R. D. Holtz
The lecture begins with a historical review of reinforced soil technology, from the ancients, the developments by H. Vidal and K. Lee on Terre Armée and Reinforced Earth, the early uses of geosynthetics for soil reinforcement in France (Bidim), Sweden (Wager and Broms), and the USA (USFS, FHWA, J. R. Bell, T. A. Haliburton, B. R. Christopher and others). The advantages and basic behavior of geosynthetic reinforced soil (GRS) are presented along with an overview of current design procedures, and with reference to UW analytical research results. Practical suggestions are given for dealing with creep, pullout, and backfill drainage. Geosynthetic properties and then discussed, again with reference to UW research results. Although GRS is quite a mature development, a few technical and professional issues remain; primarily, too many failures of these structures occur. Reasons for these failures and some suggestions as to what the profession can do about them are presented. The lecture ends with several examples of successful applications of GRS and reinforced soil technology.
About the speaker
R. D. Holtz Professor Emeritus, University of Washington
Bob Holtz, PhD, PE, D.GE, is Professor Emeritus of Civil Engineering at the University of Washington in Seattle. He has degrees from Minnesota and Northwestern, and he attended the Special Program in Soil Mechanics at Harvard under Professor A. Casagrande. Before coming to the UW in 1988, he was on the faculty at Purdue and Cal State Sacramento. He has worked for the California Dept. of Water Resources, Swedish Geotechnical Institute, NRC Canada, and as a consulting engineer in Chicago, Paris, and Milano. His research interests and publications are mostly on geosynthetics, soil improvement, foundations, and soil properties. He is a Distinguished Member of ASCE, was President of the ASCE Geo-Institute 2000-1, and currently serves as the International Secretary for the Geo Institute. He has presented numerous short courses and lectures, including the 46th Terzaghi Lecturer in February 2010.
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