Academic literature on the topic 'Colloidal silica, liquefaction mitigation, dilution'

In the booming field of nanotechnology, colloidal silica (CS) has been introduced for ground improvement and liquefaction mitigation. It possesses a great ability to restrain pore pressure generation during seismic events by using an innovative stabilization technique, with the advantages of being a cost-effective, low disturbance, and environmentally friendly method. This paper firstly introduces molecular structures and some physical properties of CS, which are of great importance in the practical application of CS. Then, evidence that can justify the feasibility of CS transport in loose sand layers is demonstrated, summarizing the crucial factors that determine the rate of CS delivery. Thereafter, four chemical and physical methods that can examine the grouting quality are summed and appraised. Silica content and chloride ion concentration are two effective indicators recommended in this paper to judge CS converge. Finally, the evidence from the elemental tests, model tests, and field tests is reviewed in order to demonstrate CS’s ability to inhibit pore water pressure and lower liquefaction risk. Based on the conclusions drawn in previous literature, this paper refines the concept of CS concentration and curing time being the two dominant factors that determine the strengthening effect. The objective of this work is to review CS treatment methodologies and emphasize the critical factors that influence both CS delivery and the ground improving effect. Besides, it also aims to provide references for optimizing the approaches of CS transport and promoting its responsible use in mitigating liquefaction.

Since the concept of sustainable development enjoys popular support in the 21st century, various kinds of unconventional materials were introduced for soil improvement in the past few decades to replace the traditional materials like concrete and lime. This paper compared nanomaterials with other three kinds of representative unconventional materials to demonstrate its superiority in soil treatment. The other three kinds of unconventional materials include microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP), recycled tire and environmental fiber. Nanomaterial and MICP have a comprehensive effect on soil reinforcement, since they can improve shear strength, adjust permeability, resist liquefaction and purify the environment. Recycled tire and environmental fibers are granular materials that are mostly adopted to reinforce reconstituted soil. The reinforcement mechanisms and effects of these four kinds of unconventional materials are discussed in detail, and their price/performance ratios are calculated to make an evaluation about their market application prospects. It can be seen that nanomaterials have promising prospects. Colloidal silica, bentonite and laponite present a satisfactory effect on liquefaction mitigation for sandy foundation, and carbon nanotube has an aptitude for unconfined compressive strength improvement. Among the investigated nanomaterials, colloidal silica is the closest to scale market application. Despite the advantages of nanomaterials adopted as additives for soil improvement, they are known for unwanted interactions with different biological objects at the cell level. Nevertheless, research on nanomaterials that are adopted for soil improvement are very promising and can intensify the relationship between sustainable development and geotechnical engineering through innovative techniques.

Passive site remediation is a new concept proposed for non-disruptive mitigation of liquefaction risk at developed sites susceptible to liquefaction. It is based on the concept of slow injection of stabilizing materials at the edge of a site and delivery of the stabilizer to the target location using the natural groundwater flow. The purpose of this research was to establish the feasibility of passive site remediation through identification of stabilizing materials, a study of how to design or adapt groundwater flow patterns to deliver the stabilizers to the right place at the right time, and an evaluation of potential time requirements and costs. Stabilizer candidates need to have long, controllable gel times and low viscosities so they can flow into a liquefiable formation slowly over a long period of time. Colloidal silica is a potential stabilizer for passive site remediation because at low concentrations it has a low viscosity and a wide range of controllable gel times of up to about 100 days. Loose Monterey No. 0/30 sand samples (Dr = 22%) treated with colloidal silica grout were tested under cyclic triaxial loading to investigate the influence of colloidal silica grout on the deformation properties. Distinctly different deformation properties were observed between grouted and ungrouted samples. Untreated samples developed very little axial strain after only a few cycles and prior to the onset of liquefaction. Once liquefaction was triggered, large strains occurred rapidly and the samples collapsed within a few additional cycles. In contrast, grouted sand samples experienced very little strain during cyclic loading. What strain accumulated did so uniformly throughout loading and the samples remained intact after cyclic loading. In general, samples stabilized with 20 weight percent colloidal silica experienced very little (less than two percent) strain during cyclic loading. Sands stabilized with 10 weight percent colloidal silica tolerated cyclic loading well, but experienced slightly more (up to eight percent) strain. Treatment with colloidal silica grout significantly increased the deformation resistance of loose sand to cyclic loading. Groundwater and solute transport modeling were done using the codes MODFLOW, MODPATH, and MT3DMS. A "numerical experiment" was done to determine the ranges of hydraulic conductivity and hydraulic gradient where passive site remediation might be feasible. For a treatment are of 200 feet by 200 feet, a stabilizer travel time of 100 days, and a single line of low-head (less than three feet) injection wells, it was found that passive site remediation could be feasible in formations with hydraulic conductivity values of 0.05 cm/s or more and hydraulic gradients of 0.005 and above. Extraction wells will increase the speed of delivery and help control the down gradient extent of stabilizer movement. The results of solute transport modeling indicate that dispersion will play a large role in determining the concentration of stabilizer that will be required to deliver an adequate concentration at the down gradient edge. Consequently, thorough characterization of the hydraulic conductivity throughout the formation will be necessary for successful design and implementation of passive site remediation. The cost of passive site remediation is expected to be competitive with other methods of chemical grouting, i.e. in the range of $60 to $180 per cubic meter of treated soil, depending on the concentration of colloidal silica used.
Ph. D.

Liquefiable soils are common at ports due to the use of hydraulic fills for construction of waterfront facilities. Liquefaction-induced ground failure can result in permanent ground deformations that can cause loss of foundation support and structural damage. This can lead to substantial repair and/or replacement costs and business interruption losses that can have an adverse effect on the port and the surrounding community. Although numerous soil improvement methods exist for remediating a liquefaction-prone site, many of these methods are poorly suited for developed sites because they could damage existing infrastructure and disrupt port operations. An alternative is to use a passive remediation technique. Treating liquefiable soils with colloidal silica gel via permeation grouting has been shown to resist cyclic deformations and is a candidate to be used as a soil stabilizer in passive mitigation. The small-strain dynamic properties are essential to determine the response to seismic loading. The small-to-intermediate strain shear modulus and damping ratio of loose sand treated with colloidal silica gel was investigated and the influence of colloidal silica concentration was determined. The effect of introducing colloidal silica gel into the pore space in the initial phase of treatment results in a 10% to 12% increase in the small-strain shear modulus, depending on colloidal silica concentration. The modulus reduction curve indicates that treatment does not affect the linear threshold shear strain, however the treated samples reduce at a greater rate than the untreated samples in the intermediate-strain range above 0.01% cyclic shear strain. It was observed that the treated sand has slightly higher damping ratio in the small-strain range; however, at cyclic shear strains around 0.003% the trend reverses and the untreated sand begins to have higher damping ratio. Due to the nature of the colloidal silica gelation process, chemical bonds continue to form with time, thus the effect of aging on the dynamic properties is important. A parametric study was performed to investigate the influence of gel time on the increase in small-strain shear modulus. The effect of aging increases the small-strain shear modulus after gelling by 200 to 300% for the 40-minute-gel time samples with a distance from gelation (time after gelation normalized by gel time) of 1000 to 2000; 700% for the 2-hour-gel time sample with a distance from gelation of 1000; and 200 to 400% for the 20-hour-gel time samples with a distance from gelation of 40 to 100. The treatment of all potentially liquefiable soil at port facilities with colloidal silica would be cost prohibitive. Identifying treatment zones that would reduce the lateral pressure and resulting pile bending moments and displacements caused by liquefaction-induced lateral spreading to prevent foundation damage is an economic alternative. Colloidal silica gel treatment zones of varying size and location were evaluated by subjecting a 3-by-3 pile group in gently sloping liquefiable ground to 1-g shaking table tests. The results are compared to an untreated sample. The use of a colloidal silica treatment zone upslope of the pile group results in reduced maximum bending moments and pile displacements in the downslope row of piles when compared to an untreated sample; the presence of the treatment zone had minimal effect on the other rows of piles within the group.

Seismic soil liquefaction is one of the greatest hazards of earthquakes of a certain size, and its effects on structures, infrastructures and human lives can be devastating. Liquefaction arises because of the soil shear resistance decrease as a consequence of the pore water pressure build-up in loose saturated cohesionless soil subjected to undrained loading conditions. If a soil is susceptible to liquefaction, several remedial measures can be considered to reduce the liquefaction hazard. Different mitigation techniques have been proposed over the past years; colloidal silica grouting is one of the innovative proposals that have been recently developed. A colloidal silica (CS) mixture is a low-viscosity grout able to provide the soil particles with an artificial cohesion which improves the soil behavior under both static and cyclic loading conditions. Cohesion results from a gelation process, developed within the grout as a consequence of chemical interactions. The amount of cohesion depends on the initial silica content: the higher the silica concentration, the higher the development of silica bonds among the grains. Historically, CS contents no lower than 5% by weight have been considered enough to improve the liquefaction resistance of liquefiable sand. However, the effectiveness of high-diluted CS mixtures has not been exhaustively investigated yet. The present study aims to evaluate the effects of low-content CS grouts (i.e. CS contents lower than 5% by weight) on the behavior of a clean liquefiable sand by means of an extensive laboratory investigations campaign. Laboratory tests were carried out on treated and untreated material; an in-depth analysis of soil response is presented and discussed. The performed tests showed that 2% CS content is enough to improve the soil behavior under both cyclic and monotonic loading conditions; however, the compressibility of treated soil is higher than that of the untreated one, and it increases as CS contents increase. For this reason, 2% CS represents the optimal compromise to enhance sand liquefaction resistance by minimizing undesired effects (i.e. increased soil strain) and economic costs of a potential treatment.