Effect of

Geosynthetic on the
Performance of
Road Embankment
over Sabkha Soils in
Algeria by
Benmebarek, S.,
Berrabah, F.,
Benmebarek, N., &
Belounar, L.

Balinas, Mamawag,
PRESENTED BY: Orlopia, Pontillas, Raganas, Rosales, Ybañez
 Introduction

The Problem
TABLE OF
Solution

CONTENTS Methodology

Results and Discussions

Conclusions

References
Introduction
The application of
geosynthetics in soil and
coastal engineering is on
the rise.
Others lack well-defined
design formulas and
specifications grounded in
scientific principles.
PROJECT
BACKGROUND
Linking the two towns of Ain El
Khadra and M’Cif which extend
for approximately 23 km.
Crosses a section of about 11 km
on the sabkha of Chott El Hodna
located in the north middle part
of Algeria
VERY SOFT
VERY SOFT
SABKHA SOIL!
SABKHA SOIL!
 PROBLEM
THE
PROBLEM
THE
THE
THE
PROBLEM
PROBLEM
Rising water
table over
the surface

Low bearing
capacity
THE
PROBLEM!
Road engineers in Algeria
often face the challenge to
design a solid road
foundation on top of very soft
soils

Sabkha soils have high

compressibility and low
bearing capacity
Suggested solution was
rerouting but...

REROUTING
COST
A LOT!!
The
Solution

Basal
Geosynthetic
Layer
Basal Geosynthetic Layer
Involves employing geosynthetics to
separate soil with different particle
size
Dominant in the use of geotextiles to
separate the soil subgrade from the
overlying aggregate road base or
railway ballast
Benefits of Using Basal
Geosynthetic Layer

Stabilization and Reinforcement

Reduced Settlement
Improved Bearing Capacity
Ease of Construction
Cost Savings
METHODOLOGY
Geotechnical Investigationof the Site

Subsurface Exploration

Construction Technique of Road Embankment

Numerical Modelling
STEP 1:
ENGINEERS CONDUCTED
SITE INVESTIGATION!
Geotechnical Investigation
Description of Sabkha Site!

Engineers found that Chott El

Hodna's sabkha is a huge, flat

01
area of about 26,000 km². In
summer, it's partly dry with salt,
flooding in winter. The water level
can reach 1.40 m above ground in
extreme events, and the soil
visibly sinks 4–6 cm when stepped
on
Geotechnical Investigation
Description of Sabkha subsurface Soil profile:

Sabkha soil has a viscous

consistency, with a CBR of 1–
1.5%. It supports traffic well
01 when dry but significantly
weakens when wet. Salts act as
a strength booster, but wetting
breaks the bonds, reducing
strength.
STEP 2:
ENGINEERS CONDUCTED
SUBSURFACE
INVESTIGATION!
 THE PROGRAM USED IN SUBSURFACE EXPLORATION
Subsurface Borehole
investigations followed Cone Penetration
the installation of two Vane shear test
embankment layers
separated by geotextile,
THESE EXPLORATION WAS
reinforced with geogrid.
CONDUCTED 300 METERS APART!
 Subsurface Conditions: Back to Agenda

consist of a brown muddy clay

layer, underlain by a grey
marl layer and gypsum
concretions with traces of fine
sand. Below this layer, the
sabkha deposit is
characterized by alternating
sandy clay and sandy marl
layers
 Back to Agenda

RESULTS FROM LABORATORY TESTING:

BOREHOLE 20METMERS DEPTH:

Compression Index (Cc): 0.30 to 0.56

Plasticity Index (Ip): 27.5 to 48.5

Dry Density: 1.38 to 1.64 (high soil

compressibility)

Undrained Shear Strengths: 9 to 30

kPa
 Back to Agenda

GENERAL SOIL PROFILE:

Appearance: High variability in both

horizontal and vertical directions.

Layered Structure: Alternating layers of

sandy clay and sandy marl.

Center of Sabkha: Very soft layers may reach

a depth of 10 m.

Cone Penetration Test: Indicates low point

resistance for specific depths.
BASED ON SUBSURFACE EXPORATION

Challenges like poor bearing capacity and high

water tables demand a careful construction
approach.

These risky soil conditions suggested

GEOSYNTHETICS! for safer and

more efficient road embankment
construction
STEP 3:

CONSTRUCTION
STAGE!
 Construction Technique of Road
Embankment
Construction Steps
Step 1: Place a nonwoven geotextile directly on the sabkha surface to prevent
contamination, ease the first embankment layer's installation, and provide access to weak
sabkha soil sites.
 Construction Technique of Road
Embankment
Construction Steps
Step 1: Place a nonwoven geotextile directly on the sabkha surface to prevent
contamination, ease the first embankment layer's installation, and provide access to weak
sabkha soil sites.
 Construction Technique of Road
Embankment
Construction Steps
Step 2: Build the initial 30 cm lift, ensuring
a flat surface through static compaction.

Step 3: Add a biaxial geogrid layer for

enhanced tensile strength at the base (see
Fig. 7).

Step 4: Install flexible HDPE hydraulic

tubes (1000 mm diameter) 20 cm above
the sabkha surface to compensate for
remaining settlement. These tubes offer
flexibility and easy installation.
Construction Technique of Road
Embankment
Construction Steps
SUMMARY OF THE STEPS
 STEP 4:

ANALYSIS!

ENSURE THE GEOSYNTHETICS ARE EFFECTIVE!

 Young’s modulus Ev2 TEST

“Ev2 Plate bearing test assesses subgrade settlement under

static load, helping gauge subgrade bearing capacity and
deformation”
"v2" in "Ev2" specifically indicates that the Young's modulus
measurement is associated with the second cycle or reloading
cycle of the test.
 Young’s modulus Ev2 TEST

Compaction control results: Ev2 exceeds 45

MPa from the second fill layer (60 cm
height), indicating improved compaction
quality with increasing embankment height, Your paragraph text

reducing the impact of weak subgrade.

After 4 years of road use, no signs of failure
or degradation were observed.

Figure 8.
 Numerical Modelling

Finite Element Analysis:

Finite Element Analysis (FEA) breaks down complex structures into smaller elements for
problem-solving. It's used to model and analyze the road embankment's behavior over the
sabkha of Chott El Hodna in Algeria.
 Numerical Modelling
Engineers simulated a road embankment over sabkha soil using PLAXIS software. They
compared scenarios with and without geosynthetic reinforcement (geotextile and geogrid) to
assess how it impacted the embankment's ability to handle weight and stresses.
Numerical Modelling
 MESH OF THE GEOMETRY

Engineers modeled only half of the structure to save time and computational
resources due to its symmetrical nature. They utilized PLAXIS software's automated
mesh generation, dividing the structure into small triangles.
 MESH OF THE GEOMETRY

Engineers started with a rough estimate of the size during the test.
Trial calculations were conducted, adjusting the model size.
The process continued until the results stabilized.
The goal was to find a model size where embankment stresses and deformations
reached a stable condition.
Stable condition indicated minimal change with further refinement
 MESH OF THE GEOMETRY

THE RECOMMENDABLE MODEL BASED ON THE TRIALS:

Horizontal width: 27 m
Vertical thickness: 8.6 m
Left and right boundaries: Horizontal displacement fixed,
vertical displacement allowed.
 linear elastic-perfectly plastic Mohr–Coulomb

Engineers picked this model because it's straightforward (linear

elastic), practical, and widely used in engineering. I

Five Parameters for the Model Based on Lab test:

Young’s Modulus (E): This represents how stiff or flexible the soil
is.
Poisson’s Ratio (ν): It relates to how the soil deforms in different
directions.
Friction Angle (ϕ): This is about how much the soil can resist
sliding under stress.
Cohesion (C): It's a measure of how the soil particles stick
together.
Dilatancy Angle (ψ): This is related to how the soil volume changes
under stress.
linear elastic-perfectly plastic Mohr–Coulomb Values
 GEOSYNTHETICS MODEL

In PLAXIS, the geosynthetic

(geotextile and geogrid) was
modeled with a 5-node tension
element. The recommended tensile
stiffness, as per the manufacturer's
manual, was set at 580 kN/m for
geogrid and 50 kN/m for geotextile.
 GEOSYNTHETICS BEHAVIOR

These elements represent how the

geosynthetic connects with the soil.
They use the Mohr–Coulomb model to
describe this connection. To consider its
smoothness or roughness, they
introduced a "strength reduction factor
(Rinter)."
 analysis of Geosynthetics behavior to soil based on the
embankment Construction sequence:

first step the initial effective stresses at rest due to soil self
weight are generated.

Secondly, the geotextile separation, the first layer of

embankment of 0.3 m thick, the geogrid reinforcement and
the second layer of embankment of 0.3 m thick are
activated

last step: Simulate Geosynthetic Membrane Effect:

- to determine effect of geosynthetic reinforcement on a wheel

load, a downward displacement increment was applied to the
area.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

A standard approach to design

unpaved roads reinforced with
geosynthetics is the assumption that
the bearing capacity of the weak
subgrade is improved. In practice,
unpaved roads are designed for
limited settlements. Thus, it is
essential to determine their response
for loads below the subgrade ultimate
bearing capacity.
 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The graph shows the effect of

geosynthetics on the bearing capacity
after the construction of the two first
lifts of embankment. Bearing capacity
increases from 62.37 kN/m (without
reinforcement) to 115.52 kN/m (with
reinforcement), an increase of about 85
%.
 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The graph shows the variation of the

bearing capacity improvement with the
undrained cohesion Cu of the sub-
grade. It is noted that the improvement
is more significant for low Cu values.
This improvement decreases with the
increase of Cu and becomes practically
negligible for Cu greater than 70 kN/m
since the subgrade can resist the
applied loads.
 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The graph shows the Influence of the

geogrid tensile stiffness (EA) on the
bearing capacity improvement. It can
be seen that the bearing capacity
improvement significantly increases up
to EA = 500 kN/m corresponding to 80
% of improvement. The degree of the
improvement in the bearing capacity
gradually decreases as EA increases
from 500 to 8000 kN/m.
CONCLUSION
Following Conclusion;

Soil observation reveals a sabkha subsurface is dominated

by muddy clay, sensitive to wet conditions, reducing the
California Bearing Ratio to less than 1%.

In the present project, without separating geotextile it was

not possible to prevent the mixing of the first aggregate lift
and the soft subgrade.

Numerical computations highlight the need for reinforced

embankment using geotextile separation and geogrid,
confirming difficulties in construction and improving
compaction performance during the first embankment lift.
Following Conclusion;

The project's numerical computations reveal an 85%

improvement in the bearing capacity of the reinforced
embankment for rut up to 10 cm and subgrade undrained
cohesion of about 10 kN/m2.

The study reveals that the bearing capacity improvement is

more significant for low subgrade undrained cohesion,
decreasing with increased undrained cohesion and becoming
negligible beyond 70 kN/m2.

The geogrid tensile stiffness's effect on bearing capacity

improvement is more sensitive up to 500 kN/m, resulting in an
80% improvement.
Suggestions

Investigate the long-term performance of geosynthetic-

reinforced embankments over sabkha soils.

Evaluate the effectiveness of different types of

geosynthetics for sabkha soil applications.

Analyze the impact of geosynthetic reinforcement on the

settlement and deformation of embankments over
sabkha soils.

Consider the environmental impact of geosynthetic

reinforcement.
Inspirations to Future Researchers
Geosynthetics are not widely used in
the Philippines, but engaging in
studies on them can enhance
knowledge and understanding of
their applications across different
ground conditions.

This can help in devising

effective countermeasures
for specific soil types and
constructing conventional
solutions for enhanced
stability and performance.
 References
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using pullout tests. Geosynth Int 8(3):193–220
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roads. Transp Res Rec 1652:113–120
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deformation: a model study. Geosynth Int 6(1):1–17
Thank You