Search Results (4)

During the cofferdam construction of the toe reinforcement project at the Qiantang River Estuary, the scouring of the riverbed at the groin head often led to the collapse of geotube groins due to strong tidal currents. Based on field experience, employing a combination of clay and geotubes proved to be a more effective solution to this problem. This study adopted a flume model experiment to investigate the scouring and deposition around geotube groins and mixed clay–geotube groins. The results indicated that the influence of tidal surges on geomorphic changes surrounding the groins was more pronounced during spring tides than during neap tides. Under the same flow conditions, the scour depth at the head of the geotube groin was notably deeper than that of the mixed clay–geotube groin. Additionally, sediment silting behind the mixed clay–geotube groin was significantly greater than that behind the geotube groin. The clay component of the mixed clay–geotube groin served to mitigate the head scour, enhancing the overall structural stability to a certain extent. The geotube groin, with its surrounding scour pits expanding over time, experienced increasing tensile strain. This resulted in the rupture of the geotextile material, the loss of internal sand and, ultimately, groin collapse. It was found that mixed clay–geotube groins were better suited for cofferdam construction in strong tidal estuaries compared to geotube groin alternatives. Full article

The boundary element method (BEM) with Lagrangian formulation is a conceptually simple and efficient method for the simulation of nonlinear wave shoaling, with or without impermeable coastal structures, up to the wave breaking. However, in post-breaking flows, the domain is no longer simply connected, and the BEM is not efficient for the generation of a new free surface. Volumes of fluid (VOF) methods are made to track the fluid-free surfaces after breaking, but they are more numerically complex and less efficient relative to the BEM before breaking. This study presents a numerical model, named BELWF—boundary elements Lagrangian wave flume—for the mathematical simulation of two-dimensional wave flumes. The BELWF can simulate the hydrodynamics of wave shoaling over a coast profile, with submerged impermeable coastal structures of any geometry. The developed model is applied to simulate and study Geotube structures. The BELWF is validated by comparisons with OpenFOAM simulations. Both the BELWF and OpenFOAM simulations show that the most critical state, regarding the sliding stability of the Geotube, occurs, typically just before breaking, where the BELWF reasonably assesses the wave loads and the sliding stability. Hence, the BELWF is a valid and efficient method for the preliminary design of impermeable coastal structures. Finally, the BELWF is applied to simulate a practical design example of a complete shoaling process along a sloped shore with a Geotube structure at the shallow water, which develops a plunging breaker. The simulation well captures the critical event considering the sliding stability of the structure. Full article

Understanding the sedimentation behaviour and chemical–physical properties of clay sediments is crucial in planning their storage in geotubes. Analysis of the sedimentation curves of the solids taken from the artificial reservoir of the Camastra reveal that a two-parameter curve identifies all the sedimentation profiles. One parameter depends on the type of settling material, and the other is the lifetime of the process. Using the solid concentration per unit area, the lifetime is converted into a true kinetic constant. These parameters uniquely identify the sedimentation profile to be used in the management of dredging using geotubes. Furthermore, the resulting particles after the decantation of the coarse-grained solids are dispersed according to a log-normal distribution with an average diameter between 250 and 500 nm. The low $\zeta$-potential of the particles dispersed in the supernatant indicates that they can either aggregate or adsorb to the geotube tissue, slowing or blocking the dredging operations. Full article

In recent years, traditional material for coastal erosion protection has become very expensive and not sustainable and eco-friendly for the long term. As an alternative countermeasure, this study focused on a sustainable biological ground improvement technique that can be utilized as an option for improving the mechanical and geotechnical engineering properties of soil by the microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) technique considering native ureolytic bacteria. To protect coastal erosion, an innovative and sustainable strategy was proposed in this study by means of combing geotube and the MICP method. For a successful sand solidification, the urease activity, environmental factors, urease distribution, and calcite precipitation trend, among others, have been investigated using the isolated native strains. Our results revealed that urease activity of the identified strains denoted as G1 (Micrococcus sp.), G2 (Pseudoalteromonas sp.), and G3 (Virgibacillus sp.) relied on environment-specific parameters and, additionally, urease was not discharged in the culture solution but would discharge in and/or on the bacterial cell, and the fluid of the cells showed urease activity. Moreover, we successfully obtained solidified sand bearing UCS (Unconfined Compressive Strength) up to 1.8 MPa. We also proposed a novel sustainable approach for field implementation in a combination of geotube and MICP for coastal erosion protection that is cheaper, energy-saving, eco-friendly, and sustainable for Mediterranean countries, as well as for bio-mediated soil improvement. Full article