Civil Engineering ReferencePoint Suite
Use these ReferencePoints to learn about various civil engineering areas including transportation and geotechnical topics.
TABLE OF CONTENTS Civil Engineering ReferencePoint Suite
Point 2: Geosynthetics and Their Applications
K.C. Dhawan
Geosynthetics are geomaterials made of polymers, which contain long chain of interconnected molecules to provide strength to the material. You can use geosynthetics for different civil engineering applications, such as in erosion and sediment control, for roads and pavements, in seepage control systems, and in subsurface drainage.
This article introduces geosynthetics. It describes various types of geosynthetics, their characteristics, and uses and explains how to design various types of geosynthetics. In addition, it explains various applications of geosynthetics.
Introduction to Geosynthetics
Geosynthetics are used in various forms, such as fabrics, meshes, grids, and membranes. These forms provide strength and stability to an engineering unit, such as roads, pavements, and containment systems.
Geosynthetics provide several benefits over other materials such as soil and aggregate. For example, geosynthetics:
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Provide geomaterials in the form of sheets, which occupy less space in landfills.
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Are manufactured in the form of large sheets and this reduces the number of connections in a sheet. As a result, there is no effect of climatic conditions on geosynthetics.
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Are cost-effective.
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Are installed in less time. Geosynthetic layers are deployed in a sequential manner enabling a single crew to deploy multiple geosynthetics layers efficiently but with minimum restriction between layers.
If geosynthetics are exposed to wind and water during installation, the exposure degrades the structure of geosynthetics. In addition, exposure to Ultraviolet (UV) rays during installation, transportation, or storage affect the component polymers of geosynthetics.
Raw Materials Used for Geosynthetics
Polymers are used as raw materials to construct...
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