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Ground Improvement At The Port Of Brisbane, Australia Using Vertical Drains And Vacuum Assisted Preloading, Buddhima Indraratna, Cholachat Rujikiatkamjorn, A S. Balasubramaniam

Cholachat Rujikiatkamjorn

Soft clays in coastal areas have low shear strength and high compressibility. Thus construction activities for infrastructure developments in these deposits often pose geotechnical problems due to large time dependent settlements and lateral movements. Ground improvement techniques are adopted to reduce the water content of the soft clays by preloading techniques with vertical drains. Depending on the magnitude of the surcharge used substantial immediate settlement with lateral movements can takes place during preloading. This in tum causes stability problems in the loaded areas. The use of vacuum assisted preloading has now become a popular method in Australia where substantial loads …