• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.31-48
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• 2019

The artificial ground freezing (AGF) method is a groundwater cutoff and/or ground reinforcement method suitable for constructing underground structures in soft ground and urban areas. The AGF method conducts a freezing process by employing a refrigerant circulating through a set of embedded freezing pipes to form frozen walls serving as excavation supports and/or cutoff walls. However, thermal expansion of the pore water during freezing may cause excessive deformation of the ground. On the other hand, as the frozen soil is thawed after completion of the construction, mechanical characteristics of the thawed soil are changed due to the plastic deformation of the ground and the rearrangement of soil fabric. This paper performed a field experiment to evaluate the freezing rate of marine clay in the application of the AGF method. The field experiment was carried out by circulating liquid nitrogen, which is a cryogenic refrigerant, through one freezing pipe installed at a depth of 3.2 m in the ground. Also, a piezo-cone penetration test (CPTu) and a lateral load test (LLT) were performed on the marine clay before and after application of the AGF method to evaluate a change in strength and stiffness of it, which was induced by freezing-thawing. The experimental results indicate that about 11.9 tons of liquid nitrogen were consumed for 3.5 days to form a cylindrical frozen body with a volume of about $2.12m^3$. In addition, the strength and stiffness of the ground were reduced by 48.5% and 22.7%, respectively, after a freezing-thawing cycle.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 1999.03a
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• pp.373-380
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• 1999

Consolidation settlements of soft clay are often large and potentially damaging to the structures. Currently, large-scale construction projects for airport and harbor etc. are in progress in Korea and many of these structures will be constructed on thick and soft clay layers. For this kind of ground condition, evaluation of consolidation settlement is required at every design and construction stages, and the magnitude of secondary compression appears to be larger than expected. Generally, the magnitude of secondary compression is evaluated by laboratory and in-situ consolidation tests or by empirical $C_{a/}$ $C_{c}$, relationship. The use of empirical value $C_{a/}$ $C_{c}$ may be economical, fast and powerful tool in estimating secondary consolidation settlement. However, the databases of the $C_{a/}$ $C_{c}$, for typical soft clays in Korea are insufficient. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship of $C_{a/}$ $C_{c}$ on marine clay near the southern sea in Korea. A series of incremental loading consolidation tests with measurement of pore water pressure were performed. It was found that the $C_{a/}$ $C_{c}$ of undisturbed marine clay is 0.0397. This value is similar to that proposed by Mesri and Castro(1987) on inorganic clay and silt. and silt. and silt.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2005.10a
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• pp.469-478
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• 2005

Understanding of an accurate state of consolidation of underconsolidated clay body, like a recently dredged or reclaimed clay deposits, is one of the most difficult tasks. The estimation of the consolidation status of these clay bodies is often made by laboratory tests of numerical analyses. However these methods demonstrated crucial limitations in the accurate prediction. Therefore, the predicted degree of consolidation from various techniques is verified by actual measured field data. The degree of consolidation of clay body in the East Side Hinterland of Gwangyang Port(2nd Phase) is evaluated in this study by using various techniques such as oedometer test, CPTu, numerical analysis and piezometer tests etc. And the results are compared each other to find the most reliable prediction technique. The merit and reliability of each method is discussed in detail. It is revealed from in this study that the estimation of degree of consolidation by an actual pore water pressure measurements is the most reliable technique.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.825-844
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• 2017

This study aimed to find out the pullout capacity of inclined strip anchor plate embedded in anisotropic and nonhomogeneous fully saturated cohesive soil in undrained condition. The ultimate pullout load has been found out by using numerical lower bound finite element analysis with linear programming. The undrained pullout capacity of anchor plate of width B is determined for different embedment ratios (H/B) varying from 3 to 7 and various inclination of anchor plates ranging from $0^{\circ}$ to $90^{\circ}$ with an interval of $15^{\circ}$. In case of anisotropic fully saturated clay the variation of cohesion with direction has been considered by varying the ratio of the cohesion along vertical direction ($c_v$) to the cohesion along horizontal direction ($c_h$). In case of nonhomogeneous clay the cohesion of the undrained clay has been considered to be increased with depth below ground surface keeping $c_v/c_h=1$. The results are presented in terms of pullout capacity factor ($F_{c0}=p_u/c_H$) where $p_u$ is the ultimate pullout stress along the anchor plate at failure and $c_H$ is the cohesion in horizontal direction at the level of the middle point of the anchor plate. It is observed that the pullout capacity factor increases with an increase in anisotropic cohesion ratio ($c_v/c_h$) whereas the pullout capacity factor decreases with an increase in undrained cohesion of the soil with depth.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.303-316
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• 2023

With the development and utilization of urban underground space, the artificial ground freezing technology has been widely used in the construction of underground engineering in soft soil areas. The mechanical properties of soft clay changed greatly after freezing and thawing, which affected the seismic performance of underground structures. In this paper, a series of triaxial tests were carried out to study the dynamic response of the freezing-thawing clay under the seismic load considering different dynamic stress amplitudes and different confining pressures. The reduction factor of dynamic shear stress was determined to correct the amplitude of the seismic load. The deformation development mode, the stress-strain relationship and the energy dissipation behavior of the soft clay under the seismic load were analyzed. An empirical model for predicting accumulative plastic strain was proposed and validated considering the loading times, the confining pressures and the dynamic stress amplitudes. The relevant research results can provide a theoretical reference to the seismic design of underground structures in soft clay areas.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.17 no.10
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• pp.73-81
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• 2016

In the construction on low strength and high compressible soft ground, the many problems have been occurred in recent construction project. therefore, the soil improvement have been developed to obtain high strength in relatively short period of curing time. Based on the laboratory tests using undisturbed marine clay, the effect of improvement on soft ground was estimated. Deep mixing method by cement have been virtually used for decades to improve the mechanical properties of soft ground. However, previous researches set the focus on the short term strength the about 10% of cement treated clay. In this paper, cement and Natural Soil Stabilizer (NSS) were used as the stabilizing agent to obtain trafficability and mechanical strength of the soft clay. Based on the several laboratory tests, optimum condition was proposed to ensure the mechanical strength and compressibility as the foundation soil using cement and NSS mixed soil. Finally, research data was proposed about the applicability of NSS as the stabilizing agent to soft clay to increase the mechanical strength of soil.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.413-422
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• 2020

The choice of eco-friendly materials for ground improvement is a necessary way forward for sustainable development. Adapting naturally available biopolymers will render the process of soil stabilization carbon neutral. An attempt has been made to use β-glucan, a natural biopolymer for the stabilization of lean clay as a sustainable alternative with specific emphasis on comprehending the effect of confining stresses on lean clay through triaxial compression tests. A sequence of laboratory experiments was performed to examine the various physical and mechanical characteristics of β-glucan treated soil (BGTS). Micro-analysis through micrographs were used to understand the strengthening mechanism. Results of the study show that the deviatoric stress of 2% BGTS is 12 times higher than untreated soil (UTS). The micrographs from Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and the results of the Nitrogen-based Brunauer Emmett Teller (N₂-BET) analysis confirm the formation of new cementitious fibres and hydrogels within the soil matrix that tends to weld soil particles and reduce the pore spaces leading to an increase in strength. Hydraulic conductivity (HC) and compressibility reduced significantly with the biopolymer content and curing period. Results emphases that β-glucan is an efficient and sustainable alternative to the traditional stabilizers like cement, lime or bitumen.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2000.09a
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• pp.61-69
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• 2000

It is not easy to find a good soil condition due to the shortage of suitable land for construction work. The earth structure and buildings can be constructed over the soft soil. The soft soil must be treated either using the reinforcement element or dewatering. Most of land reclamation projects are being implemented along the south coast or west coast of the Korean Peninsula. The soils in these areas are covered with the soft marine clay, so soil and site improvement is the most important things to do. Pile foundation at the bottom of embankment can be constructed either in the soft ground or in the soil contaminated area. The purpose of this research is to develop "geogrid-reinforced piled embankment method" to prevent the differential settlement and increase the bearing capacity of soil. In this study, the effectiveness of the geogrid-reinforcement was studied by varying the space between piles and reinforcement conditions. Also, the geotechnical engineering properties of the embankment material and foundation soil were determined through the laboratory tests as well as the field tests. As a result, the site that the pile-spacing S = 3b with geogrid reinforcement is the most effective to reduce the differential settlement and increase load bearing capacity.

• Journal of the Korean Geosynthetics Society
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.41-46
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• 2009

In this paper, a series of model tests were performed in laboratory to evaluate promoting consolidation of compaction pile methods for soft ground improvement. For the model tests, composite soil samples that have 10% replacement area ratio were prepared by using sand, gravel, and sandy gravel for the materials of compaction piles. After loading to each composite soil sample, the excess pore pressure dissipation and settlement were investigated. In addition, the behavior of clay mixed with each compaction pile was also monitored at the end of consolidation to evaluate clogging phenomenon. As a test result, the effects for decreasing settlement and promoting consolidation by GCP were prominent, and the mixed clay was not monitored in all of the three compaction piles.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 1992.10a
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• pp.113-120
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• 1992

The construction of container terminal at Brani, Singapore required the improvement of soft clay layer having the thickness of about 6.5m, average moisture content of 79.4%, liquid limit of 90.4%, plastic limit of 21.8%, field vane strength of 10 to 25 KPa, pre-consolidation pressure of 225 to 60 KPa and compression index of 0.4 to 1.0. For the improvement of this layer, Colbon drains of 1.3m spacing in triangular pattern were installed to the bottom of the layer and surcharge of more than 11.25m high sand fill was later applied to the treated area. The settlement and lateral displacement of the ground were measured and the speed of surcharge filling was controlled, based on these readings. The removal of surcharge was determinied using the estimated time for the 90% degree of consolidation under the design pressure of 180KPa. The field and laboratory test results show that the soft clay layer has been improved substantially in its strength and consolidation characteristics: increase in strength of about 50KPa and pre-consolidation pressure and decrease in void ratio and compression index.