Design Guideline Basal Reinforced Piled Embankments: The Design Guideline

A basal reinforced piled embankment consists of a reinforced embankment on a pile foundation. The reinforcement consists of one or more horizontal layers of geosynthetic reinforcement installed at the base of the embankment.
A basal reinforced piled embankment can be used for the construction of a road or a railway when a traditional construction method would require too much construction time, affect vulnerable objects nearby or give too much residual settlement, making frequent maintenance necessary.
This publication is a guideline (CUR226) for the design of basal reinforced piled embankments. The guideline covers the following subjects: a survey of the requirements and the basic principles for the structure as a whole; some instructions for the pile foundation and the pile caps; design rules for the embankment with the basal geosynthetic reinforcement; extensive calculation examples; finite element calculations; construction details and management and maintenance of the piled embankment. The guideline includes many practical tips. The design guideline is based on state-of-the-art Dutch research, which was conducted in cooperation with many researchers from different countries.

Dr. Suzanne J.M. van Eekelen is a researcher in geotechnical engineering and an expert in the field of geosynthetic reinforcement, in particular piled embankments.She has reviewed or advised many piled embankment projects and she specialises in laboratory experiments and field monitoring. She is chairing the Dutch SBRCURnet committees ‘Design Guideline Basal Reinforced Piled Embankments’ and ‘Retaining Walls of Reinforced Soil’ and works for Deltares, a knowledge institute for applied research in the field of water and subsurface. With her co-workers, Suzanne van Eekelen has developed an analytical model for the design of the basal reinforcement in piled embankments. This model was adopted in this guideline for basal reinforced piled embankments. Dr. Suzanne van Eekelen received the IGS Award of the International Geosynthetics Society for her research on basal reinforced piled embankments in 2014, the Award for the best paper in Geotextiles and Geomembranes in 2012, two Honourable Mentions for her papers in Geotextiles and Geomembranes in 2011 and 2015 and the Dutch/Belgium Keverling Buisman-Science award 2011.

Marijn H.A. Brugman, MSc, is a geotechnical and geological design engineer and an expert in geosynthetic applications and underground construction. He works for the Dutch engineering and consulting company Arthe Civil & Structure. Marijn Brugman has served as a consultant in many building-, construction- and infrastructural projects around the world and has designed various piled embankments. He is a member of several committees for geotechnical design guidelines in the Netherlands and has served as editor and secretary of the SBRCURnet committee ‘Design Guideline Basal Reinforced Piled Embankments’.

SBRCURnet is an independent knowledge network for the entire Dutch building industry. The knowledge and tools that SBRCURnet develops and provides, help corporate professionals and governments improve their skillsets and their business in both civil engineering and house building. SBRCURnet initiates and coordinates joint research projects with both public bodies and private companies. By initiating, organizing and publishing about these innovative solutions, SBRCURnet stimulates the further development of the entire industry. We do this because we believe that innovation is best stimulated by sharing knowledge and working together. Our focus is to link organizations in developing new knowledge on current issues. It issues approximately 500 publications about best practices and innovative building issues. Most of our research projects and activities result in the publication of guidance documents, many of which have been adopted as the standard for excellence in their respective areas.
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