1

Foundation of Constructions on Very Soft Soils with Geotextile Encased

Columns - State of the Art
M. Raithel, A. Kirchner, C. Schade and E. Leusink
Kempfert + Partner GmbH, Sternstrasse 22, 34123 Kassel, Germany
e-Mail: ks@kup-geotechnik.de
Phone: +49 561 70786-0, Fax: +49 561 70786-50
Abstract
Foundation systems with geotextile encased columns (GEC) are used for soil
improvement and primarily for road embankment foundations in Germany, Sweden
and the Netherlands since almost 10 years (Raithel et al, 2004), but latterly they are
also used in dike construction. In this paper the essential main features of the calcula-
tion of the bearing and deformation behaviour are described. Further the know-how
gained by using the different installation methods and measurement results of the
foundation system geotextile encased columns are discussed. Also a comparison of
the gained settlement reduction between encased and non-encased columns (i.e.
granualar piles) will be shown.
Bearing System GEC and calculation model
Bearing System GEC
With the foundation system GEC gravel-sand-columns are installed into a bearing
layer to relieve the load on the soft soils. Different installation methods are thereby
used. Due to the geotextile casing in combination with the surrounding soft soils the
column has a radial support, whereas the casing is strained by ring tensile forces
(Raithel et al, 2004). Due to the supporting effects of the casing, a special range of
application, in opposite to conventional column foundations (i.e. granualar piles), is
in very soft soils (c
u
< 15 kN/m) like peat or very soft silt/clay as well as sludge.
As opposed to conventional stone column foundations, geotextile encased sand or
gravel columns can be used as a ground improvement method for very soft soils. By
a non-encased column, the horizontal support of the soft soil must be equal to the
horizontal pressure in the column. By a GEC, the horizontal support of the soft soil
can be much lower, due to the radial supporting effect of the geotextile casing. The
horizontal support depends also on the vertical pressure over the soft soil, which can
be much smaller. As a result a stress concentration on the column head and a lower
vertical pressure over the soft soil and therefore a large settlement reduction is ob-
tained. To withstand the high ring tension forces, the geotextile casings are manufac-
tured seamlessly. The columns act simultaneously as vertical drains, but the main
effect is the load transfer to a deeper bearing layer. The GEC are arranged in a regu-
lar column grid. Based on the unit cell concept, a single column in a virtual infinite
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GSP 136 Innovations in Grouting and Soil Improvement
2
column grid can be considered. The influence area A
E
of a single column A
C
in tri-
angular grid is a hexagonal element, which can be transformed into a circular ele-
ment with an equivalent area, see Figure 1.
Numerical calculation using FEM
For the numerical calculation of the GEC-System, the program PLAXIS (Finite Element
Code for Soil and Rock Analyses) usually is used. An advantage of this program is the
possibility to use several soil models. For soft soils, the Soft Soil Model (SSM), a model
of the Cam-Clay type, is used. For the sand and gravel of the column material, the Hard
Soil Model (HSM), a modified model on the basis of the Duncan/Chang model, is used.
For details see Raithel (1999).
Analytical Calculation model
Generally, an analytical, axial symmetric model according to Raithel (1999) and Raithel
& Kempfert (2000) is used for calculating and designing a geotextile encased column
foundation, see Figure 1.
Ao
v,s
sand column
const. volume
(vertical drain)
geotextile
ring tension
force Fr
Ao
v,c
2 rc
h o
h,c
soft soil
Ao

o
h,s,tot =
o
h,s +
o
h,diff
2 rgeo
2 rE
o
h,s,tot =
o
h,s +
o
h,diff
horizontal geotextile reinforcement
soft
soil
bearing layer
column
geotextile
casing
column
grid
column grid
with 'unit cell'
area ratio ae = AC / AE
Ac
AE
Figure 1. Calculation model geotextile encased column
The model was developed on the basis of the conventional calculation models used for
granular piles, which are completed by the effect of the geotextile casing.
As shown in Figure 1, there is an additional horizontal stress in the column Ao
h,c
(index
h = horizontal) due to the additional vertical stress Ao
v,c
(index v = vertical) over the
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GSP 136 Innovations in Grouting and Soil Improvement
3
column head. In view of the equilibrium between the additional surface loading Ao and
the corresponding vertical stresses on the column Ao
v,c
and the soft soil Ao
v,s
, it can be
stated:
) A (A A A
c E v,s c v,c E
+ =
The vertical stresses due to the loading and the different soil weights produce hori-
zontal stresses (o
v,0,c
and o
v,0,s
are the initial vertical stresses in the column and the
soil if the excavation method is used, K
0,s
* must be substituted by K
0,s
):
c , a c , 0 , v c , a c , v c , h
K K o + o A = o
* K K
s , 0 s , 0 , v s , 0 s , v s , h
o + o A = o
The geotextile casing (radius r
geo
) has a linear-elastic behaviour (stiffness J), whereby
the ring tensile force F
R
can be transformed into a horizontal stress o
h,geo
, which is
assigned to the geotextile:
F
R
= J Ar
geo
/r
geo
and o
h,geo
= F
R
/r
geo
By the use of the separate horizontal stresses a differential horizontal stress can be
defined, which represents the partial mobilisation of the passive earth pressure in the
surrounding soft soil:
) (
geo , h s , h c , h diff , h
o + o o = o
The stress difference results in an expansion of the column. The horizontal deformation
Ar
c
and the settlement of the soft soil s
s
are calculated according to Ghionna & Jami-
olkowski (1981). Assuming equal settlements of column s
c
and soft soil s
s
, the following
calculation equation can be derived (oedometric modulus E
oed,s,
poisson ratio v
s
):
( )
( )
h
r r
r
1 h
r
J r
r
J r r
* K K
a
a 1
a
1
K
1 * E
2
E
2
c c
2
c
2
geo
c
2
geo
c geo
s , 0 , v s , 0 s , v s , 0
c , 0 , v s , v
E
E
E
c , a
s
s
s , oed
s , v

(
(

A +
=

(
(
(
(
(

+ o o A

|
|
.
|

\
|
o + o A

o A
v
v

o A
( )
( )
2
geo
c E
2
geo
c geo
s , 0 , v s , 0 s , v s , 0 c , 0 , v s , v
E
E
E
c , a
c
r
J
r 1 a / 1
* E
r
J r r
* K K
a
a 1
a
1
K
r
+


+ o o A
|
|
.
|

\
|
o + o A

o A
= A
with
s , oed
s
s s
E s s
E
) 1 (
) 2 1 ( ) 1 (
a
1
1
1
1
1
* E
v
v v +

|
|
.
|

\
|

v +
+
v
=
This equation can be solved by iterative procedure. The oedometric modulus E
oed,s
of
the soil should be introduced stress dependent. More details are shown in Raithel
(1999) and also in Raithel & Kempfert (2000).
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Installation method
Road and railroad engineering
Normally two installation methods are in practice. With the excavation method, an
open steel pipe is driven into the bearing layer and its contents is removed by soil
auger. By the vibro displacement method, a steel pipe with two base flaps (which
close upon contact with the soil) is vibrated down to the bearing layer, displacing the
soft soil. After that the geotextile casing is installed and filled with sand. After re-
trieval of the pipe under vibration a GEC filled with sand/gravel of medium density
is produced. In figure 2 the vibro displacement method (left) and the excavation
method (right) are shown.
Figure 2. Column installation methods
The excavation method should be preferred by soils with high penetration resistance
or when vibration effects on nearby buildings and road installations have to be mini-
mised. The advantage of the vibro displacement method compared to the excavation
method is based on the faster and more economical column installation and the ef-
fects of pre-stressing the soft soil. Furthermore it is not necessary to excavate and
dispose soil. Admittedly the excess pore water pressure, the vibrations and deforma-
tions have to be considered.
Hydraulic engineering from offshore pontoons
Dikes are constructed mainly with the more economical and faster vibro displace-
ment method. By using pontoons it is possible to install columns in soils with almost
no shear strength (i.e. sludge). Figure 3 shows a hydraulic engineering project using
several pontoons for column installation.
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Figure 3. Column installation in hydraulic engineering
Effects of installation methods
The effects and influences in the subsoil due to the column installation have to be
considered. Particularly by using the vibro displacement method a contraction of the
geotextile below the inner-diameter of the displacement pipe is occurring due to the
stresses in the soft soils. This contraction is proved by several measurements.
The displacement of the soft soil led to an uplifting of the soft soil within and around
the columns. The heaving produced wavelike deformations at the surface of the grid.
The lifting was measured at up to 3-8 % of the column depth. Liquefaction of the soft
soil by compaction energy was not observed. Measurements show an increase in the
undrained shear strength of the soft soil surrounding the columns (figure 4). Further,
an increase by a factor of 2 in the shear strength of the surrounding soft soil was
measured, which shows the additional stabilizing effect of the installation method.
Figure 4. Increase of the undrained shear strenght in the soft soil between the col-
umns in comparison before and after installation the columns
after installation the columns
before installation the columns
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
c
U
in kN/m2
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
s
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Project experiences
Up to the middle of the nineties first experiences installing systems with encased
columns were made. But the required techniques for installing a complete, self-
regulating respectively interactive bearing system and the appropriate calculation
models were developed since 1994. First bearing test on encased columns took place
in Germany in 1994 and in 1996 the first foundation system geotextile encased col-
umns (GEC) for widening an about 5 m high railroad embankment on peat and clay
soils in Hamburg was carried out (Kempfert et al, 1997).
Meanwhile the appropriate calculation model to calculate the ring tension forces and
the settlements as realistic as possible by considering the different interactions be-
tween soft soil, casing and column was developed. Up to now there are more than 15
reference projects in Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands, see table 1.
Table 1. Accomplished project with geotextile encased gravel/sand columns
year project construction
dam height
[m]
soft soil
[m]
C
[cm]
method
A
C
/A
E
[%]
road and railroad construction
1996 Waltershof railroad embankment 5 5 154 excavation 25 - 30
1996 Baden -Baden railroad embankment 4 5 65 displac. 20
1998 Bruchsal road embankment 13 5 80 displac. 20
1998 Grafing railroad embankment 3 10 80 displac. 17
1998 Saarmund highway embankment 5.5 10 80 displac. 10
1998 Niederlehme highway embankment 5 7 80 displac. 14
1999 Herrnburg railroad embankment 40 11 80 excavation 15
1999 Tessenitz-Tal highway embankment 5 10 80 displac. 10
2000 Krempe bridge ramp 8 7 80 displac. 13-20
2000 Grafing railroad embankment 2-4 6.5 80 displac. 15
2000 Sinzheim railroad embankment 2 7 80 excavation 15
2001 Hoeksche Waard test field 2-5 10 80 displac. 5-20
2001 sGravendeel test field 5 10 80 displac. 15
2001 Brandenburg bridge ramp 7 15 80 displac. 13-18
2001 Betuweroute bridge ramp 7 8 80 displac. 10-15
2001 Botniabahn bridge ramp 8 8 80 displac. 15
2002 Westrik railroad embankment 7 6 (waste) 80 displac. 15
2003 Oldenburg railroad embankment 1.5 6 60 displac. 15
water construction EADS area extension
2001
2003
polder enclos-
ing dike
flood protection dike 9.5 14 80 displac. 10-20
2003
2004
Finkenwerder
Vordeich
flood protection dike 9.5 12 80 displac. 15
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In the following one chosen project from both road and hydraulic engineering is
shown and discussed.
Road and railroad construction
As shown in table 1, especially in road and railroad construction extensive experiences
with the system GEC exist. By means of measurements the effectfivness of the accom-
plished GEC foundations could be proved. As an example the ground improvement at
the railroad Karlsruhe-Basel is shown in the following. The 1 to 2 m high embankment
was founded on a approx. 7 m thick alternating sequence of peat, sludge and clay lay-
ers with stiffness between E
s
= 0.7 and 2.3 MN/m. To avoid vibrations at the existing
rail track the columns (C80 cm) were installed using the excavation method. The
situation on site and typical measurements are shown in figure 5.
geotextile encased
columns, = 0,80 m
p
l
a
n
e
d
n
o
i
s
e

p
r
o
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c
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p
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c
t
i
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w
a
l
l
t
r
a
c
k
B
a
s
e
l
-
K
a
r
l
s
r
u
h
e
t
r
a
c
k
K
a
r
l
s
r
u
h
e
-
B
a
s
e
l
t
r
a
c
k
a
x
i
s
SOK 0,0
SOK -1,35
SOK -2,40
SOK -3,00
GW= 122,4 mNN
slab track
0 100 200 300
0.24
0.20
0.16
0.12
0.08
0.04
0.00
max. settlement
control measurement
after 1400 days
inclinometer 1
inclinometer 2
s
e
t
l
l
e
m
e
n
t
[
m
]
time since begin of measurement [days]
Figure 5. Foundation and typical measurements at the project ABS/NBS
Karlsruhe-Basel (project Sinzheim, 2000)
Hydraulic Engineering
Beside using the foundation system in road construction there are meanwhile experi-
ences in major hydraulic construction projects. Especially the area-extension of the
airplane dockyard (EADS) in Hamburg-Finkenwerder by approx. 140 ha (346-acres)
for the production of the new Airbus A 380 has to be mentioned. The area-extension
is located in the Mhlenberger Loch adjacent to the west of the existing factory
site. The area extension is carried out by enclosing the polder with a 2.4 km long
dike to fill up in the area under buoyancy, see figure 6.
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Figure 6. Concept to reclaim land by the construction of a polder
The dike foundation was realized by about 60,000 geotextile encased columns with a
diameter of 80 cm, which were sunk to the bearing layers with depth between 4 and
14 m below the base of the dike footing. This dike is the new main water protection
dike of the airplane dockyard. Furthermore another 10,000 columns were installed to
relocate the existing Finkenwerder Vordeich towards the river Elbe and to avoid
sludge replacement, to increase the stability and to decrease the settlements of the
dike. Typical soil conditions are shown in figure 7.
Figure 7. Typical soil boundary conditions at the area-extension of the airplane
dockyard at Hamburg-Finkenwerder
012
0.0
1.0
2.0
3.0
4.0
5.0
6.0
7.0
8.0
9.0
10.0
11.0
12.0
-4.30
Schlick
-6.10
Klei, jung
-9.80
Torf, schluffig
-11.20
Klei
Sand
/ c
/
13 / 3 20 / 0
14 / 4 20 / 0
11 / 1 20 / 0
19 / 11 35 / 0
1,0
2,0
3,0
5,0
10,0
1) Tiefe = 0 = OK
Staffelung von
der Tiefe bleib
16 / 6 20 / 5
SLUDGE
w = 58233%
= 20; c = 0 kN/m
/ = 13/3 kN/m
Eoed = 500 kN/m
CLAY
w = 77192%
= 20; c = 0 kN/m
/ = 14/4 kN/m
Eoed = 450 kN/m
PEAT
w = 75-453%
= 20; c = 0 kN/m
/ = 11/1 kN/m
EOED = 550 KN/M
CLAY
w = 31-171%
= 20; c = 5 kN/m
/ = 16/6 kN/m
Eoed = 1500 kN/m
SAND
= 35;c = 0 kN/m
/ = 18/10 kN/m
= 20; c = 5 kN/m
/ = 16/6 kN/m
Eoed = 1500 kN/m
cu [kN/m]
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GSP 136 Innovations in Grouting and Soil Improvement
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Due to the foundation system GEC the dike could be constructed to a flood water
save height of 7 m in a construction time of approx. 9 months. To complete the dike
up to approx. 10 m, inclusive a cover of organic clay, a construction time of only
approx. 15 month was necessary.
Due to the different soil conditions along the dike length 7 measurement cross sections
were necessary. In a typical measurement cross section, 4 groups are placed, each
containing one earth pressure gauge and one water pressure gauge above the soft soil
layer, and two piezometers within the soft soil. In each cross section, one horizontal
and two vertical inclinometers are used for the examination of the deformation behav-
iour. The measured settlement in dike section VI are shown in figure 8.
Figure 8. Measured settlements, for example in section VI
0.0
1.0
2.0
3.0
4.0
5.0
6.0
7.0
8.0
9.0
10.0
d
i
k
e
h
e
i
g
h
t
[
m
N
N
]
-2.0
-1.8
-1.6
-1.4
-1.2
-1.0
-0.8
-0.6
-0.4
-0.2
0.0
s
e
t
t
l
e
m
e
n
t
[
m
]
50 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 -5 -10 -15 -20 -25 -30 -35 -40 -45 -50 -55 -60
distance to dike axis [m]
dike end height
17.02.04
17.12.03
05.02.04
settlement
measurement 05.11.03
measurement 29.12.03
measurement 17.02.04
measurement at
dike end height
mud flat
axis
landside
geotextile encased columns
vertical drainage

Figure 9. Measured settlements Finkenwerder Vordeich (for example)
Copyright ASCE 2005 Innovations in Grouting and Soil Improvement
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GSP 136 Innovations in Grouting and Soil Improvement
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The dike Finkenwerder Vordeich Sd is only partly founded on encased columns. In
the part outside the main load area vertical drainage is used to accelerate the settle-
ments. Figure 9 shows typical measurement results pointing out the different settle-
ment reduction in the part with encased columns (thickness of soft soil about 7 m) and
the part with vertical drainage (thickness of soft soil about 4.5 m). The foundation sys-
tem proved its value by flexibility during installation and by short time of consolida-
tion. Therefore it was possible to build up the dike almost continuously in separate
layers. For detailed specification about using the encased columns at this project see
Raithel et al, 2004.
Summary
To assess the effectiveness (| = settlement without/with columns) of the encased
columns in relation to conventional column foundations, the results of tests accord-
ing to Raithel (1999) and executed projects are compared with published results of
foundations with granular piles (fig. 10), see also Kempfert (2003).
0 4 8 12 16 20 24 28 32 36
Area Ratio A
c
/A
e
[%]
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
I
m
p
r
o
v
e
m
e
n
t
F
a
c
t
o
r
|
Stone Columns
without encasing
Gruber 1995
Greenwood/Kirsch 1984
Juran/Guermazi 1988
Munfakh 1984
Bergado 1994
Raju 1997
Raithel 1999
regression
Encased Columns
(with geotextile stiffness)
model tests
project Krempe 2000
project Sinzheim 2000
project A115/A10
project Waltershof 1996
project Baden-Baden 1996
project Botnia-Bahn Sweden 2001
project A20 AS Neubrandenburg 2001
project DA-Erweiterung Hamburg 2002
regression
2650
1900
1900
800
850
2650
3400
2800
2800
1500
1500
1700
1200
2650
1700
1700
800
2000
1200
regression
J = ca. 2000 - 3000 kN/m
regression
stone columns
(J = 0 kN/m)
regression
J = ca. 1000 - 2000 kN/m
Figure 10. Soil improvement factors depending on area replacement ratio
By combining the geotextile encased columns with horizontal geotextile reinforce-
ment (loadtransfer mat) it is meanwhile possible to construct foundations in even
more difficult subsoil circumstances successfully. The effectiveness respectively the
settlement reduction can be forecasted with sufficient and high reliability if adequate
and aligned laboratory and field test are made.
References
Ghionna, V. and Jamiolkowski, M. (1981). Colonne di ghiaia. X Ciclo di confe-
renze dedicate ai problemi di meccanica dei terreni e ingegneria delle fonda-
zioni metodi di miglioramento dei terreni. Politecnico di Torino Ingegneria,
atti dellistituto di scienza delle costruzioni, n507.
Copyright ASCE 2005 Innovations in Grouting and Soil Improvement
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o
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s

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d
.
GSP 136 Innovations in Grouting and Soil Improvement
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Kempfert, H.-G. and Wallis, P. (1997). Geokunststoffummantelte Sandsulen - ein
neues Grndungsverfahren im Verkehrswegebau. Geotechnik Sonderheft zur
5. Informations- und Vortragsveranstaltung ber Kunststoffe in der
Geotechnik, Mnchen, Germany.
Kempfert, H.-G. (2003). Ground improvement methods with special emphasis on
column-type techniques. Int. Workshop on Geotechnics of Soft Soils-Theory
and Practice- SCMEP.
Raithel, M. (1999). Zum Trag- und Verformungsverhalten von
geokunststoffummantelten Sandsulen. Schriftenreihe Geotechnik,
Universitt Gesamthochschule Kassel, Heft 6, Kassel, Germany.
Raithel, M. and Kempfert, H.-G. (2000). Calculation Models for Dam Foundations
with Geotextile Coated Sand Columns. Proc. International Conference on
Geotechnical & Geological Engineering GeoEng 2000. Melbourne.
Raithel, M. and Kster, V. and Lindmark, A. (2004). Geotextile encased Columns -
a foundation system for earth structures, illustrated by a dyke project for a
works extension in Hamburg. Nordic Geotechnical Meeting NGM 2004,
Ystad, Sweden.
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