EFFECTIVENESS OF A TRAPEZOIDAL TRENCH FILLED WITH EPS GEOFOAM IN REDUCING THE PROPAGATION OF GROUND VIBRATIONS

Abstract

Structural and serviceability health of the buildings and infrastructure are facing challenging problems due to ground-born vibration from the surrounding environment. The vibration source and transmitting soil medium are the defining parameters of the ground-born vibration propagation and the surrounding environments and buildings will define the allowable limit of vibration. This full-scale field experimental study aims to examine the two primary goals. Firstly, the characteristic of the ground-born vibration propagations through soil medium and secondly, the effectiveness of the trench barrier in minimizing the impact of the ground-born vibration for both active and passive isolation systems. Introducing a wave barrier between the vibration source and structure to be protected has been considered a cost-effective and easily applicable solution to minimize the impact of ground-born vibrations. There is no field experimental data available on the effects of trapezoidal trenches filled with EPS geofoam to screen such ground-borne vibrations. This study aims to describe a series of field experiments conducted to examine the characteristics of ground-born vibrations, the open trapezoidal trench and the effect of a trapezoidal trench filled with EPS geofoam-filled trenches. Further, available findings in past studies were compared with the experimental findings results from the series of field experimental tests. The results obtained from the field tests ensured that the geofoamfilled trapezoidal trench could be used as a higher-forming isolation system for effectively minimizing the propagation of ground-borne vibrations.