Hydraulic Fill Manual: For Dredging and Reclamation Works

Without proper hydraulic fill and suitable specialised equipment, many major infrastructure projects such as ports, airports, roads, industrial or housing projects could not be realised. Yet comprehensive information about hydraulic fill is difficult to find. This thoroughly researched book, written by noted experts, takes the reader step-by-step through the complex development of a hydraulic fill project. Up-to-date and in-depth, this manual will enable the client and his consultant to understand and properly plan a reclamation project. It provides adequate guidelines for design and quality control and allows the contractor to work within known and generally accepted guidelines and reasonable specifications. The ultimate goal is to create better-designed, more adequately specified and less costly hydraulic fill projects. The Hydraulic Fill Manual covers a range of topics such as: • The development cycle of a hydraulic fill project • How technical data are acquired and applied • The construction methods applicable to a wide variety of equipment and soil conditions, the capabilities of dredging equipment and the techniques of soil improvement • How to assess the potentials of a borrow pit • Essential environment assessment issues • The design of the hydraulic fill mass, including the boundary conditions for the design, effects of the design on its surroundings, the strength and stiffness of the fill mass, density, sensitivity to liquefaction, design considerations for special fill material such as silts, clays and carbonate sands, problematic subsoils and natural hazards • Quality control and monitoring of the fill mass and its behaviour after construction. This manual is of particular interest to clients, consultants, planning and consenting authorities, environmental advisors, contractors and civil, geotechnical, hydraulic and coastal engineers involved in dredging and land reclamation projects.

Table of Contents:
Preface Acknowledgements Notation Abbreviations 1 Introduction to the manual 1.1 Land reclamation by hydraulic filling 1.2 History and prospects 1.3 Context and objectives 1.4 Design philosophy 1.5 Structure, content and use 2 Project initiation 2.1 General 2.2 Basic elements of a land reclamation project 2.2.1 Conceptual design 2.2.2 Availability of fill sources 2.2.3 Data collection 2.2.4 Environmental requirements 2.2.5 Feasibility study 2.2.6 Initial project planning 2.2.7 Legal aspects 2.2.8 Types of contracts 2.3 Design 2.3.1 Design phases 2.4 Considerations for selecting construction method 2.5 Systems Engineering 3 Data collection 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Interpretation of data, contractual aspects 3.3 Desk study 3.4 Required data 3.4.1 Bathymetrical or topographical data 3.4.2 Geological and geotechnical information 3.4.2.1 Geological and geotechnical information in the borrow area 3.4.2.2 Geological and geotechnical information of the subsoil in the reclamation area 3.4.3 Hydraulic, meteorological, morphological and environmental data 3.4.3.1 Hydraulic data 3.4.3.2 Meteorological data 3.4.3.3 Morphological and environmental data 3.4.4 Seabed obstructions 3.5 Typical sand search site investigation 3.6 Reporting 3.6.1 Soil and rock classification and description 3.6.2 Soil classification based on CPT measurements 3.7 Use of data during different project stages 3.8 Geostatistical methods 3.8.1 General 3.8.2 Methods 3.8.3 Geostatistical software 4 Dredging equipment 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Dredging equipment 4.2.1 Suction dredging 4.2.2 Mechanical dredging 4.2.3 Other types of equipment 4.2.4 Combinations of equipment or dredge chains 4.3 Operational limitations 4.3.1 Waves and swell 4.3.2 Currents 4.3.3 Hindrance to shipping and other parties 4.3.4 Environmentally driven limitations 4.4 Dredging of fill material 4.4.1 Introduction 4.4.2 Volume and dimensions of borrow area 4.4.3 Minimum thickness of fill deposits 4.4.4 Dredgeability 4.5 Transport of fill 4.5.1 Introduction 4.5.2 Hydraulic transport through a pipeline 4.5.3 Transport by trailing suction hopper dredger or barge 4.6 Utilisation characteristics of dredging equipment 4.7 Basis of cost calculation for dredging 5 Selection borrow area 5.1 Considerations for the selection of a borrow area 5.2 Quality of the potential fill material 5.2.1 Change of the grading as a result of dredging 5.2.2 Alternative fill materials 5.3 Data collection in the borrow area 5.3.1 Data collection for quality assessment 5.3.2 Data collection for quantity assessment 5.3.3 Data collection for dredgeability assessment 5.4 Quantity of fill material available 5.4.1 Bulking 5.4.2 Losses 5.4.3 Slope stability 5.4.4 Geo-statistical methods 5.5 Boundary conditions 6 Planning and construction methods reclamation 6.1 Planning of the works 6.1.1 Introduction 6.1.2 Work preparation 6.1.2.1 Establishment of project team 6.1.2.2 Provision of housing and offices for personnel 6.1.2.3 Execution of engineering works 6.1.2.4 Create access to site and development of lay-down areas 6.1.2.5 Preparation and mobilization of equipment 6.1.3 Construction and monitoring 6.1.4 Demobilisation, clean-up and maintenance 6.1.5 Example of a project schedule 6.2 Work plan for reclamation works 6.3 Placement methods 6.4 Construction of containment bunds 6.4.1 General 6.4.2 Methods of bund construction 6.5 Placement of fill material 6.5.1 Underwater placement in bulk of fill material 6.5.2 Placement of fill material using a discharge pipeline 6.5.3 Rainbowing 6.5.4 Spraying 6.6 Fill mass properties related to method of placement 6.7 Management of poor quality materials 6.7.1 Use of cohesive or fine grained materials 6.7.2 Settling ponds 7 Ground improvement 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Benefits of ground improvement 7.3 Overview of ground improvement techniques 7.4 Pre-loading with or without vertical drains 7.4.1 Purpose and principle of pre-loading 7.4.2 Vertical drains 7.5 Compaction 7.5.1 Introduction 7.5.2 Vibratory surface compaction 7.5.3 Deep vibratory compaction 7.5.3.1 General 7.5.3.2 Vibratory probes without jets 7.5.3.3 Vibroflotation 7.5.4 Dynamic compaction techniques 7.5.5 Explosive compaction 7.6 Soil replacement 7.6.1 Introduction 7.6.2 Soil removal and replacement 7.6.3 Stone columns 7.6.3.1 Purpose and principle 7.6.3.2 Execution of stone columns by the vibro-replacement technique 7.6.4 Sand compaction piles (closed end casing) 7.6.5 Geotextile encased columns 7.6.6 Dynamic replacement 7.7 Admixtures and in-situ soil mixing 8 Design of reclamation area 8.1 Design philosophy 8.2 Basic mass properties 8.2.1 Strength of fill mass: Bearing capacity and slope stability 8.2.2 Stiffness of fill mass: Settlements, horizontal deformations and tolerances 8.2.3 Density of the fill mass and subsoil: Resistance against liquefaction 8.2.4 Permeability of fill mass: Drainage capacity 8.2.5 Platform level: Safety against flooding and erosion 8.3 Density 8.3.1 Definition of key parameters 8.3.2 Density ratios 8.3.3 The use of densities or density ratios in specifications 8.3.4 Effect of grain size distribution on the density of a soil sample 8.3.5 Density measurement 8.3.5.1 Measurement of reference densities (minimum and maximum density) 8.3.5.2 Direct measurement of in situ density 8.3.5.3 Indirect measurement of relative density by cone penetration testing 8.3.5.4 Indirect measurement of relative density by SPT testing 8.3.5.5 Measurement of in situ state parameter ψ by cone penetration testing 8.3.6 Typical relative density values of hydraulic fill before compaction 8.4 Strength of the fill mass and subsoil (bearing capacity and slope stability) 8.4.1 Introduction 8.4.2 Shear strength 8.4.2.1 High quality fill material 8.4.2.2 Poor quality fill material 8.4.2.3 Assessment of shear strength 8.4.3 Relevant failure modes 8.4.3.1 Introduction 8.4.3.2 Safety approach 8.4.3.3 Analytical calculation models versus Finite Element Method (FEM) 8.4.3.4 Bearing capacity 8.4.3.5 Punch through 8.4.3.6 Squeezing 8.4.3.7 Slope stability of fill and subsoil 8.4.3.7.1 Design methods 8.4.3.7.2 Limit Equilibrium Methods 8.4.3.7.3 Finite Element Method 8.4.3.8 Construction of a slope on soft soil 8.4.3.9 Effect of groundwater flow on slope stability 8.4.3.10 Earthquakes and slope stability 8.4.3.11 Stabilising measures for slope stability 8.4.3.11.1 Optimizing the slope geometry by using counterweight berms 8.4.3.11.2 Staged construction 8.4.3.11.3 Soil replacement (sand key) 8.4.3.11.4 Stone columns, sand compaction piles 8.4.3.11.5 Geosynthetics 8.5 Stiffness and deformation 8.5.1 Introduction 8.5.2 Stiffness 8.5.2.1 General considerations 8.5.2.2 Stiffness of subsoil 8.5.2.3 Stiffness of fill material 8.5.3 Deformations 8.5.3.1 General considerations 8.5.3.2 Settlement calculation methods 8.5.3.3 Additional considerations 8.5.3.4 Vertical deformation of a reclamation surface 8.5.3.5 Vertical deformations of structures 8.5.3.6 Horizontal deformations 8.5.4 Techniques for limiting settlement 8.6 Liquefaction and earthquakes 8.6.1 Overview 8.6.2 History of understanding 8.6.3 Flow slides versus Cyclic softening 8.6.4 Assessing liquefaction susceptibility 8.6.4.1 Codes & Standards 8.6.4.2 Loading: Estimating CSR by site response analysis 8.6.4.3 Resistance, Step 1: Susceptibility to large deformations 8.6.4.4 Resistance, Step 2: Evaluation of CRR 8.6.5 Movements caused by liquefaction 8.6.5.1 Slope deformations 8.6.5.2 Lateral spreads 8.6.5.3 Settlements 8.6.6 Fill characterization for liquefaction assessment 8.6.6.1 Necessity for in situ tests 8.6.6.2 Required number of CPT soundings 8.6.6.3 CPT calibration 8.6.6.4 Supporting laboratory data 8.6.7 Note on soil type (Calcareous and other non-standard sands) 9 Special fill materials and problematic subsoils 9.1 Cohesive or fine-grained fill materials 9.1.1 Introduction 9.1.2 Segregation of fines 9.1.3 Soft clay or soft silt 9.1.3.1 Suitability of soft (organic) clay or silt as fill material 9.1.3.2 Workability of clay 9.1.3.3 Effects of winning method 9.1.3.4 Measures to improve the fill properties after disposal 9.1.3.5 Construction aspects of soft soils in case of application above the waterline 9.1.3.6 Construction aspects of soft soils in case of application below the waterline 9.1.4 Stiff clay or silt 9.2 Carbonate sand fill material 9.2.1 Introduction 9.2.2 Origin and composition of carbonate sands 9.2.3 Typical properties of carbonate sands 9.2.4 Mechanical behaviour of carbonate sands 9.2.5 The use of carbonate sand as fill 9.2.5.1 Typical behaviour during dredging and hydraulic transport 9.2.5.2 Cone Penetration and Standard Penetration testing in carbonate sands 9.2.5.3 Laboratory testing 9.2.5.4 Field compaction 9.3 Hydraulic rock fill 9.3.1 Introduction 9.3.2 Lump size 9.3.3 Compaction and measurement of compaction result 9.3.4 Grading 9.3.5 Fines 9.3.6 Wear and tear 9.3.7 Pumping distance during rock dredging 9.3.8 Specifications rock fill 9.4 Problematic subsoils 9.4.1 Sensitive clay 9.4.2 Peat 9.4.3 Glacial soils 9.4.4 Sabkha 9.4.5 Karst 9.4.6 Laterite 10 Other design items 10.1 Introduction 10.2 Drainage 10.2.1 Infiltration 10.2.2 Surface runoff 10.2.3 Artificial drainage systems 10.3 Wind erosion 10.4 Slope, bank and bed protection 10.5 Interaction between reclamation and civil works 10.5.1 General 10.5.2 Foundations 10.5.3 Construction sequence 10.5.4 Impact on existing structures 10.6 Earthquakes 10.7 Tsunamis 11 Monitoring and quality control 11.1 Introduction 11.2 Quality Control Plan 11.3 Monitoring and testing 11.3.1 Geometry 11.3.2 Fill material properties 11.3.2.1 Grain size distribution 11.3.2.2 Minimum and maximum dry densities 11.3.2.3 Mineralogy 11.3.3 Fill mass properties 11.3.3.1 Shear strength 11.3.3.2 Stiffness 11.3.3.3 Density, relative compaction and relative density 11.3.4 Environmental monitoring 12 Technical specifications 12.1 Introduction 12.2 Roles and responsibilities 12.3 Checklist project requirements 12.4 Commented examples of technical specifications 12.4.1 Introduction 12.4.2 Description of the works 12.4.3 Standards 12.4.4 Data collection (see Chapter 3) 12.4.5 Dredging equipment and working method (see Chapter 4) 12.4.6 Selection borrow area—quality fill material (see Chapter 5) 12.4.7 Construction methods reclamation area (see Chapter 6) 12.4.8 Environmental impact 12.4.9 Design of a land reclamation (see Chapter 8) 12.4.10 Ground improvement (see Chapter 7) 12.4.11 Special fill materials (see Chapter 9) 12.4.12 Other design aspects (see Chapter 10) 12.4.13 Monitoring and quality control (see Chapter 11) 12.4.13.1 Geometry 12.4.13.2 Testing fill material properties (see Section 11.3.2) 12.4.13.3 Testing fill mass properties (see Section 11.3.3) 12.4.13.4 Settlement monitoring (see Appendix B.5.3) 12.4.13.5 Performance testing 12.4.13.6 Reporting 12.4.13.7 Monitoring and Quality Control Program (see Section 11.2) Appendices A Equipment B Field and Laboratory Tests C Correlations and Correction Methods D Geotechnical Principles References

Review :
"There are many reference books and sources of information on dredging techniques and dredging equipment but very little has been written solely on planning, design and construction of land reclamation using hydraulic fill. This manual, a first of its kind, is an ideal reference for all involved in the development of such infrastructure projects. Written and reviewed by expert practitioners who have been involved in many such projects around the world, this manual provides a useful and practical overview and reference guide for clients, developers, consultants and contractors who are engaged in planning, design and construction of reclamation works. A lot of hard work has gone into the development and compilation of this manual. It is our pleasure to be able to recommend this document to all those involved in the civil engineering and dredging industries." Piet Besselink Executive Board Royal Haskoning DHV Payam Foroudi Global Technology Director, Ports and Maritime - Halcrow Group Ltd Jan de Nul Managing Director, Jan de Nul N.V. Ronald Paul Chief Operation Officer, Port of Rotterdam Authority Frank Verhoeven Member of the Board of Management, Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. Wim Vlasblom Professor, Emeritus Delft University of Technology "... incredibly comprehensive and there is certainly something here for anyone who comes in contact on whatever level with the demands of a land reclamation project ... combines the theoretical and the practical and is a must have for clients, consultants, engineers and other advisors aiming to create well-designed and less costly hydraulic fill projects. A long awaited and thoroughly researched manual that is destined to become a standard go-to reference work." -Terra et Aqua, Number 129, December 2012