Dr. Peter Rankilor, a pioneer in the geosynthetic, geotextile and geomembrane industry was recently sentenced to 10 years in prison as a result of his January conviction on “indecent assault and incest” charges stemming from events between 1980 and 1996. The charges came in a Manchester, UK court on 24 different counts of serious sexual offences against children. Source: New Civil Engineer.
Available Resources
Geosynthetics Institute Webinar – Geosynthetics in Erosion Control
The estimated society cost of landslides in the U.S. is estimated at $2-5B and worldwide might even approach $10B. The percentage triggered by surface erosion is certainly a major contributor. While the mechanisms of soil […]
Project Related
Video: Sand Filled Geotextile Tubes To Protect Grand Isle Louisiana
In this ENR.com video, a US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) project to protect Grand Isle Louisiana from the erosional effects of a large storm surge is described. 5.7 miles of sand filled geotextile tubes or geotubes 30-ft in diameter are used to form the core of a dune along with a geotextile erosion apron held in place by anchor tubes. The design is aimed to prevent devastating erosion in the event that a large storm surge overtops the protective dunes. The sand is screened on site and mixed with water to form a slurry that is pumped into the tube. Once the tubes are in place, additional sand will be placed over the top and the dune revegetated. If the topping sand is eroded away, the Corps hopes the fix will be easier to perform with the tubes. Click through for the video.
Standards and Codes
ASTM Updates August 2009
Another busy month for ASTM with 66 new, revised or otherwise updated standards related to geotechnical and geological engineering (although not as busy as last month). A couple that caught my eye include brand new standards for geospatial data requirements related to abandoned mines, a new standard for sampling of EPS or geofoam, updated standards for mortar and cement, flexural strength of concrete, LA Abrasion test for aggregates, acceptance testing of geosynthetic clay liners, electrical methods for leak detection of geomembranes with earth cover and classification of soils and soil-aggregate mixtures for highway construction purpose (AASHTO classification).
Those involved in the materials testing side of the business should take a close look at the full list as there are also a number of updated standards relating to various asphalt and and aggregate tests, capping of concrete cyllinders and other related testing standards.
For my practice, perhaps the most significant standard that was updated was D 2488 – Standard Practice for Description and Identification of Soils (Visual-Manual Procedure) which we rely on for our field USCS classifications. I’ll be curious to see what those changes entail. Click through for the full list.