Hillsborough County Florida is using a mix of expanding polyurethane foam and conventional cement grout as a more cost effective means of filling sinkholes. Officials say the mix uses 30 to 40% less grout adding up to a 30% cost savings. The article in the Tampa Tribune did not indicate the contractor or product name that they are using but apparently several agencies in California and other states are using the same material. Story via ASCE SmartBrief.
Available Resources
Ground penetrating radar being used to detect potential sinkholes around sewer pipes
When sewer pipes crack and leak, the surrounding ground becomes saturated and soil can migrate into the pipe and leave behind a void. Eventually this void can expand until it undermines the pavement or other […]
Failures
Subway Tunnel Collapse in Cologne Germany
Early indications are that a collapse of a subway tunnel station still under construction was to blame for the sinkhole that destroyed Cologne’s Historical Archive, home to documents dating back to 922 A.D. More info after the break. (Photo by DPA via Spiegel Online)
Geologic Hazards
Huge Sinkhole in Atacama Desert
A sinkhole approximately 32 meters in diameter and roughly 200 meters deep opened up in the Atacama Desert of Chile, near the Alcaparrosa copper mine at the beginning of August 2022. Anytime something like this […]