CHARACTERISTICS OF TENSION ACTING ON THE SURFACE OF A GEOSYNTHETIC TUBE DURING DEFORMATION OF FOUNDATION AND WAVE ATTACK

Abstract

 Large-scale (1:1) and small-scale (1:10) experiments were carried out in order to clarify the characteristics of the tensile force acting on the surface of a geosynthetic tube. The observed relative axial tension was higher than the theoretically estimated tension, and the hypothesized inextensibility of the membrane was suspected to be the cause of the difference. Although an apparent increase in axial strain was observed during horizontal and upward deformations of the tube, the strain seemed to become saturated when the horizontal deformation was large. In the small-scale experiment, the tensile force showed some fluctuations that corresponded to the wave attack; other than that, visible deformation was not observed. Desirable safety factors for designing the tensile strength of a geosynthetic tube are discussed based on these findings.