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This webinar was co-sponsored by ASCE's Geo-Institute (G-I) and ASCE Continuing Education

Instructor:  Robert M. Koerner, Ph.D., P.E., Dist. M.ASCE

Course Length: 1.5 Hours

Purpose and Background

Originally, one meter diameter soil filled fabric tubes were used to provide slope stability but several fabric manufacturers soon developed factory fabricated tubes of ever increasing sizes and lengths. With their ability to remain stationary when filled with slurried sand, coastal erosion control became a major application. Beach sand was hydraulically pumped into the fabric tubes thereby forming considerable resistance to waves and their accompanying destructive erosion. This technology is now commonplace and the fabric details and its engineering design are presented in this webinar. The transition into pumping the fabric tubes with fine-grained river and harbor sediments (which may or may not be polluted) is more recent. The major impediment to the dewatering of such infilled silt and clay sediments is the formation of a relatively impermeable filter cake on the inside of the fabric. In order to mitigate its adverse permeability effects, a coagulant is used to flocculate the fines and allow for enhanced dewatering. The final stabilized soil within the geotextile tube is then disposed of in an environmentally acceptable manner; usually in a landfill. This aspect of geotextile tubes will be described accordingly and it leads directly to the present application of decontamination of the effluent water as well as the dewatering of it. Various additives (such as activated carbon, charcoal and phosphoric rock) are discussed along with hypothetical examples which brings the technology to its present status.

Primary Discussion Topics

• Concept of Geotextile Tubes and Their Historical Development
• Applications of Beach Erosion Prevention, Dewatering of River and Harbor Sediments, and Decontamination of Contaminated Infilled Materials
• Design Considerations for These Applications
• Present Status of Applications, Design and Performance
• Conclusions and Recommendations

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Identify the concept and background of geotextile tubes
• Identify coastal erosion prevention applications
• Identify river and harbor dewatering applications
• Identify polluted sediment decontamination applications
• Identify geotextile tube designs, test methods and specifications
• Identify various coagulants and decontaminates
• Identify recommended research and development needs

Webinar Benefits

• Understand the technological advancement of geotextile tubes
• Appreciate the distinct categories of beach erosion prevention, sediment dewatering and polluted material decontamination
• Understand the major design issues with respect to geotextile tubes
• Understand the relevant test methods and specifications
• Appreciate that the technology is still advancing with respect to fabrics, material enhancement and new applications

Assessment of Learning Outcomes

Students' achievement of the learning outcomes will be assessed via a short post-assessment (true-false, multiple choice and fill in the blank questions).

Intended Audience

• Federal, state and regional geotechnical, hydraulic and materials engineers
• Engineers serving municipal districts and townships
• Private and municipal owners of all types of river and harbor systems
• Private owners of waste sludges in need of disposal
• Private and public owners of materials in need of decontamination
• General engineering consulting engineers
• Soils and geosynthetics testing laboratories servicing these organizations
• Manufacturers and representatives of geotextiles
• Contractors and installers servicing these applications
• Academic and research groups
• Others desiring technically related information on this important aspect of our infrastructure system

Webinar Outline

• Concept and Background of Geotextile Tubes
• Applications of Erosion Control, Dewatering and Decontamination
• Design Considerations for Above Applications
• Coagulants and Decontamination Additives
• Summary and Recommendations

How to Earn your CEUs/PDHs and Receive Your Certificate of Completion

To receive your certificate of completion, you will need to complete a short on-line post-test and receive a passing score of 70% or higher within 1 year of purchasing the course.

How do I convert CEUs to PDHs?

1.0 CEU = 10 PDHs [Example: 0.1 CEU = 1 PDH]