An Introduction to Geotextiles for Soil Wall Reinforcement

J. Paul Guyer, P.E., R.A., Fellow ASCE, Fellow AEI

Course Outline

1.  INTRODUCTION
2.  ADVANTAGES OF GEOTEXTILE-REINFORCED WALLS
3. DISADVANTAGES OF GEOTEXTILE-REINFORCED WALLS
4.  USES
5. GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS
6.  PROPERTIES OF MATERIALS
7.  DESIGN METHOD
8.  DESIGN PROCEDURE
9.  REFERENCES

This course includes a multiple-choice quiz at the end, which is designed to enhance the understanding of the course materials.

Learning Objective

Upon completion of this course you will:

• Learn about the advantages of geotextile reinforced walls;
• Learn the disadvantages of geotextile reinforced walls;
• Learn the recommended properties of retained soils in geotextile reinforced walls;
• Learn how backfill soil has a direct effect on the external stability of the wall;
• Learn the design method recommended for retaining walls reinforced with geotextiles developed by the U.S. Forest Service;
• Learn how to calculate the lateral earth pressure at any depth below the top of the wall;
• Learn how to calculate lateral pressures from live loads for a point load acting on the surface of the backfill; and
• Learn why freedraining granular materials should be used as retained soil.

Intended Audience

This course is intended for civil and geotechnical engineers and other design and construction professionals wanting to learn how to design soil walls with geotextile reinforcement.

Benefit for Attendee

This course will give design and construction professionals an introduction to material specifications and design methods to employ when designing geotextile reinforced soil walls.

Course Introduction

This course provides introductory information about soil walls reinforced with geotextiles.

About Course Author

Paul Guyer is a registered mechanical engineer, civil engineer, fire protection engineer and architect with over 35 years experience in the design of buildings and related infrastructure.  For an additional 9 years he was a senior-level advisor to the California Legislature on infrastructure and capital outlay issues.  He has designed and supervised the design of hundreds of construction projects requiring the preparation of detailed working drawings and specifications for federal, state and local public agencies and private companies.  He is a graduate of Stanford University and has held numerous national, state and local positions with the American Society of Civil Engineers and National Society of Professional Engineers.

Course Content

The course content is contained in the following PDF file:

An Introduction to Geotextiles for Soil Wall Reinforcement

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Course Summary

This course will give you professional tools that will help you to understand the technical and design considerations to use when employing geotextile reinforcement in soil walls.

Quiz

Once you finish studying the above course content, you need to take a quiz to obtain the PDH credits.

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DISCLAIMER: The materials contained in the online course are not intended as a representation or warranty on the part of PDH Center or any other person/organization named herein. The materials are for general information only. They are not a substitute for competent professional advice. Application of this information to a specific project should be reviewed by a registered architect and/or professional engineer/surveyor. Anyone making use of the information set forth herein does so at their own risk and assumes any and all resulting liability arising therefrom.

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