01632150

Component

The service life of mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) walls depends on the corrosion rate of the metallic reinforcement used in their construction. The resistivity of the backfill aggregates needs to be measured accurately in order to realistically estimate the corrosion rate of the reinforcement. Resistivity testing is usually performed using the traditional soil box on the portion of the aggregates that passes a No. 10 sieve. For a more accurate characterization of coarse backfills, it is desirable to use the actual gradation of the materials. To accommodate this matter, resistivity boxes with dimensions that were double and quadruple of the original box were constructed. Tests were performed on the fines, fine sand, coarse sand, and gravel fractions of each material separately, in addition to three TxDOT standard gradations. From this study, it was concluded that using enlarged resistivity boxes is promising for measuring the resistivity of coarse aggregates. Test results demonstrated that the gradation and moisture content of the backfill significantly affect the measured resistivity. Further testing on a variety of materials has to be performed in order to create a standardized protocol.

This paper was sponsored by TRB committee AFS10 Standing Committee on Transportation Earthworks.

01618707

17-02123

English

10p

2017

Transportation Research Board 96th Annual Meeting

Digital/other

Figures; References; Tables

Aggregate gradation; Backfill soils; Corrosion; Electrical resistivity; Measurement; Mechanically stabilized earth; Moisture content; Service life

Geotechnology; Highways; Materials

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2017 Paper #17-02123

TRIS, TRB, ATRI

Dec 8 2016 10:46AM