Location
Chicago, Illinois
Date
02 May 2013, 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Abstract
Artificial Ground Freezing was used to provide temporary earth support and groundwater control for a complex system of three frozen earth cofferdams for the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewer District’s Harbor Siphons Project in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Site geometry and frozen earth structural design precluded construction of one large excavation, requiring the component system of the tangential cofferdams. High groundwater velocity prevented the formation of the frozen earth walls during various stages of the project. Remedial methods including external dewatering, permeation grouting, jet grouting, timber shoring and sheet piling were attempted to complete the project. Ultimately a more aggressive ground freezing program was implemented and the project was successfully excavated. The design of the ground freezing system is presented, as well as the difficulties encountered with the high ground water velocity and its impact on freezing. The failed remedial approaches are discussed in detail, including lessons learned. A description of the aggressive ground freezing approach is included as it was the final solution to a complex problem of site geometry and unexpected groundwater conditions.
Department(s)
Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering
Meeting Name
7th Conference of the International Conference on Case Histories in Geotechnical Engineering
Publisher
Missouri University of Science and Technology
Document Version
Final Version
Rights
© 2013 Missouri University of Science and Technology, All rights reserved.
Creative Commons Licensing
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Document Type
Article - Conference proceedings
File Type
text
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Sopko, Joseph A. and Chamberland, Robert, "Remediation of Distressed Frozen Earth Cofferdams" (2013). International Conference on Case Histories in Geotechnical Engineering. 55.
https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/icchge/7icchge/session03/55
Remediation of Distressed Frozen Earth Cofferdams
Chicago, Illinois
Artificial Ground Freezing was used to provide temporary earth support and groundwater control for a complex system of three frozen earth cofferdams for the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewer District’s Harbor Siphons Project in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Site geometry and frozen earth structural design precluded construction of one large excavation, requiring the component system of the tangential cofferdams. High groundwater velocity prevented the formation of the frozen earth walls during various stages of the project. Remedial methods including external dewatering, permeation grouting, jet grouting, timber shoring and sheet piling were attempted to complete the project. Ultimately a more aggressive ground freezing program was implemented and the project was successfully excavated. The design of the ground freezing system is presented, as well as the difficulties encountered with the high ground water velocity and its impact on freezing. The failed remedial approaches are discussed in detail, including lessons learned. A description of the aggressive ground freezing approach is included as it was the final solution to a complex problem of site geometry and unexpected groundwater conditions.
