Volume 35 (2013): Edizione 3 (September 2013)

Bottom ash from EC Gdańsk and dredged material taken from the mouth of The Vistula were mixed to form an engineering material used for dike construction. Mixtures with different bottom ash content were tested in laboratory to determine its basic physical and mechanical properties. The optimum bottom ash-dredged material mixture, built in the corps of the test dike, contains 70% of ash. The optimum bottom ash content in the mixture was chosen taking into account high internal friction angle, good compaction and reduced filtration coefficient. The maximum dry density of the mixtures was measured in Proctor test for the mixtures formed in laboratory and on samples taken from the test dike. Minimum and maximum void ratio were also determined.

Issues presented in this work relate to geotechnical problems that are specific to the mining areas. The paper discusses the methodology of mathematical and numerical modeling of these problems. Examples contained in the paper include: predicting the influence of mining exploitation on a detached building and evaluating the effectiveness of the building protection with the trench. Possible applications of numerical modeling as a tool to aid the continuous monitoring of the building state during the exploitation have also been discussed

This work discusses the fundamentals of designing deep excavation support by means of observational method. The effective tools for optimum designing with the use of the observational method are both inclinometric and geodetic monitoring, which provide data for the systematically updated calibration of the numerical computational model. The analysis included methods for selecting data for the design (by choosing the basic random variables), as well as methods for an on-going verification of the results of numeric calculations (e.g., MES) by way of measuring the structure displacement using geodetic and inclinometric techniques. The presented example shows the sensitivity analysis of the calculation model for a cantilever wall in non-cohesive soil; that analysis makes it possible to select the data to be later subject to calibration. The paper presents the results of measurements of a sheet pile wall displacement, carried out by means of inclinometric method and, simultaneously, two geodetic methods, successively with the deepening of the excavation. This work includes also critical comments regarding the usefulness of the obtained data, as well as practical aspects of taking measurement in the conditions of on-going construction works.

The Triple-Diffusive convection in Walters’ (Model B') fluid with varying gravity field is considered in the presence of uniform vertical magnetic field in porous medium. For the case of stationary convection, the magnetic field, varying gravity field and the stable solute gradients have stabilizing effects whereas the medium permeability has destabilizing (or stabilizing) effect on the system under certain conditions. A linear stability analysis theory and normal mode analysis method have been carried out to study the onset convection. The kinematic viscoelasticity has no effect on the stationary convection. The solute gradients, magnetic field, varying gravity field, porosity and kinematic viscoelasticity introduce oscillatory modes in the system, which were non-existent in their absence. The sufficient conditions for the non-existence of overstability are also obtained. The results are also shown graphically.

The de-icing salt has been used for decades to increase safety on the roads and sidewalks. In Poland, mainly the sodium chloride is used in order to maintain the roads in good condition during winter. Like other salts used for surface de-icing, it depresses the freezing point to lower temperatures and has an additional thermal effect by an exothermic reaction. However, this salt causes the accumulation of chlorides in the walls and stone buildings contributing to the deterioration of these facilities.

The paper addresses the issue of the influence of salt solutions on the structure and geomechanical properties of rocks at negative temperatures. The study was conducted on the basis of cyclic tests which simulate complex action of both the negative temperature and the salty environment. The conditions for the tests were chosen so as to reflect the actual conditions of the winter in Poland. During the tests, the longitudinal wave propagation velocity, changes in weights of the samples as well as visual changes were recorded which allowed continuous tracking of occurring changes. At the end of the tests, the rock samples were subjected to uniaxial compressive tests. For this purpose, four lithological types were chosen, representing the sedimentary rocks: clastic and carbonate, widely used in stone constructions.

We show that the global nonlinear stability threshold for convection in a couple-stress fluid with temperature and pressure dependent viscosity is exactly the same as the linear instability boundary. This optimal result is important because it shows that linearized instability theory has captured completely the physics of the onset of convection. It has also been found that the couplestress fluid is more stable than the ordinary viscous fluid and then the effect of couple-stress parameter (F) and variable dependent viscosity (Γ) on the onset of convection is also analyzed.