Effect of Column Configuration on the Performance of Encased Stone Columns with Basal Geogrid Installed in Lithomargic Clay

Lithomargic clay is extensively found along the Konkan belt in peninsular India and serves as a foundation for most of the structures. The reduction in strength under saturated conditions makes this soil problematic causing a lot of engineering problems such as uneven settlements, erosion, slope failures, and foundation problems. This paper presents the effect of column configuration (i.e. equivalent number of columns with reduced diameter for the same surface area) on the performance of lithomargic clay reinforced with geogrid encased stone columns and basal geogrid layer. The investigations were performed both experimentally through small-scale models and through finite element analyses. The results were compared with the performance of lithomargic clay reinforced with ordinary and encased stone columns. A single geogrid encased stone column with a basal geogrid layer improved the load-carrying capacity of lithomargic clay by 180% while the percentage of increment in the case of a group of three geogrid encased stone column with basal geogrid layer having the same surface area was 210%. It was also observed that the geogrid encasement of stone columns reduced the maximum column bulging by 38%, whereas geogrid encased stone columns along with basal geogrid layer reduced the bulging by 82% compared to ordinary stone columns.