2-DIMENSIONAL ANALYSIS OF GEOSYNTHETIC TUBES

Geosynthetic tubes containing dredged material or mortar are considere d. A two-dimensional analysis of a cross section of the tube is carrie d out. The tube is modeled as a membrane with negligible weight and ex tensibility, resting on a rigid foundation and subjected to internal h ydrostatic pressure. Closed-form and approximate solutions for the cro ss-sectional shape and the circumferential tension are presented, depe nding on the ratio of the pressure head (at the bottom or top of the t ube) to the perimeter. An upper bound on the tension is obtained. Solu tions are also determined for tubes that are partially or fully submer ged in an external fluid, tubes that rest on a deformable foundation s uch as soil, acid the unsymmetric problem of tubes that act as a dike and are subjected to external fluid on one side. A deformable foundati on tends to cause the circumferential tension to increase, whereas ext ernal pressure tends to cause the tension to decrease.