Structural loads are transmitted through foundations to the underlying earth. In other
words, the failure of the foundations, and by extension of the super-structure, could be
because of the inability of the underlying soil to remain undeformed under the
superimposed load. Some factors such as the load eccentricity, the nature and
characteristics of the soil, the movement of the soil moisture, and the flow of the
subsoil water may account for the deformation of the soil that leads to the eventual
failure of the foundation and the structure. For example, clayey soil in a waterlogged
the environment is likely to have a weaker soil-bearing capacity than granular soil in dry
conditions.
Failures of structures may be attributable to, among others, the uneven settlement of
the soil, segmental collapse of the underlying soil due to subsoil tunnel erosion, and
the presence of a mass of organic matter that could constitute vulnerable areas of spot
failures. From empirical statistics, it is proven that most dam failures are caused by
subsoil or tunnel erosion that leads to soil pipping at the exit points, while buildings’
failures are majorly attributable to uneven settlement of the soil due to some varying
factors.
Therefore, reasonable proactive actions against failures should be primarily
geared towards preventing the uneven settlements of the subsoil and underground
erosion and their effects. Thus, the critical appropriateness of the use of geotextiles
and geomembranes to achieve the objective cannot be overemphasized. For example,
underground tunnel erosion could be prevented by the combined use of
geomembranes and geotextiles.
The geomembrane will elongate the subsoil flow net, thereby, cumulatively
depreciating the upward pore pressure along the flow which ultimately makes it
impossible for the upward pore pressure to pipe the soil particles at any point. This
may be achieved by installing the geomembrane to cover a portion of the dam and underneath the embankment up to a portion downstream of the dam
embankment that terminates at the toe-drain. The geotextile may be incorporated at
the toe drain section to filter out soil particles that might tend to migrate into it, thereby,
preventing erosion that could lead to failure.
The improvement of the soil-bearing capacity can be achieved with the deployment of
the appropriately selected geotextile to separate the underlying soil from the
foundation. The geotextile will not only confine the imported backfill materials upon it but can also evenly distribute the superimposed loads over the underlying soil, thus
preventing uneven settlement of the structure. The selection of the geomembrane and
geotextile is critically vital in achieving the structural stability and serviceability
objectives.
It may be noted that the quality of geomembranes and geotextiles determines the
achievability of the stated objectives. As professional engineers, we, at
Geomembrane Gabions & Geotextile Ltd imports only quality material

geomembranes, geogrids, geomats, erosion control blankets, waterproofing materials,
geo-drains, geobags, and geocells. Our price competitiveness and free offer of
technical services have earned us a very high return-rate of our customers estimated
at about 95%.
Contact us at Geomembrane Gabions & Geotextile Ltd at Kaduna – Nigeria. +234
703 784 5174, geotextilegabions2020@gmail.com

s for sale at
competitive prices. Our stock lines include gabions, renos, geotextiles,