IR nr. 801, Polystyren foam fill, deflections - friction - impact

Abstract

Back in 1972 expanded polystyrene was first used in Norway as a lightweight fill material. In this case there was a severe settlement problem on a stretch of road between two bridges (ref. 2). The thickness of the polystyrene layer used was 1.0 m. Since then the use of polystyrene as a fill has grown and today layers of polystyrene up to 7.0 m thick have been projected for use in high road embankments where there are settlement problems in the subgrade. This project is concerned with: A: Surface deflections and stress/deformation levels in the polystyrene. B: Finding an approximate value for the friction factor for polystyrene. C: Estimating the resistance of the embankment to certain types of loading.