Huesker launch Interaction Flexibility video

Huesker launch Interaction Flexibility video

Huesker have launched a new video that shows that interaction flexibility is just as important as tensile strength in selecting a geotextile.

Current scientific knowledge determines that the key properties of effective reinforcement are adequate tensile stiffness and tensile strength coupled with good interaction behaviour. The idea of “interaction flexibility” introduces a new property to consider.

The flexibility of the incorporated geogrid that has been shown to improve the interaction between soil and reinforcement.

"Interaction behaviour" is a general term denoting the capacity of a geogrid to take up and transfer forces from the soil. Yet, all previous conceptual frameworks have failed to give due attention to the impact of the flexural stiffness of the geotextile product on interaction.

Interaction flexibility means the combined ability of a reinforcement product, firstly, to achieve a strong bond with the soil through optimisation of the interlock properties and, secondly, to adapt flexibly to soil particles in order to prevent void formation.

The importance of this adaptability is described by C. Lackner in his PhD thesis (2012, Graz University of Technology):

"The interaction between soil and reinforcement is even stronger where the geogrid can adapt to the soil particles and thus prevent the formation of voids within the soil structure. In other words, the installation of very rigid geogrids can produce negative interaction effects."

The flexibility of a geogrid is easy to characterise by means of an existing test method, defined in ASTM D7748. Accordingly, flexural stiffness, measured in the unit "mg-cm", should be as low as possible.

Find out more about interaction flexibility in Huesker's new video.

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