Case Studies

Soil-Bentonite Slurry Wall Installation North Lansing Landfill Lansing, MI

Project Summary

The landfill at North Lansing, MI needed to upgrade their facility in order to retain their operating permit. Prior to being licensed to receive solid waste, the site was a sand and gravel quarry. In 1974 the Michigan Department of Natural Resources granted the first license for solid waste disposal and in 1979 Lansing Board of Water and Light purchased the site to operate a Type III landfill for disposal of coal ash from their steam electric plants. Some of the ash had begun to slump out of the designated coal ash areas. To prevent any further contamination, Lansing Board of Water and Light selected the installation a 4,850 lf slurry wall that encompassed the entire ash landfill.

Geo-Solutions was initially hired by the Owner to help the Engineer evaluate construction alternatives and to formulate a contaminant-resistant blend of soil-bentonite (SB) for the barrier wall. The low fines content of the native sands and gravels was identified as a significant concern in the design mix testing. Geo-Solutions developed a cost-effective approach that produced a low permeability and contaminant-resistant SB backfill

When competitive bids were tendered, Geo-Solutions teamed with Envirocon to construct the SB slurry wall. Geo-Solutions services included personnel, specialty equipment, and materials. Geo-Solutions also provided full time supervisors and specialty equipment operators. In addition to performing all of the Quality Control testing and generating reports for the clients, our staff ensured the proper execution of the project. Specialty equipment that was used included Geo-Solutions custom long boom/stick excavator attachment for a Komatsu PC1250 with the capability to excavate up to 85 ft deep. We also provided a crane & clamshell excavator, slurry mixing plant, and piping. The hydraulic excavator was used to dig to its maximum depth, with the deepest excavation of up to 105 feet completed by the clamshell.

Difficult subsurface conditions were encountered when an unexpected layer of rock was discovered above the planned depth of the trench. The owner, contractor, and Geo-Solutions devised a cost-minimization plan that employed a large drop chisel to break through the rock and permit the project to proceed with minimal delay. The Owner and Contractor were pleased with the efforts of the construction team. The nine month project was completed with no recordable accidents or injuries.

Geo-Solutions Can Help

To download, read, and learn more about the various slurry wall sample specs and technical papers we offer online here at Geo-Solutions.com, click on the links below or to your left:

• Slurry Wall Sample Specs– Geo-Solutions provides slurry wall sample specs which can be modified for real world use on your project. Download sample specification for Slurry Wall Construction.

• Slurry Wall Technical Papers – Browse our library of Slurry Wall Technical Papers.

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