2010 NTPEP Report Series

Transcription

1 2010 NTPEP Report Series NTPEP Report LABORATORY EVALUATION OF GEOSYNTHETIC REINFORCEMENT FINAL PRODUCT QUALIFICATION REPORT FOR TENSAR UX-MSE / UX-HS GEOGRID PRODUCT LINE Report Issued: February 2010 Report Expiration Date: February 2013 Next Product Qualification Report: 2013 American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Executive Office: 444 North Capitol Street, NW, Suite 249 Washington, DC (t) (f) DOWNLOAD DATA FILES FOR THIS NTPEP NTPEP.org

2 2010 NTPEP Report Series National Transportation Product Evaluation Program (NTPEP) NTPEP Report LABORATORY EVALUATION OF GEOSYNTHETIC REINFORCEMENT 2007 PRODUCT SUBMISSIONS SAMPLED SEPTEMBER 2007 Laboratory Evaluation by: TRI/Environmental, Inc Bee Caves Road Austin, TX Product Line Manufactured by: Tensar International Corporation 5883 Glenridge Drive, Suite 200 Atlanta, GA Copyright 2009, by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). All Rights Reserved. Printed in the United States of America. This book or parts thereof, may not be reproduced without express written permission of the publisher. The report does not constitute an endorsement by AASHTO of the products contained herein. This report provides an original source of technical information to facilitate development of acceptability standards and is primarily intended for use by state and local transportation agencies. DOWNLOAD DATA FILES FOR THIS NTPEP NTPEP.org

3 PROLOGUE General Facts about NTPEP Reports: NTPEP Reports contain data collected according to laboratory testing and field evaluation protocols developed through consensus-based decision by the AASHTO s NTPEP Oversight Committee. These test and evaluation protocols are described in the Project Work Plan (see NTPEP website). Products are voluntarily submitted by manufacturers for testing by NTPEP. Testing fees are assessed from manufacturers to reimburse AASHTO member departments for conducting testing and to report results. AASHTO member departments provide a voluntary yearly contribution to support the administrative functions of NTPEP. AASHTO/NTPEP does not endorse any manufacturer s product over another. Use of certain proprietary products as primary products does not constitute endorsement of those products. AASHTO/NTPEP does not issue product approval or disapproval; rather, test data are furnished for the User to make judgment for product prequalification or approval for their transportation agency. Guidelines for Proper Use of NTPEP Results: The User is urged to carefully read any introductory notes at the beginning of this Report, and also to consider any special clauses, footnotes or conditions which may apply to any test reported herein. Any of these notes may be relevant to the proper use of NTPEP test data. The User of this Report must be sufficiently familiar with the product performance requirements and/or (standard) specification of their agency in order to determine which test data are relevant to meeting those qualifying factors. NTPEP test data is intended to be predictive of actual product performance. Where a transportation agency has successful historical experience with a given product, it is suggested to factor that precedence in granting or withholding product approval or prequalification. NTPEP Report Special Advisory for Geosynthetic Reinforcement (REGEO): This report contains product data that are intended to be applied to a product line, based on the test results obtained for specific products that are used to represent the product line for the purposes of NTPEP testing. It is expected that the User will estimate the properties of specific products in the line not specifically tested through interpolation or a lower or upper bound approach. It is intended that this data be used by the User to add products to their Qualified Products or Approved Products List, and/or to develop geosynthetic reinforcement strength design parameters in accordance with AASHTO, FHWA, or other widely accepted design specifications/guidelines. It is also intended that the User will conduct further, but limited, evaluation and testing of the products identified in this report for product acceptance purposes to verify product quality. Products included in this report must be resubmitted to NTPEP every three (3) years for a quality assurance evaluation and every six (6) years for a full qualification evaluation in accordance with the work plan. Hence, all product test results included in this Report supersede data provided in previous Editions of this report. The User is guided to read the document entitled Use and Application of NTPEP Geosynthetic Reinforcement Test Results (see NTPEP website) for instructions and background on how to apply the results of the data contained in this report. Tony Allen (Washington State DOT) Chairman, Geosynthetics Technical Committee Jim Curtis (New York State DOT) Vice Chairman, Geosynthetics Technical Committee

4 Table of Contents Executive Summary Product Line Description and Testing Strategy Product Description Product line Testing Approach Product Polymer, Geometry, and Manufacturing Information Product/Polymer Descriptors Geometric Properties of Geogrids Product Production Data and Manufacturing Quality Control Wide Width Tensile Strength Data Installation Damage Data (RF ID ) Installation Damage Data Provided by Manufacturer NTPEP Installation Damage Test Program Backfill Materials Used for NTPEP Installation Damage Full Scale Field Exposures Summary of NTPEP Installation Damage Test Results Estimating RF ID for Specific Soils or for Products not Tested Laboratory Installation Damage Test Results per ISO/EN Creep Rupture Data (RF CR ) Creep Rupture Data Provided by Manufacturer NTPEP Creep Rupture Test Program Baseline Tensile Strength Test Results for NTPEP Testing NTPEP Creep Rupture Test Results Statistical Quality Assurance Validation to Allow the Use of the Manufacturer Provided (i.e., Grandfather ) Creep Rupture Data Statistical Validation to Allow the Use of Composite Rupture Envelope for Product Line Validation of Shift Factors used for Accelerated Creep Rupture Tests Creep Rupture Envelope Development and Determination of RF CR Long-Term Durability Data (RF D ) Durability Test Program Durability Test Results Low Strain Creep Stiffness Data Low Strain Creep Stiffness Data Provided by Manufacturer Ultimate Tensile Test Results for Creep Stiffness (Grandfather Data) Creep Stiffness Test Results (Grandfather Data) Low Strain Creep Stiffness NTPEP Test Program Ultimate Tensile Test Results for NTPEP Creep Stiffness Test Program Creep Stiffness Test Results Appendix A: NTPEP Oversight Committee... A-1 Appendix B: Product Geometric and Production Details... B-1 B.1 Product Geometric Information... B-2 B.2 Product Production Information... B-9 B.3 Product Manufacturing Quality Control Program... B-9 Appendix C: Tensile Strength Detailed Test Results... C-1 Appendix D: Existing Installation Damage Detailed Test Results Provided by Manufacturer (Grandfather Data)... D-1 1

5 Appendix E: NTPEP Installation Damage Detailed QA Test Results to Verify Manufacturer Submitted Data...E-1 Appendix F: ISO/EN Laboratory Installation Damage Detailed Test Results...F-1 F.1 ISO/EN Laboratory Installation Damage Test Program...F-2 Appendix G: Existing Creep Rupture Detailed Test Results Provided by Manufacturer (Grandfather Data)... G-1 Appendix H: NTPEP Creep Rupture Detailed Test Results and Evaluations... H-1 Appendix I: Durability Detailed Test Results...I-1 Appendix J: Creep Stiffness Detailed Test Results... J-1 2

6 Tables Table 1-1. Product designations included in product line... 9 Table 3-1. Wide Width Tensile Strength, T ult, for the UX-MSE / UX-HS Product Line Table 4-1. Summary of UX-MSE / UX-HS installation damage tensile Test results submitted by manufacturer (i.e., grandfather data) Table 4-2. Measured RF ID for UX-MSE / UX-HS data submitted by manufacturer (i.e., grandfather data) Table 4-3. Independent installation damage testing required for NTPEP qualification Table 4-4. Summary of installation damage quality assurance tensile test results Table 4-5. Measured quality assurance RF ID in comparison to manufacturer submitted RF ID data Table 4-6. Summary of laboratory (ISO procedure) installation damage test results Table 5-1. Test parameters for real time (unaccelerated) and accelerated creep tests provided by the manufacturer (i.e., grandfather data ) on UX-MSE / UX-HS geogrids Table 5-2. Distribution of rupture times in creep tests provided by the manufacturer (i.e., grandfather data ) on UX-MSE / UX-HS geogrids Table 5-3. Roll specific rapid loading tensile strength (UTS) and associated strain for manufacturer submitted creep rupture data (i.e., grandfather data ) Table 5-4. Creep rupture results for UX-MSE / UX-HS geogrids for manufacturer submitted creep rupture data (i.e., grandfather data ) Table 5-5: Independent (NTPEP) Creep Rupture Testing Required for Qualification and Quality Assurance Table 5-6: Independent (NTPEP) Creep Rupture Testing Required for Qualification and Quality Assurance Table 5-7. Independent (NTPEP) roll specific rapid loading tensile strength (UTS) and associated strain for UX-MSE / UX-HS series geogrids Table 5-8. NTPEP creep rupture test results for quality assurance Table 5-9. RF CR values for MSE/HS series geogrids for a 75 yr period of loading/use Table 6-1. Independent durability testing required for NTPEP qualification Table 6-2. NTPEP durability test results for the UX-MSE / UX-HS geogrid product line and criteria to allow use of a default value for RF D Table 7-1. Ultimate tensile strength (UTS) Table 7-2. Summary of creep stiffness test results (grandfather data) Table 7-3. Ultimate tensile strength (UTS) and associated strain Table 7-4. Summary of creep stiffness test results Note: Appendix tables not listed here. 3

7 Figures Figure 1-1. Photo of UX1400MSE (machine direction is perpendicular to ruler shown) Figure 1-2. Photo of UX1500MSE (machine direction is perpendicular to ruler shown) Figure 1-3. Photo of UX1600MSE (machine direction is perpendicular to ruler shown) Figure 1-4. Photo of UX1700MSE (machine direction is perpendicular to ruler shown) Figure 4-1. Test soil grain size distributions for manufacturer submitted data (i.e., grandfather data) Figure 4-2. Installation damage Type 2 test aggregate used for manufacturer submitted installation damage data (i.e., grandfather data) Figure 4-3. Installation damage Type 3 test aggregate used for manufacturer submitted installation damage data (i.e., grandfather data) Figure 4-5. Test soil grain size distribution for NTPEP testing Figure 4-6. Installation damage Type 2 test aggregate, for NTPEP testing Figure 4-7. UX-MSE / UX-HS product line installation damage as a function of soil d 50 size (from grandfather data submitted by manufacturer and NTPEP data) Figure 4-8. UX-MSE / UX-HS Product Line Installation Damage as a function of product unit weight for Type 2 Soil (Sandy Gravel) from manufacturer submitted and NTPEP data Figure 4-9. UX-MSE / UX-HS Product Line Installation Damage as a function of product unit weight for Type 3 Soil (Silty Sand) from manufacturer submitted and NTPEP data Figure 5-1. Composite creep rupture data/envelope for the UX1400MSE/HS, UX1500MSE/HS and UX1600MSE/HS geogrid products Figure 5-2. Composite creep rupture data/envelope for the UX1700MSE/HS geogrid products.35 Figure 7-1. UX-MSE / UX-HS creep stiffness at approximately 2 % 1000 hours (grandfather data see Table 7-2 for actual strain levels at 1,000 hrs) Figure 7-2. NTPEP UX-MSE / UX-HS creep stiffness for 2 % 1000 hours, compared with Manufacturer supplied creep stiffness data Note: Appendix figures not listed here. 4

8 Executive Summary This test report provides data that can be used to characterize the short-term and long-term tensile strength the Tensar UX-MSE / UX-HS integrally formed structural high density polyethylene geogrid reinforcement product line using testing conducted on representative products within the product line. The purpose of this report is to provide data for product qualification purposes. Existing test data provided by the manufacturer was evaluated at the beginning of this testing program to determine that data s eligibility for use under the NTPEP geosynthetic reinforcement work plan grandfather data clause. It was found that the available existing data did meet those requirements. Because of the availability of eligible existing data, product qualification data requirements were met through a combination of existing manufacturer supplied test data and independent NTPEP test data obtained to meet the product qualification test requirements and to meet the quality assurance requirements of the NTPEP work plan to verify the accuracy of the manufacturer submitted grandfather data. The NTPEP testing program for this Tensar UX- MSE and UX-HS product line was developed to make sure that the combination of manufacturer submitted data and newly obtained NTPEP test data meets the data requirements for product qualification. The test results contained herein were obtained in accordance with WSDOT Standard Practice T925 and the NTPEP work plan (see and can be used to determine the longterm strength of the geosynthetic reinforcement, including the long-term strength reduction factors RF ID, RF CR, and RF D, and also used to determine low strain creep stiffness values. All testing reported herein was performed on the materials tested in the direction of manufacture, i.e., the machine direction. Product Line Description: The product line evaluated includes the following specific integrally formed structural high density polyethylene geogrid reinforcement products: Tensar UX1400MSE/HS, UX1500MSE/HS, UX1600MSE/HS and UX1700MSE/HS This product line was represented through testing of UX1400MSE, UX1500MSE, UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE. UX1100MSE was also tested as part of this evaluation, but was later withdrawn by the manufacturer. UX-MSE and UX-HS geogrids are two styles of geogrids which differ only in dimensional tolerances specific to the cross bar location and orientation. Geogrid products meeting more stringent tolerance criteria are removed from the HS series production and segregated into the MSE inventory. Still, the production process itself remains the same for both types and it is this aspect of same production parameters that enables both styles to be considered one type of product, described as high strength punched drawn high density polyethylene geogrids. Samples of these five products were taken by an independent sampler on behalf of NTPEP in September 2007 at the Tensar manufacturing plant located in Morrow, GA. Grandfather Data Adequacy: Regarding installation damage, the data submitted by the manufacturer used less durable aggregate than is used currently (See Appendix D for photos and a description of the previous and new installation damage backfill materials). NTPEP quality assurance testing verified that the manufacturer submitted installation damage data could be used 5

9 to meet NTPEP qualification testing requirements. See Section 4.4 and Table 4-6 regarding the validation of the use of the manufacturer submitted installation damage data for the product qualification evaluation. Regarding creep rupture, the data submitted by the manufacturer was adequate to meet qualification test program requirements, except that additional creep testing of UX1700MSE was required to meet the requirements of a NTPEP qualification product line test program per the NTPEP work plan. Quality assurance creep tests conducted on behalf of NTPEP verified the accuracy of the manufacturer submitted creep data, allowing that data to be used to meet qualification data requirements. See Section and Figures H-9 and H-10 in Appendix H regarding the validation of the use of the manufacturer submitted creep rupture data for the product qualification evaluation. Regarding durability testing testing, the UV resistance and oxidation resistance data submitted by the manufacturer was adequate to meet qualification test program requirements, however Transverse Flexibility (WSDOT Test Method T926) test data from the manufacturer acceptable to meet the grandfather data requirements of the NTPEP work plan was not available. Quality assurance UV resistance, oxidation resistance tests and transverse flexibility qualification tests were conducted on behalf of NTPEP meet the requirements of the NTPEP work plan (see Section 6.2 and Tables I-1 and I-2 in Appendix I). Regarding creep stiffness testing, the data submitted by the manufacturer was adequate to meet qualification test program requirements per the NTPEP work plan. The quality assurance creep stiffness tests conducted on behalf of NTPEP did validate the accuracy of the manufacturer submitted creep stiffness data. See Section 7.6 and Appendix J regarding the validation of manufacturer s submitted creep stiffness data for the product qualification evaluation. Statistical Validation of Product Line: The creep rupture test results obtained were statistically evaluated in accordance with T925 to assess the validity of treating the products submitted as a single product line. The following was verified: i. Based on the available creep data for all the products tested, the product line submitted by the manufacturer, except for UX1700MSE, statistically qualifies to be a product line and can therefore be represented using test results from representative products in the product line (see Figures H-11 and H-12 in Appendix H for details). Therefore with respect to creep rupture, UX1700MSE is considered as a separate product family. Recommendations on application of the representative product data to the rest of the product line for installation damage, durability, and creep stiffness are provided in their respective report sections, and summarized below in this executive summary. Test Results for T ult : All wide width test results (ASTM D6637) obtained for this product line through the NTPEP testing were greater than the minimum average roll values (MARV s) provided by the manufacturer (see Table 3-1). 6

10 Test Results for RF ID : For the manufacturer submitted data, in which all four products in the UX-MSE line were tested, but only two soil gradations were considered at the manufacturer s request (Type 2 sandy gravel and Type 3 sand), installation damage testing on this product line resulted in values of RF ID that ranged as follows: RF ID = 1.02 to 1.12 The highest values of RF ID occurred when the sandy gravel gradation was used. Installation damage testing on UX1400MSE, UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE using gradation 2 (sandy gravel) conducted through the NTPEP test program for quality assurance purposes resulted in value of RF ID of 1.04 to The values of RF ID for all of the products tested did demonstrate a trend of decreasing RF ID as product unit weight increases that would allow interpolation of RF ID to products not tested. Therefore, interpolation of these test results to products in the line not tested is feasible. In general, as the test material gradation becomes more coarse, the value of RF ID increased. Therefore, interpolation of this data to intermediate gradations appears to be feasible. See Table 4-5 and Figures 4-7 through 4-9 for details. Laboratory installation damage test data in accordance with ISO/EN are also provided for future use in comparison to quality assurance testing (see Table 4-6). It should be noted that the installation damage strength retained and RF ID values provided in this report reflect good geosynthetic installation practices that will keep damage to the geosynthetic to a reasonable minimum. The spreading and compaction equipment used in the installation damage testing reflects typical tracked or moderate tire pressure equipment. Actual RF ID values could be higher if the spreading or compacting equipment tires or tracks are allowed to be in direct contact with the geosynthetic before or during fill placement and compaction, if the thickness of the fill material between the equipment tires or tracks is inadequate (especially for high tire pressure equipment such as dump trucks), or if excessive rutting of the first lift of soil over the geosynthetic (e.g., due to soft subgrade soil) is allowed to occur. Test Results for RF CR : The creep rupture testing conducted (i.e., both the manufacturer submitted data and the NTPEP generated creep data) indicates that the following value of RF CR may be used for UX1400MSE, UX1500MSE and UX1600MSE : RF CR = 2.59 The creep rupture testing conducted (i.e., both the manufacturer submitted data and the NTPEP generated creep data) indicates that the following value of RF CR may be used for UX1700MSE : RF CR = 2.63 These values of RF CR is applicable to a 75 year life at 68 o F (20 o C), and may be used to characterize the full product line as defined herein. See Figures 5-1 and 5-2 for detailed creep rupture envelope or to obtain values for other design lives. 7

11 Test Results for RF D : The chemical durability index testing results meet the requirements in WSDOT T925 to allow use of a default reduction factor for RF D. See Table 6-2 for specific test results, and see WSDOT T925 or the document entitled Use and Application of NTPEP Geosynthetic Reinforcement Test Results (see for recommended default reduction factors for RF D. The UV test results (ASTM D4355) for this product line, as represented by the lightest weight product in the line (i.e., UX1400MSE), indicate a strength retained at 500 hours in the weatherometer of 98%. This value of UV strength retained should be considered to be a lower bound value for the product line, for UX1400MSE or heavier products in the line. Regarding transverse flexibility (WSDOT T926), all products in the product line were tested and all passed the test. Test Results for Creep Stiffness: The 1000 hr, 2% strain secant stiffness (J 2%,1000hr ) test results ranged from 23,803 lb/ft for the lowest strength style to 69,570 lb/ft for the highest strength style. Due to the linear relationship between creep stiffness and the short-term tensile strength (T lot ), the 1000 hr, 2% strain secant stiffness can, thus, be reasonably expressed for any product in the product line as: J 2%,1000hr = (6.473*T lot ) Where, T lot is the roll/lot specific wide width tensile strength per ASTM D6637. See Table 7-4 and Figure 7-2 for details. Note that once the stiffness is determined from this equation, an equivalent MARV for this property can be determined by multiplying the stiffness by the ratio of T MARV /T lot. 8

12 1.0 Product Line Description and Testing Strategy 1.1 Product Description The UX-MSE / UX-HS family of geogrids are integrally formed punched, drawn uniaxial high density polyethylene geogrids. The product line evaluated consists of the products as manufactured by Tensar International Corporation listed in Table 1-1. Table 1-1. Product designations included in product line. UX-MSE and UX-HS Reinforcement Product Designations (i.e., Styles) UX1400MSE/HS UX1500MSE/HS UX1600MSE/HS UX1700MSE/HS Note: UX-MSE and UX-HS geogrids are two styles of geogrids which differ only in dimensional tolerances specific to the cross bar location and orientation. Geogrid products meeting more stringent tolerance criteria are removed from the HS series production and segregated into the MSE inventory. Still, the production process itself remains the same for both types and it is this aspect of same production parameters that enables both styles to be considered as one type of product, described as high strength punched drawn high density polyethylene geogrids. Since all the products are uniaxial geogrids, the scope of the evaluation is limited to the strength in the machine direction (MD). The cross-machine direction (XD) was not specifically evaluated. 1.2 Product line Testing Approach This product line was represented through testing and manufacturer submitted grandfather data of UX1400MSE, UX1500MSE, UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE. UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE were used as the primary products for product line characterization purposes (i.e., the baseline to which the other products were compared). Samples of these five products were taken by an independent sampler on behalf of NTPEP in September 2007 at the Tensar manufacturing plant located in Morrow, GA. Photographs of the five individual products actually tested are provided in figures 1-1 through

13 Figure 1-1. Photo of UX1400MSE (machine direction is perpendicular to ruler shown). Figure 1-2. Photo of UX1500MSE (machine direction is perpendicular to ruler shown). 10

14 Figure 1-3. Photo of UX1600MSE (machine direction is perpendicular to ruler shown). Figure 1-4. Photo of UX1700MSE (machine direction is perpendicular to ruler shown). 11

15 2.0 Product Polymer, Geometry, and Manufacturing Information 2.1 Product/Polymer Descriptors Polymer used in all UX-MSE / UX-HS geogrids is 100% high density polyethylene. Source of Resin is proprietary. UX-MSE and UX-HS geogrids are not coated. For the HDPE resin, key descriptors include primary resin/class/grade/category per ASTM D 1248 / D41010: o Resin is Type III / Class A / Grade 5 o % of regrind used in product: A small but unknown percentage of regrind is used. o % of post-consumer recycled material by weight: 0% 2.2 Geometric Properties of Geogrids Rib width, spacing, thickness, and product weight/unit area vary depending on geogrid style. While such data are generally not used for design, it can be useful for identification purposes, and to be able to detect any changes in the product. Measurements of geogrid rib spacing are also used to convert tensile test results (i.e., load at peak strength, T ult, and load at a specified strain to obtain stiffness, J) to a load per unit width value (i.e., lbs/ft or kn/m). Detailed measurement results, as well as the typical values supplied by the manufacturer for each product, are provided in Appendix B, Section B Product Production Data and Manufacturing Quality Control Geogrid roll sizes and weights, lot sizes, and a summary of the manufacturer s quality control program are provided in Appendix B, Sections B.2 and B.3. Such information can be useful in working with the manufacturer if product quality issues occur. 12

16 3.0 Wide Width Tensile Strength Data Minimum average roll values supplied by the manufacturer and test results obtained on the five products used to represent the product line in this NTPEP testing program are provided in Table 3-1. Wide width tensile tests were conducted in accordance with ASTM D6637. The measured geogrid dimensions discussed in Section 2 and provided in Appendix B, Section B.1, were used to convert test loads to load per unit width values. Note that the independently measured T ult values only indicate that the sampled products have a tensile strength that exceeds the Manufacturer s minimum average roll values (MARV s). As such, these independently measured T ult values should not be used directly for design purposes. However, these independently measured T ult test results have been used as roll specific tensile strengths for comparison to installation damage and creep test results. Detailed test results are provided in Appendix C. Table 3-1. Wide Width Tensile Strength, T ult, for the UX-MSE / UX-HS Product Line. Product Style/Type Test Method MARV for T ult, in MD (lb/ft) T ult, Independently Measured in MD (lb/ft) UX1400MSE ASTM D ,800 5,151* UX1500MSE ASTM D ,810 7,985* UX1600MSE ASTM D ,870 10,177* UX1700MSE ASTM D ,990 12,299* (Conversion: 1 lb/ft = kn/m) MD = machine direction *Average of 5 readings obtained during NTPEP testing. 13

17 4.0 Installation Damage Data (RF ID ) 4.1 Installation Damage Data Provided by Manufacturer The geogrid manufacturer provided installation damage data as allowed in the grandfather data clause of the NTPEP work plan as part of their 2005 submittal. All manufacturer supplied installation damage testing was conducted by TRI/Environmental, Inc. (Austin, TX) on the following dates: Sept UX1400, UX1500, UX1600 & UX1700 Installation Damage Test Procedures and Materials Used (Grandfather Data): Two standard soils were used for the field exposure of the geogrid samples to installation damage. Soil gradation curves for each soil are provided in Figure 4-1. Photographs of each soil illustrating particle angularity are provided in figures 4-2 and 4-3. LA Abrasion tests to characterize the durability of the backfill materials were not conducted, but based on visual inspection appeared to be marginal in meeting T925 requirements for the test aggregate. A detailed tabulation of each soil gradation is provided in Appendix D, Table D-1. Note that a different, more durable aggregate source is being used for the NTPEP testing. Test procedures used for the installation damage testing conformed with WSDOT T925, Appendix A. Baseline and exposed samples were taken from the same roll. The approach specifically used for applying installation damage to the geosynthetic samples that allows for exhumation of the test samples while avoiding unintended damage was initially developed by Watts and Brady 1 of the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) in the United Kingdom. The procedure generally conforms to T925 and ASTM D 5818 requirements. Since compaction typically occurs parallel to the face of retaining walls and the contour lines of slopes, the machine direction was placed perpendicular to the running direction of the compaction equipment. To initiate the exposure procedure, four steel plates each measuring 42- inches x 52-inches (1.07 m x 1.32 m), equipped with lifting chains, were placed on a flat clean surface of hardened limestone rock. The longer side of the plates is parallel to the running direction of the compaction equipment. A layer of soil/aggregate was then placed over the adjacent plates to an approximate compacted thickness of 8 inches (0.18 m). Next, each of four coupons of the tested geosynthetic sample was placed on the compacted soil over an area corresponding to an underlying steel plate. To complete the installation, the second layer of soil was placed over the coupons using spreading equipment and compacted to a thickness of 8 inches (0.18 m) using a vibratory compactor. The spreading equipment used included a wheeled front end loader and a 10,000 lb single drum vibratory roller with pneumatic rear wheels. The front end loader was allowed to spread the aggregate by driving over the geosynthetic with an 8 inch aggregate lift between the wheels and the geosynthetic. 1 G.R.A. Watts and K.C. Brady (1990), Site Damage trials on geotextiles, Geotextiles, Geomembranes and Related Produts, Balkema Rotterdam. 14

18 The following construction quality control measures were followed during exposure: Proctor and sieve analyses were performed on each soil/aggregate, when possible. (Proctors could not be performed on Gradations 1 and 2.) Lift thickness measurements were made after soil/aggregate compaction. When possible, moisture and density measurements were made on each lift using a nuclear density gage to confirm that densities >90% of modified Proctor (per ASTM D 1557) were being achieved. To exhume the geosynthetic, railroad ties were removed and one end of each plate was raised with lifting chains. After raising the plate to about 45 o, soil located near the bottom of the leaning plate was removed and, if necessary, the plate was struck with a sledgehammer to loosen the fill. The covering soil/aggregate was then carefully removed from the surface while rolling the geosynthetic away from the underlying soil/aggregate. This procedure assured a minimum of exhumation stress " 1.5" 3/4" 3/8" " Percent Finer Type 3 - Sand Type 2 - Sandy Gravel Grain Size (mm) Figure 4-1. Test soil grain size distributions for manufacturer submitted data (i.e., grandfather data). 15

19 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Figure 4-2. Installation damage Type 2 test aggregate used for manufacturer submitted installation damage data (i.e., grandfather data). Figure 4-3. Installation damage Type 3 test aggregate used for manufacturer submitted installation damage data (i.e., grandfather data). 16

20 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Installation Damage Test Results (Grandfather Data): The roll specific ultimate tensile strength (ASTM D6637) test results for the baseline, Tlot (i.e., undamaged tensile strength tested prior to sample installation in the ground) and the ultimate tensile strength of the installation damaged geogrid samples, Tdam, are provided in Table 4-1. RFID, calculated using the results shown in Table 4-1, are summarized in Table 4-2. Strength retained is calculated as the ratio of the average exhumed strength Tdam divided by the average baseline strength Tlot for the product sample. RFID is the inverse of the retained strength (i.e. 1 / = 1.12). Detailed test results for each specimen tested are provided in Appendix D, Tables D-2 through D-9. Table 4-1. Summary of UX-MSE / UX-HS installation damage tensile Test results submitted by manufacturer (i.e., grandfather data). UX-MSE UX-HS Style Backfill Type Gradation 2 (sandy gravel) Gradation 3 (silty sand) UX1400 UX1500 UX1600 UX1700 UX1400 UX1500 UX1600 UX1700 Baseline 1 Tlot (lb/ft) 4,966 7,992 9,794 12,280 4,966 7,992 9,794 12,280 Exhumed COV (%) Tdam (lb/ft) 4,451 7,509 9,110 11,526 4,560 7,777 9,642 11,965 COV (%) Average of 5 specimens. Average of 10 specimens. (Conversion: 1 lb/ft = kn/m) 2 Table 4-2. Measured RFID for UX-MSE / UX-HS data submitted by manufacturer (i.e., grandfather data). Tensar Style UX1400 UX1500 UX1600 UX1700 Mass / Area (oz./yd2) n/a n/a n/a n/a Gradation 2 (Sandy Gravel) Gradation 3 (Silty Sand) % Ret. RFID % Ret. RFID

21 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report 4.2 NTPEP Installation Damage Test Program New installation damage tests were conducted through NTPEP using quality assurance principles provided in the REGEO work plan to verify the accuracy of the installation damage data submitted by the manufacturer. Installation damage testing and interpretation were conducted in accordance with ASTM D5818 and WSDOT Standard Practice T925, Appendix A, except as noted herein. UX1400MSE, UX1600MSE & UX1700MSE were tested for installation damage and compared to the installation damage data provided by the manufacturer. Samples of the four products were exposed to one standard soil: a sandy gravel (soil Gradation 2). This soil was selected for this testing as it is the largest gradation tested in the grandfather data and is most likely to exhibit larger values of RFID and therefore provide the most severe test. Additional laboratory installation damage testing in accordance with ISO/EN was also conducted. The specific installation damage test program is summarized in Table 4-3. Table 4-3. Independent installation damage testing required for NTPEP qualification. Manufacturer: Tensar International PRODUCT Line: UX1400MSE/HS to UX1700MSE/HS Qualification (every 6 yrs) / QA (every 3 yrs) Products Tested Tests Conducted # of Tests (see Note 1) Qualification QA Index tensile tests on undamaged material (ASTM D 6637) - UX1400, UX1600, UX Three Field exposures, including soil characterization and compaction measurements (ASTM D5818) - UX1400, UX1600, UX1700 in Type 2 soil 4 Tensile tests on damaged specimens (ASTM D 6637) - UX1400, UX1600, UX1700 in Type 2 soil 4 N/A 5 Laboratory Installation UX1400, UX1500, Damage Testing as basis for UX1600 and UX1700 future QA (ISO/EN 10722) Note 1 Each test is performed using the number of specimens required by the test standard. For example, for index tensile testing, a test is defined 5 to 6 specimens. See the specific test procedures for details on this. 18

22 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report 4.3 Backfill Materials Used for NTPEP Installation Damage Full Scale Field Exposures One standard soil was used for the field exposure of the UX1400MSE, UX1600MSE & UX1700MSE samples to installation damage Soil Gradation 2 (sandy gravel). The soil gradation curve for this soil is provided in Figure 4-5. A photograph of Gradation 2 soil illustrating particle angularity is provided in Figure 4-6. LA Abrasion tests conducted to characterize the backfill materials indicted a maximum loss of 21%, which is well within the requirements stated in T925. Note that this soil is considerably more durable and therefore less likely to lose its sharp corners than the test soil used for the manufacturer submitted (i.e., grandfather ) installation damage data. The sample placement and exhumation procedures used were in conformance to WSDOT T925, Appendix A, and ASTM D5818. See Section 4.1 of this report for a description of the sample placement and exhumation process used. Photographs of the various stages of the installation damage field exposures are provided in Appendix E. A detailed tabulation of the soil gradation is also provided in Appendix E, Table E1. 3" 1.5" 3/4" 3/8" Sieves Percent Finer Type II D50 = 6.4 mm LA Abrasion Small (B, 500) = 21% loss Grain Size (mm) Figure 4-5. Test soil grain size distribution for NTPEP testing

23 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Figure 4-6. Installation damage Type 2 test aggregate, for NTPEP testing. 4.4 Summary of NTPEP Installation Damage Test Results The roll specific ultimate tensile strength (ASTM D6637) test results for the baseline, Tlot (i.e., undamaged tensile strength tested prior to sample installation in the ground) and the ultimate tensile strength of the installation damaged geogrid samples, Tdam, are provided in Table 4-4. RFID, calculated using the results shown in Table 4-4, are summarized in Table 4-5. Strength retained is calculated as the ratio of the average exhumed strength Tdam divided by the average baseline strength Tlot for the product sample. RFID is the inverse of the retained strength (i.e. 1 / = 1.12). Detailed test results for each specimen tested are provided in Appendix E, Tables E-2 through E-4. 20

24 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table 4-4. Summary of installation damage quality assurance tensile test results. Source of Test Data Manufacturer Submittal Grandfather Data NTPEP Test Program (QA Data) Backfill Type Style Type 2 Sandy Gravel Type 2 Sandy Gravel UX1400 UX1600 UX1700 UX1400 UX1600 UX1700 Baseline Exhumed 2 Tlot COV Tdam COV (lb/ft) (%) (lb/ft) (%) ,966 4, ,794 9,110 12, , ,151 4, , ,464 12, , Average of 5 specimens. Average of 10 specimens. (Conversion: 1 lb/ft = kn/m) 2 Table 4-5. Measured quality assurance RFID in comparison to manufacturer submitted RFID data. Source of Test Data Style Mass / Area (oz./yd2) Manufacturer Submittal Grandfather Data UX1400 UX1600 UX1700 UX1400 UX1600 UX1700 n/a n/a n/a NTPEP Test Program (QA Data) Type 1 Coarse Gravel % RFID Retained The quality assurance test results technically meet the T925 requirement that the maximum difference between the two means shall be no greater that what is defined as statistically insignificant based on a one-sided student-t distribution at a level of significance of 0.05 (see Table 4-4). Therefore the grandfathered data for the UX-MSE / UX-HS series meets the product qualification data requirements of T

25 4.5 Estimating RF ID for Specific Soils or for Products not Tested Since the quality assurance testing of UX1400MSE, UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE appears to verify the adequacy of the manufacturer submitted installation damage data (i.e., grandfather data ) in accordance with the criteria in T925, the manufacturer submitted data was used to provide a basis for estimating RF ID. In general, as the test material gradation becomes more coarse, the value of strength retained decreased (i.e., RF ID increased). Trend lines plotted in Figure 4-7 for the mean, upper bound and lower bound for all the installation damage data submitted for the product line (or obtained through the NTPEP QA testing) illustrate the general trend of the installation damage data with regard to soil d 50 size. Interpolation of this data to intermediate gradations appears to be feasible based on these test results, though the scatter in that trend should be recognized when estimating values of RF ID for specific soils Upper Bound UX1400 Strength Retained, P (%) Mean UX1500 UX1600 UX1700 Upper Lower Average 88 Lower Bound d 50 (mm) Note: RF ID = 1/P; d 50 = sieve size at which 50% of soil passes by weight Figure 4-7. UX-MSE / UX-HS product line installation damage as a function of soil d 50 size (from grandfather data submitted by manufacturer and NTPEP data). The UX-MSE / UX-HS product line did exhibit a moderately strong relationship between the mass/area of the product and the strength retained after installation damage (see figures 4-8 and 4-9), at least for soil gradation 2. Interpolation of these test results to products in the line not tested is feasible, however, it is not necessary since all the products in the product line were tested. Also note that mass/area values for each product for the grandfathered data (Table 4-2) were not available. Therefore, to create figures 4-8 and 4-9, measured mass/area values obtained from the NTPEP testing were used (Table B-4). 22

26 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report 97 y = 81.08x R2 = Strength Retained, P (%) Product Unit Weight, W (oz/yd ) Figure 4-8. UX-MSE / UX-HS Product Line Installation Damage as a function of product unit weight for Type 2 Soil (Sandy Gravel) from manufacturer submitted and NTPEP data. 99 Strength Retained, P (%) Pdmean at d50 of 0.03mm Pdmin at d50 of 0.03mm Product Unit Weight, W (oz/yd ) Figure 4-9. UX-MSE / UX-HS Product Line Installation Damage as a function of product unit weight for Type 3 Soil (Silty Sand) from manufacturer submitted and NTPEP data. 23

27 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report It should be noted that the installation damage strength retained and RFID values provided in this report reflect good geosynthetic installation practices that will keep damage to the geosynthetic to a reasonable minimum. The spreading and compaction equipment used in the installation damage testing reflects typical tracked or moderate tire pressure equipment. Actual RFID values could be higher if the spreading or compacting equipment tires or tracks are allowed to be in direct contact with the geosynthetic before or during fill placement and compaction, if the thickness of the fill material between the equipment tires or tracks is inadequate (especially for high tire pressure equipment such as dump trucks), or if excessive rutting of the first lift of soil over the geosynthetic (e.g., due to soft subgrade soil) is allowed to occur. 4.6 Laboratory Installation Damage Test Results per ISO/EN Laboratory Installation damage testing and interpretation was conducted in accordance with ISO/EN In this procedure, geosynthetic specimens are exposed to simulated installation stresses and abrasion using a standard backfill material in a bench scale device. Once exposed, they are tested for tensile strength to determine the retained strength after damage. Five baseline and five exposed specimens from each product were tested. The test results are summarized in Table 4-6. Detailed test results are provided in Appendix F, as well as a photograph of the test set-up and a close up of the standard backfill material used. This procedure is intended to be a reproducible index test to assess relative susceptibility of the geosynthetic to damage. In this NTPEP testing program, the results from this test are primarily intended to be used for future quality assurance to assess the consistency in the product s susceptibility to installation damage. It is not intended to be used directly in the determination of RFID for a given soil backfill gradation. Table 4-6. Summary of laboratory (ISO procedure) installation damage test results. UX-MSE UX-HS Style Mean Baseline Tensile Strength (lb/ft) UX1400 UX1500 UX1600 UX1700 5,401 8,523 10,435 12,719 Coefficient of Variation (%) Mean Exposed Tensile Strength (lb/ft) 1 4, , , ,130 (Conversion: 1 lb/ft = kn/m) 24 Coefficient of Variation (%) Strength Retained (%)

28 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report 5.0 Creep Rupture Data (RFCR) 5.1 Creep Rupture Data Provided by Manufacturer The geogrid manufacturer provided creep rupture data as allowed in the grandfather data clause of the NTPEP work plan as part of their 2007 submittal. All manufacturer supplied creep rupture testing was conducted by Tensar International Corporation Corporate Laboratory and provided in an in-house reported dated October 2005 with a last revision date of August Additional data was also provided in December 2006 and August UX1400, UX1500, UX1600 and UX1700 samples were creep rupture tested. Creep Rupture Test Procedures, Parameters, and Materials Used (Grandfather Data): With regard to the creep rupture data supplied by the manufacturer, creep rupture testing was conducted in accordance with ASTM D5262 and T925, Appendix B. The test parameters used are summarized in tables 5.1 and 5.2. Table 5-1. Test parameters for real time (unaccelerated) and accelerated creep tests provided by the manufacturer (i.e., grandfather data ) on UX-MSE / UX-HS geogrids. Product Style Real Time (Unaccelerated) Creep Tests Number of TemperLoad Levels Tests ature(s) Tested (%UTS) Conducted Tested UX o C 46.1 to 51.1 UX o C 50.6 to 55.0 UX o C 41.5 to 50.1 UX o C Accelerated Creep Tests Number of Tests Conducted Beginning Temperature Load Levels Tested (%UTS) 30o C 40o C 30o C 40o C 30o C 40o C 30o C 40o C 41.4 to to to to to to 42.3

29 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table 5-2. Distribution of rupture times in creep tests provided by the manufacturer (i.e., grandfather data ) on UX-MSE / UX-HS geogrids. Real Time (Unaccelerated) Creep Tests Accelerated Creep Tests Distribution of Rupture Times Product Style Test Temp. 10 to 100 hr 100 to 1,000 hr 1,000 hr to 10,000 hr > 10,000 hr UX o C UX o C UX1600* 20o C UX1700* 20o C Distribution of Rupture Times Ref. Temp. 30o C 40o C 30o C 40o C 30o C 40o C to 1,000 hr o C 40o C to 100 hr 1,000 hr to 10,000 hr > 10,000 hr * primary products Creep Rupture Test Results (Grandfather Data): The roll specific ultimate tensile strength (ASTM D6637) test results used for the baseline, Tlot, for the manufacturer submitted creep data are summarized in Table 5-3. Sample specific grid spacing measurements were taken to enable conversion of rib tensile strength values to a strength per unit width. These tensile strengths were used to normalize the creep loads to a percent of UTS. Table 5-3. Roll specific rapid loading tensile strength (UTS) and associated strain for manufacturer submitted creep rupture data (i.e., grandfather data ). Product Wide Width (Multirib) UTS per ASTM D6637, Tlot %) 11.76% UX % UX % UX % UX1700 (Conversion: 1 kn = lb, 1 lb/ft = kn/m) A total of 29 accelerated creep tests were run at temperatures of 30 and 40 degrees C to obtain accelerated creep strain and rupture data. This data augmented 10 real time (unaccelerated) creep tests performed on a range of UX-MSE / UX-HS Geogrids. Table 5-4 summarizes the tests performed and their outcomes. Detailed creep strain test results were not available as indicated in Appendix G. 26

30 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table 5-4. Creep rupture results for UX-MSE / UX-HS geogrids for manufacturer submitted creep rupture data (i.e., grandfather data ). Style & Test Type UX1400** UX1400** UX1400** UX1400* UX1400** UX1400* UX1400** UX1400** UX1400 UX1400* UX1600** UX1600* UX1600** UX1600** UX1600** UX1600* UX1600 UX1600 UX1600* UX1600** UX1600 UX1600* UX1600 Creep Actual Shifted Shift Load Time to Time to Factor (% of Rupture Rupture Tlot) (log hrs) (log hrs) Creep Actual Shifted Load Time to Time to Shift (% of Rupture Rupture Factor Tlot) (log hrs) (log hrs) UX1500** UX1500* UX UX Style & Test Type UX1700** UX1700** UX1700** UX1700** UX1700* UX1700** UX1700* UX1700 UX1700* UX1700* UX1700* *test run at 30C; ** test run at 40C 5.2 NTPEP Creep Rupture Test Program NTPEP creep testing and interpretation has been conducted in accordance with WSDOT Standard Practice T925, Appendix B. A baseline (i.e., reference) temperature of 68o F (20o C) was used. UX1700MSE did not meet the qualification requirements for family consistency in creep behavior as outlined in WSDOT Standard Practice T925 and the NTPEP work plan. Therefore, UX1700MSE/HS must be considered as a separate product family with respect to 27

31 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report creep rupture. The focus of this creep testing was to provide quality assurance data for comparison with the manufacturer submitted creep data for both product families. Both conventional (ASTM D5262) and accelerated conventional (ASTM D5262) creep tests were conducted. The creep rupture testing program is summarized in Tables 5-5 and 5-6. Table 5-5: Independent (NTPEP) Creep Rupture Testing Required for Qualification and Quality Assurance. Manufacturer: Tensar International PRODUCT Line: UX1400MSE/HS to UX1600MSE/HS Qualification (every 6 yrs) / QA (every 3 yrs) Products Tested Tests Conducted Index single rib tensile tests on lot specific material (ASTM D 6637) Index wide width tensile tests on lot specific material (ASTM D 6637) # of Tests (see Note 1) Qualification QA - NA 0 - UX PRIMARY PRODUCT 1 Rupture Point Conventional Creep 500 hrs UX (ASTM D5262) PRIMARY PRODUCT 3 Rupture Points at 100,000 hrs Accelerated Conventional None UX Creep rupture testing (SIM). (ASTM D5262) SECONDARY PRODUCT(S) Conventional Creep Testing None None 0 (ASTM D5262) SECONDARY PRODUCT(S) Accelerated Conventional Creep rupture None None 0 testing (SIM). (ASTM D5262) Note Each test is performed using the number of specimens required by the test standard. For 1: example, for index tensile testing, a test is defined 5 to 6 specimens. See the specific test procedures for details on this. 28

32 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table 5-6: Independent (NTPEP) Creep Rupture Testing Required for Qualification and Quality Assurance. Manufacturer: Tensar International PRODUCT Line: UX1700MSE/HS Qualification (every 6 yrs) / QA (every 3 yrs) Products Tested Tests Conducted Index single rib tensile tests on lot specific material (ASTM D 6637) Index wide width tensile tests on lot specific material (ASTM D 6637) PRIMARY PRODUCT 1 Rupture Point Conventional Creep testing (ASTM D5262) # of Tests (see Note 1) Qualification QA NA NA 0 UX1700 None 1 UX1700 None 1 PRIMARY PRODUCT 3 Rupture Points Accelerated Conventional Creep rupture UX1700 None 3 testing (SIM). (ASTM D5262) SECONDARY PRODUCT(S) Conventional Creep Testing None None 0 (ASTM D5262) SECONDARY PRODUCT(S) Accelerated Conventional Creep rupture None None 0 testing (SIM). (ASTM D5262) Note Each test is performed using the number of specimens required by the test standard. For 1: example, for index tensile testing, a test is defined 5 to 6 specimens. See the specific test procedures for details on this. 5.3 Baseline Tensile Strength Test Results for NTPEP Testing All creep testing for the conventional and accelerated conventional (ASTM D5262) creep tests were performed on multi-rib specimens, therefore it is not necessary to compare single-rib to multi-rib data. Roll specific, rapid loading tensile strength test results used with the NTPEP creep rupture data are provided in Table 5-7. The measured geogrid dimensions discussed in Section 2 and provided in Appendix B, Section B.1, were used to convert tensile test loads to load per unit width values. The rapid loading tensile test specimens tested were taken from the same rolls of material that were used for the creep testing. 29

33 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table 5-7. Independent (NTPEP) roll specific rapid loading tensile strength (UTS) and associated strain for UX-MSE / UX-HS series geogrids. Product Wide Width UTS per ASTM D6637, Tlot % Strain) UX1600MSE 11.3% UX1700MSE 11.9% (Conversion: 1 lb/ft = kn/m) 5.4 NTPEP Creep Rupture Test Results A total of 6 accelerated conventional creep tests and 2 conventional creep test were run to fulfill the quality assurance requirements. Table 5-8 summarize the tests performed and their outcomes. Detailed test results, including creep curves for each specimen tested, are provided in Appendix H, Figures H-1 through H-8. Table 5-8. NTPEP creep rupture test results for quality assurance. Style & Test Type Test Temperature (oc) Creep Load (% of Tlot) Actual Time to Rupture (log hrs) Accelerated Time to Rupture (log hrs)* UX Conv. UX Accel. UX Accel. UX Accel. UX Conv. UX Accel. UX Accel. UX Accel. * Accelerated creep tests were shifted based on an acceleration factor of 0.1 / oc 30 Shift Factor

34 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Statistical Quality Assurance Validation to Allow the Use of the Manufacturer Provided (i.e., Grandfather ) Creep Rupture Data The UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE creep test results were obtained to perform a QA check on the manufacturer submitted ( grandfather ) data for the primary products (UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE) to determine the acceptability of using the manufacturer submitted data to establish the composite creep curve for the product line. The QA checks of the UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE creep rupture data submitted by the manufacturer is shown in Figures H-9 and H-10. These figures illustrate that the 95% single-sided lower confidence limit per T925 is met by the test data. Details of the statistical QA evaluation conducted in accordance with T925 are contained in Appendix H. The primary product creep rupture quality assurance data for UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE satisfies the 95% single-sided lower confidence limit per T925 (see Figure H-9 and H-10). Thus, the manufacturer provided (i.e., grandfather ) data may be used with the NTPEP creep rupture test results to construct the characteristic creep rupture envelopes of the primary products, as well as the other products tested to complete a composite creep rupture curve for the two product families in the product line Statistical Validation to Allow the Use of Composite Rupture Envelope for Product Line Details of the confidence limits evaluation for the product line conducted in accordance with T925 are contained in Appendix H. Figures H-11 and H-12 provide plots of the creep rupture envelope with the confidence limits and the rupture envelopes for the primary product and the other tested products (i.e., the manufacturer supplied data UX1400MSE and UX1500MSE), illustrating this statistical test. Detailed calculation results for this statistical analysis are provided in tables H-4 and H-5, and summarized in Table H-3. The results indicate that the rupture envelopes for the UX1400MSE and UX1500MSE products are within the specified 90% confidence limits of the primary product (i.e., UX1600MSE) creep rupture data, meeting T925 requirements. However, UX1700MSE was not within the specified 90% confidence limits of the primary product (i.e., UX1600MSE) creep rupture data and must be considered as a separate product family with respect to creep rupture. Thus, two different composite creep rupture envelopes were constructed to represent the entire product line, the first containing UX1400MSE/HS, UX1500MSE/HS and UX1600MSE/HS and the second containing only UX1700MSE/HS. The calculation results for the statistical analysis and regression to create each full composite creep curve are provided in Tables H-6 and H-7. The complete composite creep rupture envelopes are provided in Figures 5-1 and Validation of Shift Factors used for Accelerated Creep Rupture Tests Details of the shift factor determination for the product line conducted in accordance with T925 are contained in Appendix H. Figures H-13 through H-18 provide plots of the creep rupture envelope before and after time shifting for the primary product in each product line. The first product line includes UX1400MSE, UX1500MSE, and UX1600MSE, and UX1600MSE is treated as the primary product. The other product line only consists of UX1700MSE and is therefore also the primary product for that product line. In both cases, 31

35 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report the primary product for the product line is used as the basis for the time shift factors to be used to relate the elevated temperature rupture points to the baseline temperature of 20oC (68oF). The manufacturer used the visual/graphical approach as described in WSDOT Standard Practice, T925, Appendix B to determine the best fit shift factors of x10 for 30oC and x100 for 40oC for UX1600MSE relative to the baseline temperature of 20oC. These shift factors were also used by the manufacturer for the other products in the product line. Evaluations were made as part of the NTPEP test plan to verify the best fit shift factors of x10 for 30oC and x100 for 40oC for UX1600MSE, as well as the other products in the product line. See figures H-13 and H-14 for the before and after time shift plots for the UX1600MSE product. Figures H-15 and H-16 show the before and after time shift plots for the composite creep envelope for the UX1400MSE to UX1600MSE product line. Although a slightly different shift factor might produce a better best fit for some of the products in the product line, the difference in the RFCR at 75 years would be minimal. Therefore the use of the best fit shift factors of x10 for 30oC and x100 for 40oC for all the products in the UX1400MSE to UX1600MSE product line is acceptable. Similarly, for the UX1700MSE product line, The manufacturer used the visual/graphical approach as described in WSDOT Standard Practice, T925, Appendix B to determine the best fit shift factors of x10 for 30oC and x100 for 40oC relative to the baseline temperature of 20oC. Evaluations were made as part of the NTPEP test plan to verify the best fit shift factors of x10 for 30oC and x100 for 40oC for UX1700MSE. See figures H-17 and H-18 for the before and after time shift plots for the UX1700MSE product. Although a slightly different shift factor might produce a better best fit for some of the products in the product line, the difference in the RFCR at 75 years would be minimal. It should be noted that there were only two UX1700MSE baseline temperature (i.e., 20oC) creep rupture results, which does not meet T925 (Appendix B) requirements that at least 4 rupture points per temperature be obtained to be able to conduct block shifting of elevated temperature data. Unfortunately, the NTPEP test program was set up assuming that all five Tensar products would be in one product line. The need to split the UX1700MSE off into its own product line as far as the creep response analysis is concerned was discovered very late in the evaluation process. To avoid further delays to the completion of the evaluation, it was decided to rely of the consistency of the shift factors observed for the all of the Tensar products evaluated as part of the NTPEP program. As can be seen in Figure H-18, the two rupture points obtained at the baseline temperature of 20oC line up quite well with the 30oC and 40oC rupture points after time shifting by x10 and x100, respectively, for the UX1700MSE. Therefore the use of the best fit shift factors of x10 for 30oC and x100 for 40oC for the UX1700MSE products, while not as rigorously assessed as was done for the other Tensar products (i.e. UX1400MSE, UX1500MSE, and UX16000MSE), was considered to provide adequate accuracy for the determination of RFCR for the UX1700MSE product. 32

36 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report 5.5 Creep Rupture Envelope Development and Determination of RFCR In consideration of the statistical validation described in Section 5.3 of this report, two composite creep rupture envelopes for all products tested, including the manufacturer submitted ( grandfather ) data, using log-linear regression, were constructed as shown in Figures 5-1 and 52. The mix of conventional and accelerated conventional creep rupture data points meets T925 requirements. Based on these plots of all data, the regressions of the data shows that the r2 values is and 0.97(see Tables H-6 and H-7 in Appendix H for details). Per T925, this degree of scatter in the data is acceptable for a composite rupture envelope. The creep rupture envelope in Figure 5-1 should be considered valid for UX1400MSE/HS, UX1500MSE/HS and UX1600MSE/HS only. The creep rupture envelope for UX1700MSE/HS is found in Figure 5-2. Since the temperature accelerated creep results produced through the accelerated conventional creep testing allowed time shifting of the creep rupture data points to over 1,000,000 hours (i.e., 114 years), no extrapolation uncertainty factor in accordance with T925 need be applied. Table 5-9 provides the estimated value of RFCR for MSE/HS series geogrids based on the reported testing for a period of long-term loading of up to 75 years. This rupture envelope can be used to determine RFCR for times other than 75 years, if desired. Table 5-9. RFCR values for MSE/HS series geogrids for a 75 yr period of loading/use. Period of Use (in years) 75 RFCR for Rupture UX1400, UX1500 & UX RFCR for Rupture UX1700 only 2.63

37 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report TENSAR UX1400-UX1500-UX1600-COMPOSITE CREEP RUPTURE CURVE 60 20C Reference Temperature RUPTURE STRENGTH (%UTS) y = x r2 = Regression UX1400 CONV rupture 35 UX1500 CONV rupture 30 UX1600 CONV rupture UX1600 QA rupture 75-yr 114-yr LOG TIME (hr) Figure 5-1. Composite creep rupture data/envelope for the UX1400MSE/HS, UX1500MSE/HS and UX1600MSE/HS geogrid products. 34 7

38 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report RUPTURE STRENGTH (%UTS) TENSAR UX1700 COMPOSITE CREEP RUPTURE CURVE 70 20C Reference Temperature y = x r2 = Regression 30 UX1700 CONV rupture yr 114-yr UX1700 QA rupture LOG TIME (hr) Figure 5-2. Composite creep rupture data/envelope for the UX1700MSE/HS geogrid products. 35 7

39 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report 6.0 Long-Term Durability Data (RFD) 6.1 Durability Test Program Basic molecular properties relating to durability were evaluated, allowing a default RFD to be used in accordance with WSDOT Standard Practice T925, provided that the long-term environment in which the geosynthetic is to be used is considered to be nonaggressive in accordance with the AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications and T925. A nonaggressive environment is described in these documents as follows: A soil ph of 4.5 to 9.0, A maximum particle size of 0.75 in. or less unless installation damage effects are specifically evaluated using full scale installation damage testing in accordance with ASTM D5818, A soil organic content of 1% or less, and An effective design temperature at the site of 86o F (30o C) or less. Other specific soil/environmental conditions that could be of concern to consider the site environment to be aggressive are discussed in Elias2. The index properties/test results obtained can be related to long-term performance of the polymer through correlation to longer-term laboratory durability performance tests and long-term experience. Note that long-term durability performance testing in accordance with T925 and the NTPEP work plan to allow direct calculation of RFD was not available from the manufacturer, nor evaluated as part of the testing program for this product line. For polyethylene (PE) geosynthetics, key durability issues to address include ultraviolet (UV) degradation, oxidative degradation and brittleness. To assess the potential for these types of degradation, index property tests to assess ultraviolet (UV) degradation, oxidative degradation and brittleness are conducted. Criteria for test results obtained each of these tests are provided in T925 as well as the AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications. The UV and oxidation degradation tests were conducted on the lightest weight product in the product line (UX1400MSE/HS) as recommended in T925. Since UV and oxidation degradation attacks from the surface of the geosynthetic, the heavier the product, the more resistant it will be to UV and oxidation degradation. Therefore, UV and oxidation resistance testing the lightest weight product should produce the most conservative result. All products in the product line were evaluated for brittleness per WSDOT Test Method T926, Transverse Flexibility Test. The purpose of this test is to detect product polymer formulation or processing problems. The problems this test is intended to uncover, if they are present, can affect the ability of the product to resist installation stresses and abrupt bending over or around objects. 2 Elias, V., 2000, Corrosion/Degradation of Soil Reinforcements for Mechanically Stabilized Earth Walls and Reinforced Soil Slopes, FHWA-NHI , Federal Highway Administration, Washington, D.C. 36

40 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table 6-1. Independent durability testing required for NTPEP qualification. Manufacturer: Tensar International PRODUCT Line: UX1400MSE/HS to UX1700MSE/HS Qualification (every 6 yrs) / QA (every 3 yrs) Products Tested Tests Conducted # of Tests (see Note 1) Qualification QA NA UX1400MSE 1 NA NA 0 For polyesters, carboxyl end group content determination (GRI-GG8) on yarn/strip NA NA 0 CEG-MW Testing Coating Removal, if necessary NA NA 0 Transverse Flexibility (WSDOT T926) UX1400MSE, UX1500MSE, UX1600MSE, & UX1700MSE NA 5 NA UX1400MSE 1 NA NA 0 All polymers, resistance to 500 hrs (ASTM D4355), including before/after tensile strength For polyesters, molecular weight determination (ASTM D4603 and GRIGG7) on yarn/strip For polyolefins, long-term evaluation via Oxidative degradation (ISO/EN 13438:1999) For polyesters, long-term evaluation via Hydrolytic degradation (WSDOT T925) For polyolefins, long-term evaluation via None None 0 Oxidative degradation (WSDOT T925) Note 1: Each test is performed using the number of specimens required by the test standard. For example, for index tensile testing, a test is defined 5 to 6 specimens. See the specific test procedures for details on this. 6.2 Durability Test Results A summary of the NTPEP test results is provided in Table 6-2. This table also includes the criteria to allow the use of a default reduction factor for RFD provided in T925 and the AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications. Detailed durability test results are provided in Appendix I. 37

41 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table 6-2. NTPEP durability test results for the UX-MSE / UX-HS geogrid product line and criteria to allow use of a default value for RFD. Polymer Type Property PP and UV HDPE Oxidation Resistance PET UV Oxidation Resistance PP and ThermoHDPE Oxidation Resistance PP and Transverse HDPE Flexibility PET Hydrolysis Resistance PET Hydrolysis Resistance Criteria to Allow Use of Default RF* Test Method ASTM D4355 Min. 70% strength retained after 500 hrs in weatherometer ASTM D4355 Min. 50% strength retained after 500 hrs in weatherometer if geosynthetic will be buried within one week, 70% if left exposed for more than one week. ENV ISO 13438:1999, Min. 50% strength retained after Method A (PP) or B 28 days (PP) or 56 days (HDPE) (HDPE) WSDOT T926 Pass Inherent Viscosity Method (ASTM D4603 and GRI Test Method GG8) GRI Test Method GG7 Test Result Obtained as Part of NTPEP Program 98% strength retained NA 99% strength retained Pass Min. Number Average Molecular Weight of 25,000 NA Max. Carboxyl Content of 30 NA End Group Note: PP = polypropylene, HDPE = high density polyethylene, PET = polyester Based on these test results, all products in the product line (UX1400MSE/HS and above) meet the minimum UV and Thermo-Oxidative resistance requirements shown in Table 6-2. In general, a default value of 1.3 for RFD is typically selected for polyolefins. For HDPE, based on very long-term observations, default reduction factors as low as 1.1 have been used successfully by state departments of transportation. The very high percent strength retained in both the UV tests (98%) and the oven aging tests (99%) summarized in Table 6-2 indicate very good resistance to oxidation, the key issue for durability of HDPE geosynthetic reinforcement. Therefore, use of a default reduction factor of less than 1.3 may be justified. See WSDOT Standard Practice T925, or the document entitled Use and Application of NTPEP Geosynthetic Reinforcement Test Results (see for guidance on the selection of a default value for RFD. Regarding transverse flexibility, cracking during bending was not observed for any of the specimens tested. Therefore, these test results indicate that the products in the MSE/HS product line are adequately flexible for typical geosynthetic reinforcement applications. 38

42 7.0 Low Strain Creep Stiffness Data 7.1 Low Strain Creep Stiffness Data Provided by Manufacturer The geogrid manufacturer provided creep stiffness data as allowed in the grandfather data clause of the NTPEP work plan as part of their 2007 submittal. All manufacturer supplied creep stiffness testing was conducted by Tensar International Corporation Corporate Laboratory and provided in an in-house reported dated July Creep stiffness data were provided as grandfathered data for UX1400MSE, UX1500MSE, UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE. Roll specific wide width short-term rapid loading tensile strength tests (T lot ) were conducted for each product for correlation purposes and to calculate load levels. Creep stiffness testing by the manufacturer was conducted in accordance with WSDOT Standard Practice T925 and the NTPEP work plan, but with two exceptions. The first exception is that the number of tests required to establish the stiffness values was less than required in T925. The second exception was that while the creep stiffness determination was targeted to 2% strain at 1,000 hours, in some cases, most notably for the UX1600 and UX1700, the strain achieved at 1,000 hours was significantly less than 2% strain. One 1,000 hour conventional creep test (ASTM D5262, but as modified for low strain in WSDOT Standard Practice T925 and using a multi-rib specimen) was conducted at a % UTS required to obtain approximately 2% strain at 1,000 hours. All tests were conducted at 68 o F (20 o C) on multi-rib specimens. 7.2 Ultimate Tensile Test Results for Creep Stiffness (Grandfather Data) The values provided in Table 7-1 represent the baseline, roll specific, ultimate tensile strength used to normalize the load level for the creep stiffness test results provided by the manufacturer. Table 7-1. Ultimate tensile strength (UTS). Product T lot for Wide Width Tensile (lb/ft) UX1400MSE 5,096 UX1500MSE 8,333 UX1600MSE 10,833 UX1700MSE 12,857 (Conversion: 1 lb/ft = kn/m) 7.3 Creep Stiffness Test Results (Grandfather Data) Table 7-2 provides the creep stiffness values provided by the manufacturer. Figure 7-1 shows the relationship between the measured tensile strength and the creep stiffness. 39

43 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table 7-2. Summary of creep stiffness test results (grandfather data). UX-MSE UX-HS Series Style Applied Load (lb/ft) Applied Load (% TLot) Creep hour (%) Creep 10 hours (%) Creep 100 hours (%) Creep 1000 hours (%) Creep Stiffness at the Indicated 1000 hrs (lb/ft) UX1400MSE ,749 UX1500MSE ,750 UX1600MSE 1, ,091 UX1700MSE 1, ,118 (Conversion: 1 lb/ft = kn/m) UX1700 Creep Stiffness (lb/ft) UX TLot UX1500 UX y = x R2 = Tensar UX Series T lot (lb/ft) Figure 7-1. UX-MSE / UX-HS creep stiffness at approximately 2 % 1000 hours (grandfather data see Table 7-2 for actual strain levels at 1,000 hrs). 40

44 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report 7.4 Low Strain Creep Stiffness NTPEP Test Program Creep stiffness testing was conducted in accordance with WSDOT Standard Practice T925 and the NTPEP work plan. The creep stiffness determination was targeted to 2% strain at 1,000 hours. The NTPEP testing program was conducted to complete the qualification requirements of REGEO workplan and to perform a quality assurance (QA) verification of the submitted grandfather data. UX1400MSE, UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE were tested for creep stiffness. Roll specific wide width short-term rapid loading tensile strength tests (Tlot) were conducted for each product for correlation purposes and to calculate load levels. A total of nine Ramp and Hold (R&H), 1,000 second creep tests, were conducted on each product. Three specimens were R&H tested at each of the following stresses: 5, 10 and 20% of the ultimate tensile strength (UTS). A linear regression based on %UTS and % strain at 0.1 hour was used to normalize strain curves to reduce the variability of the elastic portion of the strain curve. The % UTS required to obtain 2% strain at 1,000 hours was then determined. Three R&H tests and two 1,000 hour conventional creep tests (ASTM D5262, but as modified for low strain in WSDOT Standard Practice T925 and using a single rib specimen) were conducted at this load. All tests were conducted at 68o F (20o C) on multi-rib specimens. 7.5 Ultimate Tensile Test Results for NTPEP Creep Stiffness Test Program The values provided in Table 7-3 represent the baseline, roll specific, ultimate tensile strength used to normalize the load level for the creep stiffness testing. The measured geogrid dimensions discussed in Section 2 and provided in Appendix B, Section B.1, were used to convert tensile test loads to load per unit width values. Table 7-3. Ultimate tensile strength (UTS) and associated strain. Tlot for Wide Width Tensile % Strain) Product 11.9% UX1400MSE 11.3% UX1600MSE 11.9% UX1700MSE (Conversion: 1 lb/ft = kn/m) 7.6 Creep Stiffness Test Results Detailed test results are provided in Appendix J. Table 7-2 provides a summary of the creep stiffness values obtained. Note that the creep stiffness values at 1,000 hours and 5%UTS, 10%UTS and 20%UTS represent stiffness values at strains other than 2% strain. See Appendix J for details. 41

45 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report The UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE creep stiffness tests were conducted to perform a QA check on the manufacturer submitted ( grandfather ) data for the primary products (UX1600MSE and UX1700MSE) to determine the acceptability of using the manufacturer submitted data to establish creep stiffness values for the full range of products considered in this test program. The grandfather data provided by the manufacturer did not contain sufficient data to perform the 95% single-sided lower confidence limit as outlined in T925. However, Figure 7-2 shows a visual comparision of the relationship between the creep stiffness and the lot specific tensile strength for the NTPEP test results as well as the grandfather data from Figure 7-1 which indicates that the NTPEP test results validate the grandfather submitted data. Though as noted earlier, the manufacturer s creep stiffness test results for the UX1600 and UX1700 were obtained at approximately 1.7% strain at 1,000 hours rather than at 2% strain, based on analysis of the test results (e.g., those provided in Appendix J), this difference in strain should only make the manufacturer s stiffness values approximately 2,000 lbs/ft too high. As can be seen from the data plots in Figure 7-2, this difference is hardly perceptable and would not change the conclusion that the NTPEP data validates the manufacturer s creep stiffness test data. Table 7-4. Summary of creep stiffness test results. UX-MSE UX-HS Series Style Average Creep 1000 hours for 5% UTS Ramp & Hold (lb/ft) Average Creep 1000 hours for 10% UTS Ramp & Hold (lb/ft) Average Creep 1000 hours for 20% UTS Ramp & Hold (lb/ft) Average Creep Stiffness for 2% 1000 hrs (lb/ft) UX1400MSE 30,698 23,490 16,935 23,803 UX1600MSE 72,907 61,515 38,396 57,940 UX1700MSE 94,899 74,691 44,846 69,570 (Conversion: 1 lb/ft = kn/m) 42

46 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report UX1700 Grandfather Creep Stiffness (lb/ft) NTPEP Grandfather Linear (NTPEP) Linear (Grandfather) y = x R = UX UX NTPEP y = 6.473x R = UX Tensar UX Series T lot (lb/ft) Figure 7-2. NTPEP UX-MSE / UX-HS creep stiffness for 2 % 1000 hours, compared with Manufacturer supplied creep stiffness data. To obtain the minimum likely stiffness value for each product in consideration of the MARV tensile strength, multiply the stiffness value from the plot by the ratio of TMARV/Tlot. TMARV is the minimum tensile strength, as provided by the manufacturer, for each product in the product line. Tlot is the actual roll specific tensile strength for the sample used in the creep stiffness testing. 43

47 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report APPENDICES Appendix A: NTPEP Oversight Committee A-1

48 National Transportation Product Evaluation Program (NTPEP) Chair: William H. Temple, Louisiana Vice Chair: Thomas E. Baker, Washington AASHTO Staff: Keith Platte, Greta Smith, Claire Kim, and Henry Lacinak NTPEP Committee Member Department Member/Delegate Phone Number Fax Number Addres Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas Lynn Wolfe, P.E. (334) (334) Michael San Angelo (907) Frank T. Darmiento, P.E. (602) (602) Mark Bradley (501) (501) Michael Benson (501) Tony Sullivan (501) (501) California Colorado Peter Vacura (916) (916) David Kotzer (303) (303) K.C. Matthews (303) (303) Connecticut Andrew J. Mroczkowksi (860) (860) James M. Sime, P.E. (860) (860) Delaware James T. Pappas III, P.E. (302) (302) Teresa Gardner (302) (302) District of Columbia Rezene Medhani (202) William P. Carr (202) (202) Florida Karen Byram (850) (850) Paul Vinik (352) (352) (updates found at

49 NTPEP Committee Member Department Member/Delegate Phone Number Fax Number Addres Georgia Brad Young (404) Don Wishon (404) (404) Richard Douds (404) (404) Idaho Indiana Stephen B. Loop (208) (208) Kenny Anderson (317) Ronald P. Walker (317) (317) Iowa Joseph Putherickal (515) (515) Kurtis Younkin (515) (515) Kansas Curt Niehaus (785) (785) David Meggers, PE (785) (785) Kentucky Derrick Castle (502) (502) Ross Mills (502) (502) Louisiana Jason Davis (225) (225) Luanna Cambass (225) (225) Maine Maryland Doug Gayne (207) (207) Dan Sajedi (443) Gil Rushton (443) (410) Russell A. Yurek (410) (410) Massachusetts Ed Mirka (617) John Grieco (617) Michigan John Staton, P.E. (517) (517) (updates found at

50 NTPEP Committee Member Department Member/Delegate Phone Number Fax Number Addres Minnesota David Iverson (651) (651) James McGraw (651) (651) Mississippi Celina Sumrall (601) (601) John D. Vance (601) (601) John J. Smith (601) (601) Missouri Montana Julie Weiland (573) (573) Anson Moffett, P.E. (406) Craig Abernathy (406) (406) Ross Metcalfe, P.E. (406) Nebraska Mostafa Jamshidi (402) (402) Omar Qudus (402) (402) Nevada Jason Vanhavel (775) (775) Roma Clewell (775) (775) New Hampshire Alan D. Rawson (603) (603) William Real (603) (603) New Jersey New Mexico New York Richard Jaffe (609) (609) Ernest D. Archuleta (505) (505) Jim Curtis (518) (518) Michael Stelzer (518) (518) Patrick Galarza (518) (updates found at

51 NTPEP Committee Member Department Member/Delegate Phone Number Fax Number Addres North Carolina Chris Peoples (919) Jack E. Cowsert (919) (919) Ron King, P.E. North Dakota Ohio Ron Horner (701) (701) Brad Young (614) (614) Lloyd M. Welker Jr. (614) (614) Oklahoma Kenny R. Seward (405) (405) Reynolds H. Toney (405) (405) Oregon Ivan Silbernagel, PE (503) (503) Mike Dunning (503) (503) Pennsylvania David H. Kuniega (717) (717) Tim Ramirez (717) (717) Puerto Rico Rhode Island Orlando Diaz-Quirindong (787) (787) Colin A. Franco, P.E. (401) Deborah Munroe (401) (401) Mark F. Felag, P.E. (401) South Carolina Merrill Zwanka, P.E. (803) Terry Rawls (803) (803) South Dakota David L. Huft (605) (605) Jason Humphrey (605) (605) Joe J. Feller (605) (605) (updates found at

52 NTPEP Committee Member Department Member/Delegate Phone Number Fax Number Addres Tennessee Danny Lane (615) (615) Heather Hall (615) (615) Texas John Bassett (512) (512) Robert Sarcinella (512) (512) Scott Koczman (512) (512) USDOT - FHWA Utah Michael Rafalowski (202) (202) michael.rafalowski@fhwa.dot.gov Barry Sharp (801) (801) rsharp@utah.gov Ken Berg, P.E. (801) (801) kenberg@utah.gov Rukhsana Lindsey, P.E. (801) (801) rlindsey@utah.gov Vermont Virginia William Ahearn (802) bill.ahearn@state.vt.us James R. Swisher (804) (804) james.swisher@virginiadot.org William R. Bailey III (804) (804) bill.bailey@virginiadot.org Washington Thomas Baker (360) (360) bakert@wsdot.wa.gov Tony Allen (360) allent@wsdot.wa.gov West Virginia Bruce E. Kenney III, P.E. (304) (304) Bruce.E.Kenney@wv.gov. Larry Barker (304) (304) Larry.R.Barker@wv.gov Wisconsin Ned Schmitt (608) ned.schmitt@dot.state.wi.us Peter J. Kemp (608) (608) peter.kemp@dot.state.wi.us Wyoming Delbert McOmie, P.E. (307) (307) delbert.mcomie@dot.state.wy.us (updates found at

53 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Appendix B: Product Geometric and Production Details B-1

54 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report B.1 Product Geometric Information Table B-1. Typical and measured MD geogrid geometry for the UX-MSE product line. Style UX1400MSE UX1500MSE UX1600MSE UX1700MSE Machine Direction (MD) Ribs Aperture Size Width (in) Spacing (in) (in) Rib Thickness (in) Typical Values As Measured * Typical Values As Measured * Typical Values As Measured * Typical Values As Measured * * 0.207* 0.210* 0.221* * 0.86* 0.87* 0.87* * 17.5* 17.8* 17.1* * 0.083* 0.095* 0.120* (Conversions: 1 in = 25.4 mm) *Average of 5 readings obtained during NTPEP testing. Full test results in tables B-5 through B-7. Table B-2. Typical and measured XD geogrid geometry for the UX-MSE product line. Style UX1400MSE UX1500MSE UX1600MSE UX1700MSE Cross-Machine Direction (XD) Ribs Aperture Size Width (in) Spacing (in) (in) Rib Thickness (in) Typical Values As Measured * Typical Values As Measured * Typical Values As Measured * Typical Values As Measured * * 0.917* 0.873* 0.830* * 18.4* 18.7* 17.9* * 0.65* 0.66* 0.65* * 0.205* 0.257* 0.325* (Conversions: 1 in = 25.4 mm) *Average of 5 readings obtained during NTPEP testing. Full test results in tables B-5 through B-7. B-2

55 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table B-3. Typical and measured geogrid junction thickness for the UX-MSE product line. Style UX1400MSE UX1500MSE UX1600MSE UX1700MSE Junction Thickness (in) Typical Values As Measured* * * * * (Conversions: 1 in = 25.4 mm) *Average of 5 readings obtained during NTPEP testing. Full test results in tables B-5 through B-7. Table B-4. Typical and measured geogrid unit weight for the UX-MSE product line. Geogrid Style/Type Typical Weight (oz/yd2) UX1400MSE UX1500MSE UX1600MSE UX1700MSE Measured Weight, per ASTM D5261 (oz/yd2) 9.39* 16.79* 18.29* 30.69* (Conversion: 33.9 g/m2 = 1 oz/ yd2) *Average of 5 readings obtained during NTPEP testing. Full test results in tables B-5 through B-7. B-3

56 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report TD rib width (TD rib thickness measured at this location) MD aperture TD aperture MD rib spacing TD rib spacing MD Rib Width (MD rib thickness measured at this location) Junction thickness measured at this location Figure B-1. Diagram of the geometric properties measurement locations. B-4

57 Table B-5: Geogrid geometric measurements for Tensar UX1400 TRI Log #: E STD. Typical PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. Value Mass/Unit Area (ASTM D 5261) Specimen Width (in) 7.6 Specimen Length (in) 17.8 Mass(g) Mass/unit area (oz/sq.yd) Mass/unit area (g/sq.meter) NP Aperature Size (Calipers) MD - Aperature Size (in) MD - Aperature Size (mm) NP TD - Aperature Size (in) TD - Aperature Size (mm) NP Rib Width (Calipers) MD - Thickness (in) MD - Thickness (mm) NP TD - Width (in) TD - Width (mm) NP Rib Thickness (Calipers) MD - Thickness (mils) MD - Width (mm) NP TD - Thickness (in) TD - Thickness (mm) NP Node/Junction Thickness (Calipers) Thickness (mils) Thickness (mm) NP MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. B-5

58 Table B-6: Geogrid geometric measurements for Tensar UX1500 TRI Log #: E STD. Typical PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. Value Mass/Unit Area (ASTM D 5261) Specimen Width (in) 7.7 Specimen Length (in) 18.5 Mass(g) Mass/unit area (oz/sq.yd) Mass/unit area (g/sq.meter) NP Aperature Size (Calipers) MD - Aperature Size (in) MD - Aperature Size (mm) NP TD - Aperature Size (in) TD - Aperature Size (mm) NP Rib Width (Calipers) MD - Width (in) MD - Width (mm) NP TD - Width (in) TD - Width (mm) NP Rib Thickness (Calipers) MD - Thickness (in) MD - Thickness (mm) NP TD - Thickness (in) TD - Thickness (mm) NP Node/Junction Thickness (Calipers) Thickness (mils) Thickness (mm) NP MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. B-6

59 Table B-7: Geogrid geometric measurements for Tensar UX1600 TRI Log #: E STD. Typical PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. Value Mass/Unit Area (ASTM D 5261) Specimen Width (in) 8.1 Specimen Length (in) 18.4 Mass(g) Mass/unit area (oz/sq.yd) Mass/unit area (g/sq.meter) NP Aperature Size (Calipers) MD - Aperature Size (in) MD - Aperature Size (mm) NP TD - Aperature Size (in) TD - Aperature Size (mm) NP Rib Width (Calipers) MD - Width (in) MD - Width (mm) NP TD - Width (in) TD - Width (mm) NP Rib Thickness (Calipers) MD - Thickness (in) MD - Thickness (mm) NP TD - Thickness (in) TD - Thickness (mm) NP Node/Junction Thickness (Calipers) Thickness (mils) Thickness (mm) NP MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. B-7

60 Table B-8: Geogrid geometric measurements for Tensar UX1700 TRI Log #: E STD. Typical PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. Value Mass/Unit Area (ASTM D 5261) Specimen Width (in) 7.5 Specimen Length (in) 16.8 Mass(g) Mass/unit area (oz/sq.yd) Mass/unit area (g/sq.meter) NP Aperature Size (Calipers) MD - Aperature Size (in) MD - Aperature Size (mm) NP TD - Aperature Size (in) TD - Aperature Size (mm) NP Rib Width (Calipers) MD - Width (in) MD - Width (mm) NP TD - Width (in) TD - Width (mm) NP Rib Thickness (Calipers) MD - Thickness (in) MD - Thickness (mm) NP TD - Thickness (in) TD - Thickness (mm) NP Node/Junction Thickness (Calipers) Thickness (mils) Thickness (mm) NP MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. B-8

61 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report B.2 Product Production Information Table B-9. Typical geogrid roll dimensions for the UX-MSE / UX-HS product line. Style/Type Width (ft) Length (ft) Area (yd²) UX1400MSE UX1500MSE UX1600MSE UX1700MSE Roll Diameter (in) Gross Weight (lb) (Conversions: 1 m = 3.28 ft; 1 m2 = 1.20 yd2) B.3 Product Manufacturing Quality Control Program Testing/sampling is done per the Tensar s Manufacturing Quality Control Program. A summary of the program is provided in Table B-10. Table B-10. Typical summary of quality control testing conducted by the manufacturer for the UX-MSE / UX-HS product line. Test Method Property ASTM D 5261 ASTM D 6637 ASTM D 6637 Mass / Unit Area Single Rib Tensile Multi-Rib Tensile Junction Strength GRI-GG2 Hand measure Aperture Size Testing Frequency (greater of) UX1400 UX1500 UX1600 MSE/HS MSE/HS MSE/HS Each Each Each Lot Lot Lot Each Each Each Lot Lot Lot Index Index Index Not Routine Not Routine Not Routine Each Each Each Lot Lot Lot Each Each Each Lot Lot Lot B-9 UX1700 MSE/HS Each Lot Each Lot Index Not Routine Each Lot Each Lot

62 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table B-11. Typical production lot size for the UX-MSE / UX-HS product line. Style/Type UX1400MSE UX1500MSE UX1600MSE UX1700MSE Lot Size (yd2) , , , ,690 B-10 # of rolls per Lot 1 approx approx approx approx 100

63 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Appendix C: Tensile Strength Detailed Test Results C-1

64 Table C-1: Geogrid single rib tensile test results for Tensar UX1400 TRI Log #: E STD. PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. MARV Single Rib Tensile Properties (ASTM D 6637, Method A) MD - Number of Ribs per foot: MD Maximum Strength (lbs) MD Maximum Strength (lbs/ft) Min MD Maximum Strength (kn/m) MD Break Elongation (%) MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. C-2

65 Table C-2: Geogrid single rib tensile test results for Tensar UX1500 TRI Log #: E STD. PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. MARV Single Rib Tensile Properties (ASTM D 6637, Method A) MD - Number of Ribs per foot: MD Maximum Strength (lbs) MD Maximum Strength (lbs/ft) Min MD Maximum Strength (kn/m) MD Break Elongation (%) MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. C-3

66 Table C-3: Geogrid single rib tensile test results for Tensar UX1600 TRI Log #: E STD. PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. MARV Single Rib Tensile Properties (ASTM D 6637, Method A) MD - Number of Ribs per foot: MD Maximum Strength (lbs) MD Maximum Strength (lbs/ft) Min MD Maximum Strength (kn/m) MD Break Elongation (%) MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. C-4

67 Table C-4: Geogrid single rib tensile test results for Tensar UX1700 TRI Log #: E STD. PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. MARV Single Rib Tensile Properties (ASTM D 6637, Method A) MD - Number of Ribs per foot: MD Maximum Strength (lbs) MD Maximum Strength (lbs/ft) Min MD Maximum Strength (kn/m) MD Break Elongation (%) MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. C-5

68 Table C-5: Geogrid wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1400 TRI Log #: E STD. PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. MARV Wide Width Tensile Properties (ASTM D 6637, Method B) MD Number of Ribs per Specimen: 7 MD Number of Ribs per foot: MD Ultimate Strength (lbs) MD Ultimate Strength (lbs/ft) Min MD Ultimate Strength (kn/m) MD 2% Strain (lbs) MD 2% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 2% Strain (kn/m) MD 5% Strain (lbs) MD 5% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 5% Strain (kn/m) MD 10% Strain (lbs) MD 10% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 10% Strain (kn/m) MD Break Elongation (%) MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. C-6

69 Table C-6: Geogrid wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1500 TRI Log #: E STD. PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. MARV Wide Width Tensile Properties (ASTM D 6637, Method B) MD Number of Ribs per Specimen: 7 MD Number of Ribs per foot: MD Ultimate Strength (lbs) MD Ultimate Strength (lbs/ft) Min MD Ultimate Strength (kn/m) MD 2% Strain (lbs) MD 2% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 2% Strain (kn/m) MD 5% Strain (lbs) MD 5% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 5% Strain (kn/m) MD 10% Strain (lbs) MD 10% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 10% Strain (kn/m) MD Break Elongation (%) MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. C-7

70 Table C-7: Geogrid wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1600 TRI Log #: E STD. PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. MARV Wide Width Tensile Properties (ASTM D 6637, Method B) MD Number of Ribs per Specimen: 7 MD Number of Ribs per foot: MD Ultimate Strength (lbs) MD Ultimate Strength (lbs/ft) Min MD Ultimate Strength (kn/m) MD 2% Strain (lbs) MD 2% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 2% Strain (kn/m) MD 5% Strain (lbs) MD 5% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 5% Strain (kn/m) MD 10% Strain (lbs) MD 10% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 10% Strain (kn/m) MD Break Elongation (%) MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. C-8

71 Table C-8: Geogrid wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1700 TRI Log #: E STD. PARAMETER TEST REPLICATE NUMBER MEAN DEV. MARV Wide Width Tensile Properties (ASTM D 6637, Method B) MD Number of Ribs per Specimen: 7 MD Number of Ribs per foot: MD Ultimate Strength (lbs) MD Ultimate Strength (lbs/ft) Min MD Ultimate Strength (kn/m) MD 2% Strain (lbs) MD 2% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 2% Strain (kn/m) MD 5% Strain (lbs) MD 5% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 5% Strain (kn/m) MD 10% Strain (lbs) MD 10% Strain (lbs/ft) MD 10% Strain (kn/m) MD Break Elongation (%) MD - Machine Direction TD - Transverse/Cross Machine Direction NP - Not Provided The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. C-9

72 90 Machine Direction Tensile Strength (kn/m) TRI Log # E %Strain Figure C-1: Geogrid wide width tensile test load-strain curve for Tensar UX1400 C-10

73 140 Machine Direction Tensile Strength (kn/m) TRI Log # E %Strain Figure C-2: Geogrid wide width tensile test load-strain curve for Tensar UX1500 C-11

74 180 Machine Direction Tensile Strength (kn/m) TRI Log # E %Strain Figure C-3: Geogrid wide width tensile test load-strain curve for Tensar UX1600 C-12

75 250 Machine Direction 200 Tensile Strength (kn/m) TRI Log # E %Strain Figure C-4: Geogrid wide width tensile test load-strain curve for Tensar UX1700 C-13

76 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Appendix D: Existing Installation Damage Detailed Test Results Provided by Manufacturer (Grandfather Data) D-1

77 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table D-1. Standard test soil gradations for manufacturer submitted (i.e., grandfather data) installation damage testing (% passing). US Sieve No. Sieve Size (mm) 6 - in in in in. 1 - in. 25 3/4 19 in. 1/ in. 3/8 9.5 in. No No No No No No No D50, mm Liquid Limit, % Plasticity Index, % Angularity Soil Classification INSTALLATION DAMAGE SOILS Percent Passing Type 0 Type Y Type 1 Type2 (Very (Coarse (Coarse (Sandy Coarse Gravel with Gravel) Gravel) Gravel) Sand) Type 3 (Silty Sand) Type 4 (Sandy Silty Clay) Angular Angular GP Angular to Subangular GP Poorly Graded Gravel Poorly Graded Gravel Angular GM Angular to Subangular SM N/A GM OL Poorly Graded Graded Well Graded Sandy Silty Gravel with Gravel with Silty Sand Clay Sand Sand D-2

78 Table D-2: Installation damage wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1400 geogrid, soil gradation 2. Installation damage testing (ASTM D 5818, as modified in WSDOT T925). Wide wide tensile testing (ASTM D 6637, Method B). Machine Direction Specimen Width (m): = (6 ribs) Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX Baseline Average Standard Deviation % COV Machine Direction Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX installed in Gradation (Sandy Gravel) Average Standard Deviation % COV Percent Retained RFid The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. D-3

79 Table D-3: Installation damage wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1400 geogrid, soil gradation 3. Installation damage testing (ASTM D 5818, as modified in WSDOT T925). Wide wide tensile testing (ASTM D 6637, Method B). Machine Direction Specimen Width (m): = (6 ribs) Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX Baseline Average Standard Deviation % COV Machine Direction Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX installed in Gradation (Sand) Average Standard Deviation % COV Percent Retained RFid The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. D-4

80 Table D-4: Installation damage wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1500 geogrid, soil gradation 2. Installation damage testing (ASTM D 5818, as modified in WSDOT T925). Wide wide tensile testing (ASTM D 6637, Method B). Machine Direction Specimen Width (m): = (6 ribs) Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX Baseline Average Standard Deviation % COV Machine Direction Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX installed in Gradation (Sandy Gravel) Average Standard Deviation % COV Percent Retained RFid The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. D-5

81 Table D-5: Installation damage wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1500 geogrid, soil gradation 3. Installation damage testing (ASTM D 5818, as modified in WSDOT T925). Wide wide tensile testing (ASTM D 6637, Method B). Machine Direction Specimen Width (m): = (6 ribs) Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX Baseline Average Standard Deviation % COV Machine Direction Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX installed in Gradation (Sand) Average Standard Deviation % COV Percent Retained RFid The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. D-6

82 Table D-6: Installation damage wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1600 geogrid, soil gradation 2. Installation damage testing (ASTM D 5818, as modified in WSDOT T925). Wide wide tensile testing (ASTM D 6637, Method B). Machine Direction Specimen Width (m): = (6 ribs) Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX Baseline Average Standard Deviation % COV Machine Direction Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX installed in Gradation (Sandy Gravel) Average Standard Deviation % COV Percent Retained RFid The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. D-7

83 Table D-7: Installation damage wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1600 geogrid, soil gradation 3. Installation damage testing (ASTM D 5818, as modified in WSDOT T925). Wide wide tensile testing (ASTM D 6637, Method B). Machine Direction Specimen Width (m): = (6 ribs) Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX Baseline Average Standard Deviation % COV Machine Direction Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX installed in Gradation (Sand) Average Standard Deviation % COV Percent Retained RFid The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. D-8

84 Table D-8: Installation damage wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1700 geogrid, soil gradation 2. Installation damage testing (ASTM D 5818, as modified in WSDOT T925). Wide wide tensile testing (ASTM D 6637, Method B). Machine Direction Specimen Width (m): = (6 ribs) Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX Baseline Average Standard Deviation % COV Machine Direction Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX installed in Gradation (Sandy Gravel) Average Standard Deviation % COV Percent Retained RFid The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. D-9

85 Table D-9: Installation damage wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1700 geogrid, soil gradation 3. Installation damage testing (ASTM D 5818, as modified in WSDOT T925). Wide wide tensile testing (ASTM D 6637, Method B). Machine Direction Specimen Width (m): = (6 ribs) Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX Baseline Average Standard Deviation % COV Machine Direction Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Load Load 5% Identification Number (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (kn) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX installed in Gradation (Sand) Average Standard Deviation % COV Percent Retained RFid The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. D-10

86 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Figure D-1. Lifting Plates positioned between ties and covered with first lift of compacted soil/aggregate. Figure D-2. Grid positioned over compacted base and covered. Cover soil/aggregate is uniformly spread and compacted using field-scale equipment and procedures. D-11

87 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Figure D-3. The density of the compacted soil is measured with a nuclear density gauge. Figure D-4. The steel plates are tilted to facilitate exhumation. D-12

88 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Appendix E: NTPEP Installation Damage Detailed QA Test Results to Verify Manufacturer Submitted Data E-1

89 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Table E-1. Standard test soil gradations used for NTPEP installation damage testing (% passing). Standard Installation Damage Soils Used for Field Exposures Percent Passing by Weight US Sieve Sieve Size Type 1 Type2 Type 3 No. (mm) (Coarse Gravel) (Sandy Gravel) (Silty Sand) 6 - in in in in in /4 - in /2 - in /8 - in No No No No No No No D50, mm LA Abrasion Small Drum 19.1% loss 21% loss Method B 500 Cycles Liquid Limit, % Plasticity Index, % Angularity Angular to Angular to Angular (ASTM D 2488 ) Subangular Subangular GP GP SM Soil Classification Poorly Graded Poorly Graded Gravel Well Graded Silty Gravel with Sand Sand E-2

90 Table E-2: Installation damage wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1400 geogrid, soil gradation 2. Installation damage testing (ASTM D 5818, as modified in WSDOT T925). Wide wide tensile testing (ASTM D 6637, Method B). Machine Direction Ribs per Number Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Foot of Ribs Load Load % Identification Number Width Tested (lbs) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX Baseline Average Standard Deviation % COV Machine Direction Ribs per Number Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Foot of Ribs Load Load % Identification Number Width Tested (lbs) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX installed in Gradation (Sandy Gravel) Average Standard Deviation % COV Percent Retained RFid The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. E-3

91 Table E-3: Installation damage wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1600 geogrid, soil gradation 2. Installation damage testing (ASTM D 5818, as modified in WSDOT T925). Wide wide tensile testing (ASTM D 6637, Method B). Machine Direction Ribs per Number Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Foot of Ribs Load Load % Identification Number Width Tested (lbs) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX Baseline Average Standard Deviation % COV Machine Direction Ribs per Number Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Foot of Ribs Load Load % Identification Number Width Tested (lbs) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX installed in Gradation (Sandy Gravel) Average Standard Deviation % COV Percent Retained RFid The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. E-4

92 Table E-4: Installation damage wide width tensile test results for Tensar UX1700 geogrid, soil gradation 2. Installation damage testing (ASTM D 5818, as modified in WSDOT T925). Wide wide tensile testing (ASTM D 6637, Method B). Machine Direction Ribs per Number Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Foot of Ribs Load Load % Identification Number Width Tested (lbs) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX Baseline Average Standard Deviation % COV Machine Direction Ribs per Number Maximum Maximum Maximum Elongation Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Load Sample Specimen Foot of Ribs Load Load % Identification Number Width Tested (lbs) (lbs/ft) (kn/m) (%) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) lbs (lbs/ft) (kn/m) UX installed in Gradation (Sandy Gravel) Average Standard Deviation % COV Percent Retained RFid The testing herein is based upon accepted industry practice as well as the test method listed. Test results reported herein do not apply to samples other than those tested. E-5

93 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Figure E-1. Lifting Plates positioned between ties and covered with first lift of compacted soil/aggregate. Figure E-2. Grid positioned over compacted base and covered. Cover soil/aggregate is uniformly spread and compacted using field-scale equipment and procedures. E-6

94 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Figure E-3. The density of the compacted soil is measured with a nuclear density gauge. Figure E-4. The steel plates are tilted to facilitate exhumation. E-7

95 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report Appendix F: ISO/EN Laboratory Installation Damage Detailed Test Results F-1

96 NTPEP February 2010 Final Report F.1 ISO/EN Laboratory Installation Damage Test Program Testing is done per the EN/ISO Five wide width tensile specimens are exposed to 200 cycles producing between 209 lb/ft2 (10 kpa) minimum and 10,443 lb/ft2 (500 kpa) maximum stress at a frequency of 1 Hz. The aggregate used is a sintered aluminum oxide with a grain size such that 100% shall pass a 10 mm sieve and 0% shall pass a 5 mm sieve. The exposed specimens and five baseline specimens are tested according to ISO/EN Representative photos of test apparatus and aggregate are provided in Figures E-1 and E-2. Detailed test results are provided in Tables E-1 through E-3.. Figure F-1. ISO/EN 10722, laboratory installation damage test apparatus. Figure F-2. ISO/EN 10722, laboratory installation damage aggregate. F-2