State-of-the-Art Review on the Role of Geocells in Soil Reinforcement

The growing need to develop infrastructure, driven by global population explosion is forcing construction on all types of soils, including weak/marginal soils. However, due to the poor physical and engineering properties of weak soils, they are not suitable for construction purposes and hence require improvement. Many geosynthetic ground reinforcement techniques are presently employed to improve the properties of weak soils and to reduce the potential damages caused by them, including immediate settlements and slope failures. Use of geocells and the methods of improving the properties of weak soils, especially those applied in pavement and foundation engineering, have been studied over the last several decades. This article seeks to present a review of laboratory experiments, field-scale studies and analytical studies of geocell-reinforced structures that would be beneficial for multiple applications and further research studies. The review concluded that geocell has the potential to improve weak soil types for engineering applications.