difference among engineering fill, select fill, structural fill, and general fill? 1

[pinkpig]

1. can anyone explain to me the difference among engineering fill, select fill, structural fill, and general fill?

2. And for a berm of a dry detention pond, what type of fill is appropriate and material type - sand, clay, silt, or in terms of PI?

3. For backfill of a storm sewer pipe under concrete roadway, what type of fill is appropriate?

Thanks.

 

[oldestguy]

pinkpig:

Those are very general questions with no specific site details given. So, if any answers, they will be general maybe. If specific, do they apply to your site or job? In defining various fill types, usually the job specs or local codes will do the defining. What's suitable in one area may not even be available in another.

 

[oldestguy]

For the heck of it here is a general question about well known fill available in this area. what is torpedo sand? It happens to meet a certain ASTM spec. You can see what I mean by this question and yours not being very broadly useful .

 

[Ron]

pinkpig...."Engineered fill, structural fill and select fill" are similar specification descriptions that generally mean the same thing, or at least are perceived as such. These mean that certain gradation, plasticity, and character are selected by an engineer or architect so as to meet needed project criteria of strength, stability and constructability.

"General fill" can mean anything.

Further, unless each term is defined by the specifications, they also mean little as OG noted, they are too broad to be of much use.

As for which materials are appropriate for certain applications....that will depend on a lot of site and area specific issues and practices. Since we don't have any additional information on your location or application other than the general statements, we can't offer much.

 

[racookpe1978]

So, which engineering fill specification needs to be added in the small print on the generic roadside sign:

"Fill Dirt Wanted"

 

[oldestguy]

Sometimes they add the word "clean".

 

[cvg]

how can dirt be clean?

 

[dik]

cvg:

Taste Test...

Dik

 

[ACtrafficengr]

You could check the Department/Ministry of Transportation specification book for your area, and see if that helps. They usually have detailed requirements for gradation, soundness and so forth.

But your best bet is probably to ask the designer what he had in mind.

Oldestguy, I've seen advertisements for "DOT-approved Item 4" even though our DOT stopped using that item number for road subbase decades ago.

 

[pinkpig]

thanks for clarifications.

So, to me, all these terms are not strictly defined, one person's select fill could be another one's engineering fill, or structural fill.

 

[fattdad]

I think the words speak for themselves - well other than, "Engineering Fill," which I don't know. To me, the following:

Select fill - I've selected something that meets my engineering objectives, which may be the best of what's available - i.e., I'll take all the fat clay as long as the PI is less than 25 and there's at least 35 percent sand content. In this case, that may be select enough to support the 3H:1V slopes.

Structural fill - I've specified the minimum requirements for earthwork when the earthwork supports a structure (or the soil structure interaction requires some engineering performance - i.e., adjacent to a laterally-loaded pile)

General fill - so, the topsoil has to go somewhere, eh?

f-d

ípapß gordo ainÆt no madre flaca!

 

[cvg]

general, common fill - meets minimum specifications,
top soil - capable of supporting plant life
structural fill - granular material used within a few feet of a structure
embankment fill - material suitable for a dam or levee
engineered fill - any fill where the material and placement have been specified and approved by an engineer
landscaping fill - any fill where the material and placement have been specified and approved by an architect
waste fill - dump the material that does not meet the specs here
drain fill - granular drain material
clean fill - general fill without any wood, concrete or other debris
rock fill - rocks

 

[Okiryu]

I think all of these terms imply that the engineer has to specify: type of soil, placement and compaction requirements and QC requirements. I understand general fill as common fill for non-loaded areas (landscaped areas). My interpretation are that the other terms are he same each other and are specified to receive loading.