SHORT COURSES

Five 3-hour Short Courses will be offered on Sunday May 23. Some of the most recognized specialists on each subject were selected to present their experience and the basic concepts on important applications related to geosynthetics. Participation in these courses will be by specific registration due to the limited number of places. 9ICG participants with full registration have a registration discount for the short-courses. The following short courses will be delivered:

In the Morning - 9 to 12 h
Geosynthetics in Dams (Joaquim Pimenta)
Geosynthetics have a great application potential in dams such as for soil reinforcement, as barriers, in drainage and filtration systems and for the restoration of old dams. However, this is a field where possible benefits brought by the use of geosynthetics have been little explored. This short course will approach applications of geosynthetics in dam engineering, relevant aspects to be considered and case-histories.

Geosynthetics Reinforced Walls (Bob Holtz and Jonathan Fannin)
The course will cover the following topics: History and overview of reinforced soil wall applications, Introduction to geosynthetic materials and properties, Design and analysis concepts, Test methods for component materials, Specification, Case studies, Recent and future developments.

Afternoon – 14 to 17 h
Geosynthetics in Pavements, Unpaved Roads and Working Platforms (Jeb Tingle)
Geosynthetics can improve significantly the performance and durability of pavements, unpaved roads and working platforms, particularly when these works are built on weak foundation soils. This course will approach basic concepts of this type of geosynthetic application, design approaches and behavior of reinforced and unreinforced pavements, unpaved roads and working platforms.

Geosynthetics in Mining (Richard Thiel)
Geosynthetics can be used in several applications in mining engineering, such as in retaining structures, drainage and filtration, liquid collection systems and environmental protection, for instance. This course will approach the important geosynthetic properties and requirements, testing methods, stability issues and case-histories related to the use of geosynthetics in mining applications.


Geosynthetics in Landfills (Sam Allen and Patrick Pierson)
Geosynthetics have been increasingly used as barriers to protect the ground from contamination. In landfills these products can be used not only as barriers but also in liquid collection systems, drainage and filtration, reinforcement and protection. This course will present important issues related to the use of geosynthetics in landfills, geosynthetic barriers and drainage and filtration behavior of geosynthetics in such works.