PFI-RP: Novel coated geotextile to enhance water drainage from soil

这个创新研究伙伴关系（PFI-RP）项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力包括建立一个新的技术平台和相关的基础科学，允许合理设计土工布（工厂制造的织物产品），可以从土壤中排出水分，具有高运输效率。土工织物已广泛应用于包括公路、铁路和机场在内的基础设施中，通过发挥排水、隔离、过滤和加固功能来改善土壤性质。最近，具有深槽纤维的芯吸土工织物被证明能够通过暴露于空气的边缘处的蒸发从土壤中去除水。然而，其除水能力受到高湿度或土壤中细颗粒的限制。为了克服这些限制，本项目将在芯吸土工织物上应用多孔吸收涂层，该涂层可以产生更高的吸水性，并将水横向吸引、运输和排放到边缘。该项目将解决与水有关的基础设施难题，这些难题可能对公众构成风险，并需要大量资金进行维修和保养。拟议的项目将推进知识的吸水性和运输行为的吸收剂与定制的润湿性。将吸收剂应用于芯吸土工织物将增强其从具有细颗粒的土壤中去除水分的有效性。要解决的技术障碍包括：多孔吸收剂的有效性和耐久性，涂层在土工织物上的应用，吸收剂和土壤之间的界面行为，在土工织物安装在土壤中的吸收剂涂层的生存性，以及埋在土壤中的土工织物中的横向水传输和排放。具体的研究目标是：（1）制造防水涂层土工织物;（2）评估土工织物在土壤中的排水性能;（3）通过数值模拟深入了解土工织物在土壤中有效性的控制因素;（4）开发设计方法以说明土工织物在道路中的效益。从所提出的工作中获得的结果和见解将作为土工合成材料应用的基石，该土工合成材料应用将通过结合具有定制的固液界面润湿性的吸收剂来增强从土壤中去除水。该研究成果还将允许合理设计土工织物表面，即使在非饱和土壤中也能吸收和输送水分。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Partnerships for Innovation-Research Partnerships (PFI-RP) project includes establishing a new technological platform and associated fundamental science allowing for the rational design of geotextiles (factory-made fabric products) that can drain water from soil with high transport efficiency. Geotextiles have been widely utilized in infrastructures including roads, railways, and airports to improve soil properties by serving functions of drainage, separation, filtration, and reinforcement. Recently, a wicking geotextile that possesses deep grooved fibers was demonstrated to be able to remove water from soils through evaporation at the edges exposed to air. However, its water removal capability becomes limited either by high humidity or by fine particles in the soil. To overcome these limitations, this project will apply a porous absorbent coating on a wicking geotextile that can generate higher suction of water, and attract, transport, and discharge water laterally to the edges. This project will provide a solution to difficult water-related infrastructure problems that may pose risks to the public and require significant funding for repair and maintenance. The proposed project will advance the knowledge of water absorption and transport behavior on an absorbent with tailored wettability. Application of an absorbent to a wicking geotextile will enhance its effectiveness in removing water from soils with fine particles. The technical hurdles to be addressed include: effectiveness and durability of the porous absorbent, application of the coating on geotextiles, interfacial behavior between absorbent and soil, survivability of the absorbent coating during geotextile installation in soil, and lateral water transport and discharge in/from the geotextile buried in soils. The specific research objectives are to: (1) manufacture an absorbent-coated geotextile; (2) evaluate the water drainage performance of the geotextile in soils; (3) gain insights into the controlling factors for the effectiveness of the geotextile in soils through numerical modeling; and (4) develop design methods to account for the benefits of the geotextile in roads. The results and insights obtained from the proposed work will serve as a cornerstone for geosynthetic applications that will enhance the water removal from soils by incorporating an absorbent with tailored solid-liquid interfacial wettability. The research outcomes will also allow for rational design of geotextile surfaces enabling absorbing and transporting water even in unsaturated soils.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.