Characterization of stacked geotextile tube structure using digital image correlation

Displacement is an important element for evaluating the stability and failure mechanism of hydraulic structures. Digital image correlation (DIC) is a useful technique to measure a three-dimensional displacement field using two cameras without any contact with test material. The objective of this study is to evaluate the behavior of stacked geotextile tubes using the DIC technique. Geotextile tubes are stacked to build a small-scale temporary dam model to exclude water from a specific area. The horizontal and vertical displacements of four stacked geotextile tubes are monitored using a dual camera system according to the upstream water level. The geotextile tubes are prepared with two different fill materials. For each dam model, the interface layers between upper and lower geotextile tubes are either unreinforced or reinforced with a cementitious binder. The displacement of stacked geotextile tubes is measured to analyze the behavior of geotextile tubes. Experimental results show that as upstream water level increases, horizontal and vertical displacements at each layer of geotextile tubes initially increase with water level, and then remain almost constant until the subsequent water level. The displacement of stacked geotextile tubes depends on the type of fill material and interfacial reinforcement with a cementitious binder. Thus, the proposed DIC technique can be effectively used to evaluate the behavior of a hydraulic structure, which consists of geotextile tubes.