Air-filled bladder based bridging across weak and compressible solids

Abstract

A system for creating a bridge across an expanse of weak and compressible materials (e.g., a lagoon) may include an air bladder, a geosynthetic installed over the air bladder and across the expanse, and fill materials installed over the geosynthetic and across the expanse. In conjunction, the air bladder, geosynthetic, and fill materials may create a bridge across the expanse. The geosynthetic may include a separation geotextile and/or a geogrid or a reactive core mat. The geosynthetic may be installed with a free excess length corresponding to a final expected profile of the geosynthetic after consolidation of underlying materials. The air bladder may be inflated to take up the excess slack in the geosynthetic. After or while fill is consolidated, the air bladder may be deflated in a controlled manner to maintain stability while consolidating the underlying materials. Additional systems and associated methods are also disclosed.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.