More Background Information

After attending class today and hearing feedback from our advisor, the group thought it would be a good idea to provide a deeper understanding of how our project will be carried out. The "Week 1 Update - Planning" gives a brief outline of our plans but I would like to extend on that with the following.

The Three-Step Process
The toe wall is a necessary measure to stop soil from sliding any further down an eroded "dune." However, over time a toe wall would become subject to buckling due to the forces and pressure sliding soil puts on it. Our biodegradable intra-soil grid will be the next step to alleviate these pressures. It will provide a more stable structure for the soil. Both the intra-soil grid and the toe wall are still only temporary measures to soil erosion. They are to be put in place in an "Emergency Situation" to allow time for a permanent solution to be derived or implanted. The third step to our process - an erosion control blanket - may be the permanent solution of choice. The blanket will not only cover the surface of the area to keep the soil in place but contain plant seeds. Once these seeds are grown the extensive root network can provide a natural stabilization structure. This plant network is the main motivation behind using a biodegradable grid - it does not need to be removed and will eventually be replaced by the natural source.

The Control Environment and Its Purpose
We plan on creating a "control environment" which shows the sliding and erosion of soil prior to any of the measures discussed above. This environment will be a man-made slope of soil at a certain friction angle. Then a rain simulator will be used to "create" erosion within our model (see "Rain Simulation Design" for more information). After the simulation is run, we plan on measuring the change in angle.

Once the three step process is fabricated it will be tested by running close to the same simulation. It will differ by also adding a load to the top of the slope because only using rain simulation would not be a true indicator of our toe wall's success against sliding soil. The "success" of our project can then be determined if the change in slope angle during testing has decreased from that of the control environment.

Side Notes

• Soil from various places will be used for testing (Delaware County, The Pine Barrens of New Jersey).
• Durable and cost efficient materials will be researched. The proper material may also depend on the origin of the soil.