How are Combi Walls Utilized in Marine Construction?

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Combi walls are constructed to serve as retaining walls for heavy marine construction purposes that require a significant amount of stiffness and high bearing capacity. They are used as tougher alternatives to regular sheet pile walls or secant walls. Combi walls are most often made up of a combination of sheet pile and steel pipe. Their steel pipe components bolster resistance to force, and their steel sheet pile components connect gaps between the pipes to make the structure secure, strong, and stable. They can act as temporary structures or permanent structures, depending on the type of marine construction and its short-term and long-term needs.

Installation of Combi Walls

A combi wall’s steel pipes are usually driven as bored piles. They are sometimes backfilled with concrete as well as reinforcing steel, but this isn’t always the case. Backfilling increases strength. During the process of driving the steel pipes, installation crews need to be careful to ensure that they are driven straight and vertical. They need to be perfectly parallel to each other and at precise distances apart. The use of a temporary pile-driving template frame is recommended to ensure the successful and proper installation of a combi wall’s steel pipes. Methods like targeted ground treatment and jetting can also be useful to help ensure pipes are driven properly. Once steel pipes are secured in the ground, a final inspection should be done before sheet piles are added to the equation.

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Piling Continued

Once the steel pipes are in place, steel sheet piles are driven into the gaps between the pipes, most often using a vibratory hammer. Piles are aligned with a combi wall pipes by utilizing welded interlocking points. Pile cross sections using H-piles may also be used in the construction of a combi wall. Furthermore, anchors or horizontal struts may be put into place behind a combi wall to stabilize it and provide it with greater load bearing capabilities.

Specific Applications of Combi Walls

Below are some of the types of marine construction projects in which combi walls may be used:

  • Lake filling projects

  • Wharf construction

  • Bridge construction

  • Bridge foundation projects.

  • Railway construction

  • Cofferdam repair and construction

  • Roadway construction

  • Expansion of Ports

  • Levee construction

  • Pier construction

  • Dam repair and construction

  • Building foundation projects

  • And more

Any project where a traditional sheet pile wall does not suffice in terms of bearing strength, a combi wall can be used to provide the load-bearing capacity and stiffness needed. Additionally, a combi wall can be used in order to lower costs in any project in which a secant wall might be used. Combi walls are considerably less expensive and less time consuming to construct than secant walls. They also have the added benefit of being much easier to uninstall if they are intended for temporary use. And their materials can be easily re-used for other projects, whether those other projects involve the construction of another combi wall or if they simply require repurposing of materials.

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FINAL THOUGHTS

Overall, combi walls are a cost-effective solution for a variety of marine construction projects where a retaining wall or similar structure is needed but other options may not fit the bill when it comes to strength or budgetary concerns.

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