Technical Documents

TerraFlex™ was developed specifically to be a synthetic compressible inclusion (SCI) with engineered, well defined properties.

It is significantly softer than the lowest density Geofoam available and it has a much higher elastic strain limit of 10-20%. Additionally, it's long term behavior, under sustained load, reveals it to be significantly more compressible than any other material, including all densities of ordinary EPS geofoam.

It is made into panels measuring 4' x 4' with thicknesses varying from 2 inches up to 30 inches.

TerraFlex™ is manufactured by GeoTech Licensees using a process patented in 1998.

TerraFlex™ will serve as an elastic, compressible layer between the earth and rigid structures. It has been tested under conditions of rapid cyclic loading as well as long term loading to determine it's behavior in every potential application. It has seen use in the following applications:

• On building foundations in order to mobilize the soil strength and reduce loads
• Behind Integral Bridge Abutments to accommodate the seasonal and daily motion caused by temperature cycles
• Behind outdoor retaining walls in conjunction with a MSE system to reduce wall pressures to near zero.

TEST Description Nominal Value

ASTM D1622 Density (Nominal) 1.0 pcf
ASTM D1621 Strength at 10% Deformation <5 psi
ASTM D1623 Tensile Strength 16 psi
ASTM D732 Shear Strength 55 psi
ASTM D1621 Modulus of Elasticity <100 psi

PHYSICAL STANDARDS
ASTM D3345-74 Insect Resistance (ants, termites etc.)

Graphs:

TerraFlex™ Isochronous Strain-StressCurves

TerraFlex™ Cyclic Load Test Results

5 Psi Creep Test Results

Application Data:

Vertical Soil Arching White Paper (125K pdf)

Technical paper discussing the mechanism of soil arching and the use of TerraFlex™ as the compressible inclusion. 10 Pages with equations, example, graphs, design guidelines -- A Must Read!

Specifications:

TerraFlex™ Specification (614K pdf)

This is a concise specification that captures the salient characteristics of the TerraFlex™ Synthetic Compressible Inclusion.

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