A Siphon Drainage Method for Consolidation of Soft Soil Foundation

The drainage consolidation method can reduce porosity to consolidate soft soils. In this study, a novel siphon drainage method is used as the drainage consolidation method to lower the groundwater level. Compared to other drainage methods, the siphon drainage method is power-free, environmental-friendly, and highly efficient. Numerical simulations are conducted to verify the feasibility of the siphon drainage method on soft soil treatment. In addition, the effects of soil permeability and drainage hole spacing on its application efficiency have been studied. The results show that: (a) The siphon drainage method can accelerate the consolidation by lowering the groundwater level; (b) The larger the soil permeability is, the faster the pore water pressure decreases; (c) Adopting 1 m hole-spacing in the siphon drainage is much more efficient than methods which have a 2 m hole-spacing. In addition, the siphon drainage method is proven the effective in soft soil foundation treatment by a field test in Zhoushan, Zhejiang Province.