The need to remove sediments from port bottoms leads to the disposal of considerable dredged materials (approximately 150 million m3 are dredged in Europe annually). Moreover, in Europe, national and international laws incentivise the reuse, recycling and recovery of these materials through specific reclamation treatments. This scenario has favoured the study and experimentation in recent years by the Geotechnics group of the Politecnico di Bari, which led, thanks to funding from the European LIFE programme, to the launch of the “GREENLIFE4SEAS, GREEN ENgineering solutions: a new LIFE for SEdiments And Shells” project. This engages scientific and technological research in defining strategies to transform dredged sediments from waste into a resource through environmentally friendly solutions in order to define scientifically sound approaches for the standardisation of sustainable reuse processes. In this context, new perspectives are offered in the field, with likely applications of industrial relevance. The project proposal proposes the use of innovative and sustainable solutions for the mechanical improvement of sediments involving the partial replacement of traditional cement binders with a powder obtained without calcination from mussel shells, another by-product that is difficult to dispose of, in order to create a new stable material that can be used in the construction sector. Such alternative solutions, unlike traditional solutions where only cementitious binders are used with all the environmental problems associated with their use, make it possible to transform two wastes into resources. The present research offers the preliminary results of an experimental investigation concerning the geotechnical characterisation of sediments taken from the San Cataldo dock of the Port of Bari in the Adriatic Sea, Italy (one of the 4 Mediterranean ports involved in the project). Currently, the characterisation programme is ongoing and in collaboration with several partners involved in the project in order to optimise the treatment solution according to the physical and mechanical characteristics of the dredged sediment. The main objective of the investigation is to provide a comprehensive overview of sediment behaviour at both the microscopic and macroscopic level, focusing on the physical, geochemical and geotechnical characteristics of the natural sediment.
La necessità di rimuovere sedimenti dai fondali portuali comporta l’esigenza di smaltimento di notevoli materiali dragati (circa 150 milioni di m3 vengono dragati in Europa annualmente.). Inoltre, in Europa, leggi nazionali e internazionali incentivano il riutilizzo, il riciclo e il recupero di tali materiali attraverso preventivi specifici trattamenti di bonifica. Questo scenario ha favorito lo studio e la sperimentazione degli ultimi anni del gruppo di Geotecnica del Politecnico di Bari che ha portato, grazie ai finanziamenti del programma europeo LIFE, all’avvio del progetto “GREENLIFE4SEAS, GREen ENgineering solutions: a new LIFE for SEdiments And Shells”. Questo impegna la ricerca scientifica e tecnologica nel definire strategie per trasformare i sedimenti dragati da rifiuto a risorsa attraverso soluzioni a ridotto impatto ambientale al fine di definire approcci scientificamente validi per la standardizzazione dei processi di riutilizzo sostenibile. In questo contesto, si offrono nuove prospettive nel settore, con probabili applicazioni di rilevanza industriale. La proposta progettuale propone l'impiego di soluzioni innovative e sostenibili per il miglioramento meccanico dei sedimenti che prevedono la sostituzione parziale dei leganti cementizi tradizionali con una polvere ottenuta senza calcinazione dai gusci di cozze, un altro sottoprodotto di difficile smaltimento, al fine di creare un nuovo materiale stabile utilizzabile nel settore edilizio. Tali soluzioni alternative, a differenza di quelle tradizionali in cui si prevede l’uso dei soli leganti cementizi con tutti i problemi ambientali connessi al loro utilizzo, permettono di trasformare due rifiuti in risorse. La presente ricerca offre i risultati preliminari di un'indagine sperimentale riguardante la caratterizzazione geotecnica dei sedimenti prelevati dal molo San Cataldo del Porto di Bari nel Mar Adriatico, Italia (uno dei 4 porti del Mediterraneo coinvolti nel progetto). Attualmente, il programma di caratterizzazione è in corso e in collaborazione con diversi partner coinvolti nel progetto al fine di ottimizzare la soluzione di trattamento in funzione delle caratteristiche fisiche e meccaniche del sedimento dragato. L'obiettivo principale dell'indagine è fornire una panoramica completa sul comportamento dei sedimenti sia a livello microscopico che macroscopico, concentrandosi sulle caratteristiche fisiche, geochimiche e geotecniche del sedimento naturale.
CARATTERIZZAZIONE GEOTECNICA DEL SEDIMENTO DRAGATO DAL PORTO DI BARI PER IL PROGETTO GREENLIFE4SEAS
LORUSSO, DONATELLA
2023/2024
Abstract
The need to remove sediments from port bottoms leads to the disposal of considerable dredged materials (approximately 150 million m3 are dredged in Europe annually). Moreover, in Europe, national and international laws incentivise the reuse, recycling and recovery of these materials through specific reclamation treatments. This scenario has favoured the study and experimentation in recent years by the Geotechnics group of the Politecnico di Bari, which led, thanks to funding from the European LIFE programme, to the launch of the “GREENLIFE4SEAS, GREEN ENgineering solutions: a new LIFE for SEdiments And Shells” project. This engages scientific and technological research in defining strategies to transform dredged sediments from waste into a resource through environmentally friendly solutions in order to define scientifically sound approaches for the standardisation of sustainable reuse processes. In this context, new perspectives are offered in the field, with likely applications of industrial relevance. The project proposal proposes the use of innovative and sustainable solutions for the mechanical improvement of sediments involving the partial replacement of traditional cement binders with a powder obtained without calcination from mussel shells, another by-product that is difficult to dispose of, in order to create a new stable material that can be used in the construction sector. Such alternative solutions, unlike traditional solutions where only cementitious binders are used with all the environmental problems associated with their use, make it possible to transform two wastes into resources. The present research offers the preliminary results of an experimental investigation concerning the geotechnical characterisation of sediments taken from the San Cataldo dock of the Port of Bari in the Adriatic Sea, Italy (one of the 4 Mediterranean ports involved in the project). Currently, the characterisation programme is ongoing and in collaboration with several partners involved in the project in order to optimise the treatment solution according to the physical and mechanical characteristics of the dredged sediment. The main objective of the investigation is to provide a comprehensive overview of sediment behaviour at both the microscopic and macroscopic level, focusing on the physical, geochemical and geotechnical characteristics of the natural sediment.I documenti in UNITESI sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14253/68802