Permeation grouting in soils: numerical discussion of the reliability of a simplifying analytical approach

Permeation grouting, i.e. injections at low pressure values of either microfine cements or chemical products, is frequently adopted to increase the mechanical/hydraulic properties of soils and standard design approaches are currently either empirical or based on simplified analytical solutions. In this paper, some fundamental hypotheses of these analytical solutions are discussed by performing a campaign of finite element numerical analyses, in which the injection phase in a water saturated soil is analysed, a Newtonian rheology for the grout is implemented and the hypothesis of immiscibility for the two liquids is assumed. The injection source geometry effect is discussed, as well as the role of gravity and capillarity. The authors analyse the conditions, in terms of injection flow rate, grout viscosity, soil intrinsic permeability and retention curve, under which the analytical solutions provide reliable results. The numerical results have been compared with the simplified analytical solution herein derived for a 1D spherical geometry, in terms of the “characteristic curves” for the system: the relationship between injection pressure/grout front advancement and injection time.