Soil-Sement® Engineered Formula Successful in JRAC Program Testing for Rapid Soil Stabilization
CANTON, OHIO — Soil-Sement® Engineered Formula, manufactured by Midwest Industrial Supply, Inc., was the polymer used in recent field tests to demonstrate that any soil type, in any location can be rapidly stabilized. The point of the demonstration was to rapidly build runways and aprons that could handle C-130 and C-17 Aircraft at the Sicily Assault Landing Zone Airfield at Ft. Bragg, NC. Off-the-shelf materials, modified commercial equipment and new engineering systems were utilized to get runways operational in hours or days instead of the three weeks that it normally takes.
The mission of the Joint Rapid Airfield Construction (JRAC) Program at the US Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) is to provide engineering tools and systems to dramatically increase military engineers’ capabilities in airfield upgrade and construction. Key elements of JRAC technologies are performance-based site selection and assessment, enhanced construction and rapid soil stabilization. The ERDC utilized rapid stabilization techniques such as fiber-reinforced multi-purpose matting and a fiber or polymer with high-early strength combinations and found that what normally took three weeks to accomplish was done in less than three days. Contributing to the success of the testing was Soil-Sement® Engineered Formula, which the ERDC used to form a tough weatherproof apron and a dust-controlled surface. Just 75 hours after the site survey began, the runway and apron were ready for aircraft. The pilots were excited because the airfield could now handle up to three aircraft at a time during training exercises.
EnviroKleen® was used on the taxiway in front of the viewing stands, as part of the products demonstration. Complete information on the JRAC Sicily Assault Landing Zone Project can be seen at https://JRAC.erdc.usace.army.mil.
The Military Engineer Article - Rapid Contingency Airfields
Off-the-shelf materials, modified commercial equipment and new
engineering systems can get a runway operational in hours or days.
