When fill is pushed onto soft clay or peat faster than the ground can carry it, the soft soil shears and squeezes forward and upward in a wave. The wave can trap soft material under the fill or tear a geosynthetic laid on the surface. Crews avoid it by spreading from the center outward, keeping lifts thin and laying a strong basal geotextile or geogrid first.
Mud wave is building at the toe of the push, slow it down and spread from the middle out.
Also heard as
- mudwave
- mud bulge
Related terms
Subgrade
Native or prepared soil surface on which a pavement, aggregate base or liner system is built.
Undercut
Digging out soft or unsuitable subgrade below grade and replacing it with better fill.
Reinforcement
Using the tensile strength of a geosynthetic to hold soil together so it can stand steeper or carry more load.
Wick drain
Field name for a prefabricated vertical drain: a plastic core in a filter jacket pushed into soft clay to speed settlement.