Problem of selection of suitable geosynthetics for the strengthening of subgrade in road construction, selection of assessment criteria

The introduction of geosynthetics into road construction significantly facilitated fulfilment of the set of requirements for modern road building technologies. The fact that geosynthetic materials can be implemented at all stages, from earthwork through land drainage to the construction of layers of roads, new, repaired or strengthened ones, means that geosynthetics now occupy an important place in contemporary road building technologies. Industry supplies numerous materials classified as geosynthetics. In line with the standard PN-EN ISO 10318:2007, we distinguish four principal groups of these products: geotextiles, geotextile derivatives, geosynthetic barriers and geocomposites. The industrially produced materials have various properties, which means they have different applicability. This paper analyses basic characteristics, which decide how geosynthetics can be used. Because of a large number of features and factors that could apply to an evaluation of specific solutions, it is necessary to include a large group of criteria. Their analysis might be cumbersome, and therefore an approach is suggested which will greatly facilitate making a complex assessment and selection of a solution which will best meet the customer’s expectations. The assessment of the extent to which specific criteria are met by the geosynthetic materials selected for an analysis allows us to gain better understanding of their suitability and proper choice, supported by multifactorial analytical methods. The theme of the article is a preliminary step which is to prepare and organize the relevant characteristics of geosynthetics and define the major groups of criteria and sub-criteria.