title: On the geotechnical characterisation of the polluted submarine sediments from Taranto.
abstract: This paper reports the results of the first geomechanical laboratory experiments carried out on the polluted submarine clayey sediments of the Mar Piccolo in Taranto (South of Italy). The study had to face with extreme difficulties for the very soft consistency of the sediments and the contaminants. The mineralogy, composition and physical properties of the sediments were analysed, along with their compression and shearing behaviour. The investigation involved sediments up to about 20 m below the seafloor, along three vertical profiles in the most polluted area of the Mar Piccolo, facing the Italian Navy Arsenal. The experimental results were used to derive a preliminary geotechnical model of the site, necessary for the selection and design of the most sustainable in situ mitigation solutions. Moreover, the experimental data reveal that the clayey sediments of the most polluted top layer do not follow the classical geotechnical correlations for normally consolidated deposits. This seems to open interesting perspectives about the effects of pollutants on the geotechnical behaviour of the investigated sediments.
authors.affiliation: Politecnico di Bari, Bari, Italy. claudia.vitone@poliba.it.
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Vitone
authors.affiliation: Politecnico di Bari, Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Federico
authors.affiliation: Institute for Geotechnical Engineering, ETH Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Alexander M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Puzrin
authors.affiliation: Institute for Geotechnical Engineering, ETH Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ploetze
authors.affiliation: Politecnico di Bari, Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Elettra
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Carrassi
authors.affiliation: Politecnico di Bari, Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Todaro
mesh_terms: D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000737:chemistry*; D007558:Italy; D008903:Minerals / Q000737:chemistry; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000737:chemistry*; D014877:Water Pollution, Chemical / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D008903:Minerals; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: Contaminated soils; Geotechnical characterisation; Mechanical behaviour; Submarine sediments