Geostatistical modelling of soil properties in east java for site suitability assessment
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Date
2016-09-01
Authors
Marelianda Al Dianty
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Abstract
Spatial variability influences the behaviour of foundation and therefore
the performance of geotechnical structures. This research has carried out
a quantitative analysis for site characterization and for prediction of soil engineering
properties using statistics and geostatistical modelling techniques that are already
used in geotechnical analyses but are rarely applied in the field of
telecommunications. Site investigations have been carried out based on
the procedures of telecommunication projects proponent in East Java province,
Indonesia. The indicators of suitability for the East Java projects were the four
elementary soil engineering properties namely plasticity index, void ratio, porosity
and shear strength. The soil of East Java associated with the foundation of
telecommunication projects were mainly high plasticity. The four indicators of
suitability were used in the prediction and mapping. The spatial pattern of these
indicators we used to identify the areas that have suitable characteristics for
construction. Results from spatial autocorrelation have shown that the variogram
modelling by REML estimator to be more acceptable for prediction and mapping in
comparison to modelling without REML. This research produced prediction maps
with a resolution of 1 km2 grids over 73 sites at eight different zones. The evaluation
of site suitability mapping was carried out based on visibility, topography, land cover
and soil properties, using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) in order
to determine the relative importance of all the selected factors. The result of site
suitability assessment indicate that at Zone 2, Zone 3, Zone 4 and Zone 8 could be
identified as suitable areas while Zone 1, Zone 5, Zone 6 and Zone 7 could be
identified as unsuitable areas for development. Geostatistical modelling using
the ordinary kriging has been successfully used to characterize soil engineering
properties in each zone. This technique could be used as a diagnostic tool in order to
identify the engineering properties of soils at site during the initial planning phase.
The results indicate that this method could decide on the suitability
a telecommunication site even with a smaller dataset. The procedures of this research
could also be used to provide better guidance in prioritizing zones for
site development. Furthermore, they offer a more reliable and informative approach
that may be applied for in decision-making for the safe and economical land planning
for the province of East Java.