Abstract: An improved thermally insulated, impact and abrasion resistant pipeline and an impact resistant, flexible, cementitious material which maintains low thermal conductivity when submerged and which is suitable for insulating underwater pipelines, said material comprising:hydraulic cement, a closed cell aggregate which exhibits low water absorption under high hydrostatic pressure and a polymeric modifier which increases flexibility and reduces porosity of the cured cementitious material.

Abstract: A shoring system consists of a number of vertical legs, with a ledger frame between each pair of adjacent legs. The ledger frame comprises an upper horizontally extending member and a lower horizontally extending member. There are vertical side members adjacent the sides of the frame. The horizontal members extend beyond the vertical side members and each horizontal member is provided with terminal connectors adapted to connect the horizontal members to the vertical legs. Consequently the vertical members on the ledger frame are spaced away from the vertical legs.

Abstract: A device for injecting concrete, plastic or the like into cracks in a concrete structure, a rock face or the like comprises an elastic, radially expandable and substantially tubular body adapted to be securely and sealingly engaged within a bore hole in communication with the cracks. The body has a first end portion with a non-return valve to be introduced deepest into the bore hole and a second end portion adapted to be connected to a feed pipe for the material to be injected. The elastic body is formed as an integral unit and is adapted to expand into engagement with the bore hole before the non-return valve opens at a predetermined pressure to inject the material into the bore hole.

Abstract: A retaining wall construction comprises modular facing blocks connected by fasteners to anchoring blocks positioned behind the facing blocks. The facing blocks are arranged in courses which overlap one another. The facing blocks, as well as the anchor blocks, have hollow, vertical throughbores. This enables interconnection of the back wall of the facing block with the anchor block by means of various types of fasteners. The retaining wall construction is especially useful in the construction of low height, gravity type walls.

Abstract: A permanent form-drain network adapted for radon remediation. A permanently installed form-drain system is partially piecewise modified and adapted to collect and remove radon gas from sub-slab, as well as basement and similar near-subterranean, portions of building. The partial piecewise modification of an existing form-drain includes adapting existing connector elements of the form-drain with vent tubes and differently molded pieces such as offset transition conduits and "T" shaped divergent conduits. The method for installing the invention conceives of the use of a radon accretion zone gas barrier made of an impermeable membrane.

Abstract: An open cutting to construct a raft foundation right after the first excavation, and to use the raft foundation as a work stage for constructing ground and basement floor slabs by fixing floor-forms to the top-slab thereof. As the raft foundation is lowered, the bracing appliance is fixed to the bottom slab of the raft foundation to give support to the retaining wall.

Abstract: A wear pad assembly for the bottom of a large machine operated device has a number of wear pads, each of which has a number of sections which are compressed and sandwiched together. The sections have an inclined front surface to assist in scooping debris or snow from a floor surface or a street. The sections are mounted in a frame which has a top plate, a pair of end plates which are perpendicular to the top plate, and a pair of rods which extend between the end plates and are parallel each other and to the top plate. The sections may include fabric reinforced rubber, molded rubber, polyurethane, or a combination of these materials.

Abstract: The invention provides that wire mesh cage structures (22) are used to provide structural blocks usable in building, shoring walls and the like. The cage is lined with a geotextile fibrous material (24) which allows the passage therethrough of water, but not particulate material (26) such as cement, sand aggregate which are used as materials for filling the cage. The invention discloses novel forms of cage structure and also that the finished blocks can be coated with curable synthetic resin to conceal the mesh and provide a decorative finish.

Abstract: A widened base, latticed frame work structure for supporting an offshore platform includes four main legs slanting in a lower region and a transition region of the structure and extending parallel in pairs in the front and rear faces in the upper region. A pair of secondary legs aligned with the upper part of the main legs form the launch rails on which the structure can be launched from a barge. The widened base is formed by dihedral external lateral faces and main legs, the structure being fixed to the sea bottom by vertical piles attached to the lower end of the main legs.

Abstract: A hydraulic excavator adapted to be changed over simply to a fine operation mode so as to control the capacity of a hydraulic pump through load-sensing control to thereby make it possible to perform accurate work when the machine needs to be finely operated temporarily for operations such as ground levelling, and position adjustment on a dump vessel, wherein the fine operation mode is easily cleared to switch the excavator to a standard mode to thereby improve operability, as well as work efficiency. When the excavator is switched to the fine operation mode so as to control the capacity of the hydraulic pump through load-sensing control for accurate work, the engine is driven at such a torque and engine revolution as permitting a minimum fuel consumption, thus reducing the fuel consumption of the engine.

Abstract: A barrier wall for containment of flood waters composed of multiples of modules which are easily transported to the site and erected without tools, by only a few persons with no special skills or training. Flexible coversheets, having foam seals which conform the modules to the ground and prevent flood waters from undercutting the ground and rendering the wall unstable are placed on the ground. Compartmented flexible ballast cell units are placed on the cover sheets just over the seals. The edges of the coversheets are coupled together as are the ends of the ballast cell units for continuity of the wail. The ballast cells can then be filled with water, sand, earth, gravel or other available material and the front portions of the cover sheets brought up and over the ballast cells to form a wall. An additional tier can be added to double the height of the wall.

Abstract: The present invention features a differential dynamic programming (DDP) method for computing optimal, time-varying pumping policies utilized in groundwater remediation. The strategy for treating the groundwater can use a feedback law generated by a constrained differential dynamic programming algorithm with penalty functions. The method has been tested in cases where there is uncertainty in the hydraulic conductivity. Confined transient aquifer flow and transport were modeled, using a two-dimensional Galerkin finite element scheme with implicit time differencing. Optimal policies were calculated using a given or "measured" set of hydraulic conductivities and initial conditions. The optimal policies were applied using the same finite element model with a second, or "true" set of conductivities The "true" sets of conductivities were generated randomly from an autocorrelated lognormal distribution by the spectral method.

Abstract: A stalk and root shredder that is provided with rollers which grasp and move stalks and roots upwardly into the path of rotation of blades which shred the stalks and roots and deposits them back onto the ground surface. The stalk and root shredder is hydraulically powered from pump units mounted directly from the tractor by connection with the power take off spline thereby eliminating the use of a power take off shaft. The hydraulic system includes separate hydraulic motors for driving the rollers and blades with the hydraulic system including a cooling arrangement which maintains optimum operating temperatures of the motor and hydraulic fluid. The stalk and root shredder includes a supporting frame and wheels with this structure being quite similar to that illustrated in my prior U.S. Pat. No. 4,015,667 issued Apr. 5, 1977 with the present invention relating to the improvements in the structure and hydraulic operation of the rollers and blade assemblies mounted over the rollers.

Abstract: An assembly for coupling a maneuvering member to a working implement generally consisting of a first coupling component mountable on the working tool, a second coupling component mountable on the maneuvering member and cooperative with the first coupling component for selectively coupling the coupling components together, the first coupling component having an annular undercut portion providing an outwardly facing, beveled gripping surface, the second coupling component having a fixed gripping member and a moveable gripping member displaced relative to the fixed gripping member along a line of travel, the gripping members having arcuate undercut portions providing inwardly facing, beveled gripping surfaces engageable with the outwardly facing, beveled gripping surface of the second coupling component, means for selectively displacing the moveable gripping member relative to the fixed gripping member along the line of travel into a fully coupled condition of the coupling components and a fully uncoupled condit

Abstract: A method of circulating ground water in a ground region with a fall of a ground water level, comprises the steps of forming a first well shaft with a water permeable shaft wall in a ground region through which ground water flows, forming at least one second well shaft with a water permeable shaft wall at a distance from the first shaft wall in a ground region with a lower ground water level than in the first well shaft, providing a transverse connection between the first well shaft and the at least one second well shaft so that the ground water can flow from the first well shaft under the action of a ground water level fall into the at least one second well shaft.

Abstract: A method of lining an old pipe (1) with a plastics liner (20) avoids the need to excavate a hole at the underground connection (2) between the pipe and a main (3). This is achieved by injecting a flowable sealant material into the annular space between the liner (20) and the pipe (1) such that the sealant extends close to the connection (2). To prevent sealant entering the main (3), the advancing sealant is detected when it approaches the connection (2) by a capacitative sensor (81) located within the liner on a flexible elongate carrier (69). The procedure is carried out with gas in the main (3), a removable plug (67) being housed in a terminator (62) for the liner (20), and the plug being subsequently captured by a connector (68) on the carrier (69) and then withdrawn through the liner. The sensor (81) also enables the liner prior to injection of the sealant to be correctly positioned axially of the pipe ( 1) according to the type of connection (2).

Abstract: A means for securing a cover to a drainage channel body defining a drainage channel and wherein said channel body defines at least two cutouts located substantially opposite one another in inner side walls defining said channel comprises at least one cross-bar and a fixing means. The cross-bar defines two ends that can be inserted respectively into said cutouts so that the cross-bar is disposed transversely across the drainage channel. A clamping means is located at at least one of the ends of the cross-bar to retain the cross-bar in place after insertion of its ends into the cut-outs. The fixing means attaches the cover to the channel body by way of attachment of the cover to the cross-bar.

Abstract: A buried fluid storage tank with a single fluid-tight enclosure which comprises an external concrete enclosure buried into the ground, a rigid structure with a bottom slab and possibly a covering dome as well as a fluid-tight heat-insulating envelope which defines inside of the structure a fluid loading space, whereas the external enclosure has the shape of a thick substantially fluid-tight wall, this enclosure as well as the covering dome being made integral with each other from one single piece of material and forming together with the bottom slab the stiffening structure of the tank, the invention being applicable to a confinement tank in particular for a harbor terminal for loading a liquefied natural gas.

Abstract: A weeding device includes an elongated shaft, a ground-penetrating tool on one end of the shaft, a pad on the shaft adjacent the tool, and a handle on the other end of the shaft. The user pushes the tool into the ground adjacent a weed and kicks the pad with his foot to force the weed out of the ground.

Abstract: Surface drainage apparatus comprises a channel body defining a drainage channel with a cover defining apertures through which drainage can pass into the drainage channel. A fixing means is provided for attachment of the cover to the channel body and comprises a first fixing element for attachment to the channel body and a complementary second fixing element for attachment to the cover. The channel body defines at least one universal receiving aperture into which one of a plurality of differently constructed first fixing elements is capable of being located both before and after installation of said surface drainage apparatus. In this way both the production costs and the operating costs of the surface drainage apparatus can be reduced, especially when conversion is necessary.