Geotechnical News • September 2018
31
THE GROUT LINE
The traditional ½ day Field Dem-
onstration is an integral part of the
course that facilitates direct hands-on
learning. The Field Demo included
high shear mixing, QC testing of fluid
grout, slab jacking, penetration of
microfine cements, tube-a-manchette
grouting, methods for nondestructive
quantification of ground improvement,
along with a broad spectrum of grout
materials (cementitious, chemical, and
cellular).
The 2019 course will again be hosted
by UT Austin. For course details visit:
For additional information please
contact Prof. Scott Kieffer, Course
Director, at
In conclusion, the article of this issue
whch is an unusual application of
HM grouting in a “dried, sinking”
fountain in Philadelphia, PA. Authors
of the article are Mike Miluski PE-
Vice President at CGS-Compaction
Grouting Services, Wallingford, PA
and Brian M.
Fraley, Owner of Fraley Construc-
tion Marketing, Morgantown, PA
.
High mobility grouting keeps historic fountain from sinking
Portions of the Catholic Total Absti-
nence Fountain in Fairmount Park
were in “imminent danger”, according
to a “Restoration Services” Request
for Proposals (RFP) issued by the City
of Philadelphia in August 2014. Open
voids in the foundation were causing
ongoing settlement.
The owner is the City of Philadelphia,
although the Planning, Preservation,
and Property Management Division
of Philadelphia Parks & Recreation
procured and managed the project. A
design-build grouting approach was
proposed to the City.
A fountain of historical
significance
The fountain was unveiled in 1876 as
an ornamental drinking fountain for
the Centennial International Exhibi-
tion, which celebrated the signing of
the Declaration of Independence in
Philadelphia. Its creation was com-
missioned by the Catholic Total
Abstinence Union of America, an
Irish temperance organization that
advocated for total abstinence from
alcohol. Ironically, the fountain ran
dry decades ago.
The now-defunct fountain features
a 100-foot-wide granite base with
three steps in the shape of a Maltese
Cross. The centerpiece – enclosed by
a 40-foot-diameter basin – is a 15-foot
Moses statue perched on an igloo-
shaped marble mound. Four subsidiary
statues rise from granite pedestals
at the tips of each arm of the cross,
including Archbishop John Carroll,
Charles Carroll of Carrollton, Father
Theobald Mathew, and Commodore
John Barry.
Natural and man-made damage
inflictors
The City of Philadelphia’s RFP
called attention to three “high prior-
ity structural areas”. It was noted that
Moses, Father Mathew, and the steps
surrounding the fountain had been
documented as public hazards. The
long-term effects of water infiltration
had set in, eroding mortar joints and
Grouting fundamentals & current prctice short course.
