Structural Engineers HALL of FAME
Postings here, document and acknowledge the achievements of individuals honored by the Structural Engineers Association of Washington (SEAW) since the 1950 establishment of the organization.
Georg Kjerbol - Life Member 2006
Georg Kjerbol worked with HNTB in Seattle.
Among other publications, he co-authored "Unearthing Mt. Baker Tunnel," which appeared in Civil Engineering December 1985 and won ASCE's John O. Bickel Award in 1987.
From the abstract: "A new tunnel under Mt. Baker in Seattle is part of major improvements to I-90 between Bellevue and Seattle's business district. Feasibility studies began in 1963, but it was not until 1977 that the concept of a single bored tunnel was accepted by WSDOT. Conventional full face tunneling was not suitable for the site, which had silty clays beneath a residential area. Instead, the stacked drift liner system was used, with 24 bores driven in a circular pattern and filled with concrete before excavation began on the 63 ft diameter tunnel. The liner was designed as a semi-flexible support system capable of adjusting to non-uniform external loading by deforming until equilibrium is reached. Structurally, it acts as a ring in compression. Because they are only 9 ft in diameter, the drifts were excavated with conventional equipment. Access pits 90 ft in diameter and 90 ft deep were converted to vertical retaining walls for the cut-and-cover end portions of the 1,500 ft tunnel."
Posted June 2012