MEG Energy oil exploration at the Christina Lake complex in Alberta is undergoing a large expansion phase:  new oil drilling wells, processing, operations, storage and treatment facilities, and of course new roads connecting them altogether.
The problem was the Muskeg peat bog. This saturated, organic and acidic soil makes any road construction an engineering nightmare. The CBR of the soil is < 1%. Subzero temperatures and frozen bogs prevent construction in the winter, while ice/snow melt, poor drainage and heavy summer rains impede construction in the summer. Parts of the area were covered by swamp.

MEG needed a solution that would increase the road bearing strength and could be constructed before winter in all-weather conditions. The existing peat bog soil was too deep and poorly drained for soil replacement. The cost of importing infill and drainage solutions were prohibitively expensive. No other solution was feasible.

They asked Paradox Access Solutions if it could it be done. The answer was yes – they had Neoloy Tough-Cells.

Paradox and the Tough-Cell®

MEG-2MEG chose Paradox Access – the PRS partner in Canada – because have the toughest geocell available. Faced with the most demanding soil and climate, MEG needed a geocell that could do the following:

• Create a working platform for construction
• Increase subgrade bearing capacity
• Increase moduli of upper structural layers

While HDPE Soft-Cells have been tried, they cannot meet the engineering performance required by the project for stabilization, nor the reinforcement, long-term design strength and environmental durability of Neoloy Tough-Cells. Neoloy is a novel polymeric alloy (NPA) with low creep reduction factor, high dimensional stability under thermal cycling (CTE <110 ppm/°C) and high flexural storage modulus (1150 MPa at -40°C) suitable for these challenging conditions.

Construction

Paradox Access experts designed a reinforced road using one to three layers of Neoloy (Category-D tensile strength >22 kN/m) depending on the saturation level. The existing peat subgrade was covered with geotextiles for drainage and to prevent further mixing with the Neoloy layers.

The Neoloy Tough-Cells were infilled with sand from locally available borrow pits and compacted. The strong hoop strength of the cells creates a “beam effect”, or semi-rigid mattress. This effect distributes vertical loads widely, reduces stress and settlement and extends the road life. The capping wearing course layer was filled with a thin layer of crushed gravel.

The end result was a reliable road that MEG Energy’s heavy rigs and other construction equipment could easily traverse.

For more information about unpaved roads and to see a movie see about this project click here.

For more information about access for oil and resource exploration contact us by clicking here. 

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