Engineering Matters

#265 Tunnelling Innovation: Inventing the Bentonite Shield

<p>Sixty years ago a civil engineer called John Bartlett of Mott, Hay &amp; Anderson had a revolutionary idea. He noticed that bentonite clay could be used in a slurry to stabilise the face of tunnels during excavation. This could prevent non-cohesive, water bearing soils from collapsing inwards making excavation safer and cheaper.   The first...</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://engineeringmatters.reby.media/2024/03/07/265-tunnelling-innovation-inventing-the-bentonite-shield/">#265 Tunnelling Innovation: Inventing the Bentonite Shield</a> first appeared on <a href="https://engineeringmatters.reby.media">Engineering Matters</a>.</p>

Five times winner of the Publisher Podcast Awards, including Best Technology Podcast, Engineering Matters celebrates the work of engineers who use ingenuity, practicality, science, theory and determination to build a better world. In the UK alone 5.7million people work in engineering related enterprises from manufacturing and agriculture to construction and transportation. Their work ensures that the country has sustainable power supplies, better connectivity between cities, increasing efficiency in production processes; advanced manufacturing methods; and is embracing the digital transformations that include virtual modelling of our environment, and development of intelligent machines.    Our episodes will examine the vital work of engineers using a mix of interviews, analysis and site visits.