Under the Undersea World
by John Prendergast, Assoc. Editor;Serial Information: Civil Engineering—ASCE, 1991, Vol. 61, Issue 1, Pg. 46-49
Document Type: Feature article
Abstract:
Soil conditions in New Orleans are generally unfavorable to the construction of large structures, and exceptionally so along the Mississippi River banks, which tend to slide. But that hasn't stopped the city from slating the area for commercial development, as maritime traffic has declined and many of the old wharves have been left largely abandoned. The article describes the latest addition to the New Orleans waterfront�the $40 million Aquarium of the Americas, a 110,000 sq ft, 3-story structure of cast-in-place reinforced concrete that features a 145 ft tall 100 ft dia cylinder clad in aluminum and green-tinted glass. The aquarium has been called the most advanced in the world, but for engineers at least what's underneath the building may be its most interesting feature. The aquarium's foundation is a forest of steel-pipe piles driven hundreds of feet deep into the Mississippi River bottom.
Subject Headings: Structure reinforcement | Reinforced concrete | Pile foundations | Waterfront structures | Urban areas | Urban and regional development | Underwater structures
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