The erosion control of the embankments of water bodies such as coastal lines, river embankments, earthen dam embankments, etc. is a challenge. There are various methods to protect the embankments from erosion. One of the effective methods is the use of soil bags. Based on the type of soil filled in the soil bags and environmental conditions, different types of fibre and fabric are in use for the preparation of these bags. A relative comparison of different types of fibre and fabric is essential for the selection of a suitable type of soil bag.  Soil bags have been used for the protection of embankments against erosion control for years; however, the selection of geosynthetic materials to be used for the bags and their fabric is not well defined in the literature and, therefore, needs to be investigated in detail. The present study aims to identify a suitable type of soil bag for erosion control of embankments. The objective of the present study is to try different fibres and fabrics for the soil bags, to check the performance of soil bags filled with different types of soils and to evaluate their performance under different environmental conditions.  Polypropylene spun bond and woven fabrics were selected for the characterization to be used as soil bags. Four polypropylene and one polyester fibre consisting of three non-woven fabrics and two woven were investigated as soil bags for erosion control. The index properties of different geosynthetic fibres were determined in the laboratory. Moreover, soil bags were prepared and filled with the soils which are usually used for erosion control. The soil bags were tested in the laboratory for their performance evaluation based on their porosity, water resistance, tensile properties, tensile strength and thermal conductivity. The test results indicated that the porosity and pore area reduced with the increase in the fabric mass in grams per meter square. The case of non-woven fabrics had less porosity as compared to the woven fabrics. All types of fabrics have a higher tensile strength in the lengthwise direction as compared to the widthwise direction. The woven fabrics have less water resistance than all the fabrics. There is an increase in the thermal conductivity of the non-woven fabrics with the increase in the gram per square meter GSM.  The sandbags manufactured by using 100 GSM non-woven fabrics have the highest tensile strength as compared to the woven and non-woven fabrics. From the results it may be concluded that the non-woven fibre with 100 GSM is relatively better for use in the preparation of soil bags for embankment stability and erosion control.

Keywords: Fabric, Erosion, Fibre, Characterization, Embankment.