Effect of Matric Suction on Resilient Modulus of Compacted Aggregate Base Courses

This research was conducted to investigate the effect of matric suction on resilient modulus of unbound aggregate base courses. The study characterized the water characteristic curves and resilient modulus versus matric suction relationships of aggregate base courses that were compacted at different water contents and between 98 and 103 % of the modified Proctor density. The soil–water characteristic curve (SWCC) and the relationship between resilient modulus (M _r ) and matric suction (ψ) were established for different unbound granular and recycled asphalt pavement materials. This relationship is important for predicting changes in modulus due to changes in moisture of unbound pavement materials. Resilient modulus tests were conducted according to the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) 1-28A procedure at varying water contents, and the measured SWCC was used to determine the corresponding matric suction. Three reference summary resilient moduli (SRM) were considered: at optimum water content, optimum water content +2 % and optimum water content ?2 %. The Bandia and Bargny limestones are characterized by a higher water-holding capacity which explains why the modulus of limestone was more sensitive to water content than for basalt or quartzite. Limestones tend to be more sensitive to changes in water content and thus to matric suction. The shape of the SWCC depends on the particle size distribution and the cementation properties from dehydration of the aggregates. Material properties required as input to the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide (M-EPDG) to predict changes in resilient modulus in response to changes in moisture contents in the field were determined for implementation in the M-EPDG process. Results show that the SRM was more correlated with matric suction than with compaction water content (for resilient modulus testing). The empirical models commonly used to predict the SWCC such as the Perera et al. (Prediction of the SWCC based on grain-size-distribution and index properties. GSP 130 Advances in Pavement Engineering, ASCE, 2005) and the M-EPDG (NCHRP in Guide for mechanistic-empirical design of pavement structures. National cooperative highway research program. ARA, Inc., ERES Consultants Division, Champaign, IL, 2004) models tend to underestimate the SWCC and cannot provide reasonable estimation. SRM normalized with respect to the SRM at the optimum water content varied linearly with the logarithm of matric suction. Empirical relationships between SRM and matric suction on semi-logarithmic scale were established and are reported.     

Influence of matric suction on shear strength behavior of a residual clayey soil

In this paper, the shear strength with respect to the matric suction of unsaturated soils was studied. For this purpose, unsaturated triaxial testing procedures were applied to the undisturbed residual soil specimens. An apparatus for performing triaxial tests was designed and constructed. In the tests, matric suction was controlled by using the axis translation technique, and pore water volume changes were measured by means of a volume change transducer with 10⁻⁸ m³ sensitivity. The test results indicated that the matric suction contributes to the shear strength of unsaturated soil specimens, and this contribution called suction strength varies non-linearly with respect to the matric suction. The logarithmic model needing to know the air-entry value and the internal friction angle of a soil specimen for prediction of the suction strength were presented and compared with the test results. It was found that suction strength values predicted from the proposed model were in satisfactory agreement with the experimental results.     

考虑吸力效应的非饱和黏土回弹模量预估模型

回弹模量是反映路基弹性支撑能力的重要指标,并受运营期间基质吸力变化的显著影响。通过3种压实黏土试样的土-水特征曲线试验和重复动三轴试验,研究了回弹模量与基质吸力的相关性,并基于非饱和土有效应力原理,提出了考虑吸力效应的回弹模量预估模型。结果表明：基质吸力与回弹模量之间具有较强的非线性相关性,可采用指数形式进行两者的拟合;含水率由最佳含水率-4%提升至最佳含水率+4%时,受基质吸力减小的影响,回弹模量降幅达到29.1%～39.0%;在 土-水特征曲线过渡区,采用以饱和度表征的有效应力参数,可较好地反映基质吸力对于回弹模量的贡献,预估效果优于采用残余含水率或进气值相关的有效应力参数;在相同饱和度的情况下,黏粒含量越多、塑性指数越高,基质吸力对有效应力的贡献比例越小。     

Modelling of shear stiffness of unsaturated fine grained soils at very small strains

The shear modulus at very small strains (less than 0.001%) is an important parameter in the design of geotechnical structures subjected to static and cyclic loadings. Although numerous soil models are available for predicting shear modulus of saturated and dry soils, only a few ones can predict shear stiffness at very small strains of unsaturated soils correctly. In this study, a few unsaturated soil models are evaluated critically and compared with a newly developed model. This newly proposed model is verified by using measured shear modulus at very small strains for three different low plasticity fine grained soils available in the literature. It is found that this new model can predict shear modulus at very small strain resulting from an increase and a decrease in mean net stress at constant matric suction for low plasticity fine grained soils. Moreover, this model is able to give a reasonably good prediction on shear stiffness at very small strain during wetting of a collapsible unsaturated soil. In addition, the newly proposed model is illustrated to capture a consistent trend with experimental data of shear stiffness at very small strain for non-collapsible soils obtained during drying–wetting cycles. This evaluation revealed that the newly proposed model has better predictive capabilities than some earlier formulations of the same simplicity. In addition, the proposed model with fewer parameters has similar predictive capability as compared with a more complex model.     

Explicit extension of the p–y method to pile groups in sandy soils

The method of “p–y” curves has been extensively used, in conjunction with simplified numerical methods, for the design and response evaluation of single piles. However, a straightforward application of the method to assess the response of pile groups is questionable when the group effect is disregarded. For this reason, the notion of p-multipliers has been therefore introduced to modify the “p–y” curves and account for pile group effect. The values proposed for p-multipliers result from pile group tests and are limited to the commonly applied spacing of 3.0 D and layout less than 3 × 3, restricting the applicability of the method to specific cases. With the aim of extending the applicability of the “p–y” method to pile groups, the authors have already proposed a methodology for estimating the “p _G–y _G” curves of soil resistance around a pile in a group for clayey soils. A complementary research allowing for the estimation of the “p _G–y _G” curves for sandy soils is presented in this paper. The well-known curves of soil resistance around the single pile in sandy soils are appropriately transformed to allow for the interaction effect between the piles in a group. Comparative examples validate the applicability and the effectiveness of the proposed method. In addition, the method can be straightforwardly extended to account for varying soil resistance, according to the particular location of a pile in a group. It can therefore be used in a most accurate manner in estimating the distribution of forces and bending moments along the characteristic piles of a group and therefore to design a pile foundation more accurately.     

基质吸力对非饱和重塑黄土抗剪强度的贡献

非饱和土抗剪强度随饱和度降低、基质吸力增大而提高.然而,不同类型非饱和土中,基质吸力对抗剪强度的贡献却显著不同.本文通过室内试验,探讨了基质吸力对非饱和重塑黄土抗剪强度贡献的基本特征.研究结果表明,非饱和重塑黄土抗剪强度随着基质吸力的增大,表现为非线性的和明显的4个阶段性增、降和逐渐稳定特征,且分段特征值与土-水特征曲...     

Pile Head Cyclic Lateral Loading of Single Pile

This paper presents an elastic continuum model using an extended nonlinear Davies and Budhu equations, which enables the nonlinear behavior of the soil around the long elastic pile to be modeled using a simple expression of pile-head stiffness method. The calculated results were validated with the measured full-scale dynamic field tests data conducted in Auckland residual clay. An idealized soil profile and soil stiffness under small strain (i.e. shear modulus, G _s and shear wave velocity, V _s of the soil) determined from in situ testing was used to model the single pile tests results. The predictions of these extended equations are also confirmed by using the three-dimensional finite-element OpenSeesPL (Lu et al. in OpenSeesPL 3D lateral pile-ground interaction: user manual, University of California, San Diego, 2010). A soil stiffness reduction factor, G _s /G _s,max of 0.36 was introduced to the proposed method and model. It was found to give a reasonable prediction for a single pile subjected to dynamic lateral loading. The reduction in soil stiffness found from the experiment arises from the cumulative effects of pile–soil separation as well as a change in the soil properties subjected to cyclic load. In summary, if the proposed method and model are accurately verified and properly used, then they are capable of producing realistic predictions. Both models provide good modelling tools to replicate the full-scale dynamic test results.     

粉土基质吸力的新型量测装置与土-水特征研究

以非饱和土张力计原理为基础,制作了一种新型的基质吸力量测装置,并通过实测过程的不断总结与改进,得到了一种成本低廉、制作简单、操作便利、试验快速和结果可靠的非饱和土基质吸力量测装置,以此装置测定了不同体积含水率、不同压实度和干湿循环后粉土的基质吸力变化规律,得到了不同压实度粉土的土-水特征曲线,并通过Origin软件中的Boltzmann模型进行拟合对比分析,得到了与压实度相关的土-水特征曲线,比较了不同压实度粉土的含水率变化对基质吸力的不同影响特点。试验结果表明,干湿循环对粉土的基质吸力和强度有很大影响。     

非饱和土抗剪强度及土压力统一解

基于统一强度理论和非饱和土双应力状态变量抗剪强度,合理考虑中间主应力效应,建立了非饱和土双应力状态变量抗剪强度统一解,并与文献试验结果进行比较,验证了公式的正确性;进而考虑基质吸力的不同分布,得到非饱和土主动土压力和被动土压力统一解,克服了朗肯土压力的不足,并得出中间主应力和基质吸力对土压力的影响特性。研究结果表明,主动土压力随着统一强度理论参数和基质吸力的增大而不断减小,被动土压力则相反;当基质吸力沿深度线性减小时,主动土压力和被动土压力都不像基质吸力沿深度为常数时变化得那么快。该结果为非饱和土抗剪强度和土压力分析提供了理论依据,对工程设计有一定的参考价值。     

Effect of grading characteristics on the undrained shear strength of sand: review with new evidences

In this paper, the shear strength of saturated pure sand and sand–silt mixture is evaluated by monotonic undrained triaxial tests that were carried out on reconstituted specimens at same relative densities and a constant confining pressure (σ ₃?=?300 kPa). The test results were used to conclude on the effect of low non-plastic contents (0–20 %) and grading characteristics on the liquefaction resistance of the sand. The test results indicate that the undrained residual strength reduced with the increase of non-plastic fine content. Also, shear strength of gap-graded sand mixed with low non-plastic fine content increases with decrease in effective size (D ₅₀). In other words, in this state, we can use the D ₅₀ as a parameter to control of silty sand’s undrained resistance. Besides, the undrained residual strength of pure sand specimens with same effective size increases due to increase of coefficient of uniformity (C _u).     

Evaluation of Shear Modulus and Damping Ratio of Granular Materials Using Discrete Element Approach

In this paper, an attempt has been made to highlight the influence of different parameters such as number of cycles, confining pressure, void ratio, gradation, initial anisotropy and stress path on the dynamic properties of granular materials using Discrete Element Method (DEM). A series of strain controlled cyclic triaxial numerical simulations using three dimensional DEM have been carried out on an assembly of spheres. Dynamic properties such shear modulus (G) and damping ratio (D) were determined from the typical hysteresis loop obtained during cyclic triaxial test simulation. It has been observed from the test results that the numerical simulation using DEM has captured the variation of dynamic properties over a wide range of shear strain values for different parameters considered for the current investigation. Maximum shear modulus (G _max) was found to be influenced by initial confining pressure, void ratio, gradation and initial anisotropy. Whereas, the damping ratio (D) was found to be influenced by number of cycles, initial confining pressure, gradation and stress path. Further it has been shown that the variation of shear modulus with shear strain can be divided into three distinct zones such as Isotropic Zone (IZ), Anisotropic Zone (AZ) and Stable Anisotropic Zone (SAZ). A drastic reduction of shear modulus with shear strain has been observed in the Anisotropic Zone (AZ). In addition, the results obtained using numerical simulations have been compared with the laboratory experimental values.     

Rheological properties of clayey soils originating from flow-like landslides

Flow-like landslides in clayey soils represent serious threats for populations and infrastructures and have been the subject of numerous studies in the past decade. However, despite the rising need for landslide mitigation with growing urbanization, the transient mechanisms involved in the solid-fluid transition are still poorly understood. One way of characterizing the solid-fluid transition is to carry out rheometrical tests on clayey soil samples to assess the evolution of viscosity with the shear stress. In this study, we carried out geotechnical and rheometrical tests on clayey samples collected from six flow-like landslides in order to assess if these clayey soils exhibit similar characteristics when they fluidize (solid-fluid transition). The results show that (1) all tested soils except one exhibit a yield-stress fluid behavior that can be associated with a bifurcation in viscosity (described by the critical shear rate \( \dot{\gamma_c} \)) and in shear modulus G; (2) the larger the amplitude of the viscosity bifurcation, the larger the associated drop in G; and (3) the water content (w) deviation from the Atterberg liquid limit (LL) seem a key parameter controlling a common mechanical behavior of these soils at the solid-fluid transition. We propose exponential laws describing the evolution of the critical shear stress τ_c, the critical shear rate \( \dot{\gamma_c} \), and the shear modulus G as a function of the deviation w-LL.     

Evaluation of Static Liquefaction Characteristics of Saturated Loose Sand Through the Mean Grain Size and Extreme Grain Sizes

Liquefaction of soils is a natural phenomenon associated with a dramatic loss of the soil shear strength in undrained conditions due to a development of excess pore water pressure. It usually causes extensive damages to buildings and infrastructures during earthquakes. Thus, it is important to evaluate extent of influential parameters on the liquefaction phenomenon of soils in order to clearly understand the different mechanisms leading to its triggering. The soil gradation is one of the most important parameters affecting the liquefaction phenomenon. In this context, a series of undrained compression triaxial tests were carried out on eighteen natural loose (Dr = 25%) sandy samples containing low plastic fines content of 2% (I_p = 5%) considering different extreme sizes (1.6 mm ≤ D_max ≤ 4 mm and 0.001 mm ≤ D_min ≤ 0.63 mm) and two mean grain size ranges (0.25 mm ≤ D₅₀ ≤ 1.0 mm) and (1.0 mm ≤ D₅₀ ≤ 2.5 mm). The initial confining pressure for all tests was kept constant (P′_c = 100 kPa). The obtained test results indicate that the mean grain size (D₅₀) and extreme grain sizes (D_max and D_min) have a significant influence on the undrained shear strength (known as liquefaction resistance) and appear as pertinent factors for the prediction of the undrained shear strength for the soil gradation under study. The undrained shear strength and the excess pore water pressure can be correlated to the extreme grain sizes (D_max and D_min) and the mean grain size (D₅₀) of tested wet deposited samples.     

非饱和原状黄土强度特性的试验研究

用新研制的非饱和土直剪仪,进行了4组16个控制吸力的非饱和土直剪试验,得到了原状黄土的抗剪强度曲线。分析和探讨了非饱和原状黄土的强度特性。研究表明,同吸力对应的抗剪强度线在 - 图中的位置明显不同,且呈直线式上升;在试验研究的吸力范围内,原状黄土的摩擦角随吸力的变化很小,而粘聚力呈随吸力线性增加。     

Sorption of surfactants and personal care products in Indian soils

Sorption of three surfactants and personal care products in four types of commonly occurring Indian soils was extensively studied. The soils used in the study were red soil, clay soil, compost soil and sandy soil as classified by American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM). The three surfactants used in the study were representative of cationic, non-ionic and anionic surfactant groups. The sorption of surfactants followed the descending order: sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) > trimethyl amine (TMA) > propylene glycol (PG). The maximum adsorption capacity (Q_max) was obtained in compost soil (28.6 mg/g for SDS; 9.4 mg/g for TMA and 4 mg/g for PG). The rate of adsorption was the maximum in compost soil followed by clay and red soils, and minimum for sandy soils. It is found that the Freundlich model fits the isotherm data better than the Langmuir model. Freundlich coefficient (K _f) increased as the organic content of soils increased. Desorption of target pollutants in tap water was 20–50% whereas acid desorbs 40–90% of target pollutants from soil matrix. It was also found that the adsorption and desorption were significantly affected by the presence of clay and organic matter. The results also indicate that surfactants and personal care products, especially TMA and PG, are highly mobile in sandy soil followed by red soil. Therefore, immobilization of target pollutants is most economical and effective in compost and clayey soils whereas for other type of soils the combination of physiochemical and biological process will be effective option for remediation.     

The relationship between the swelling pressure and shear strength of unsaturated soil: the Yanji Basin as a case study

The swelling pressure is a unique and important parameter for reflecting the engineering characteristics of expansive soil, providing a method to study the shear strength of expansive soil. The results of previous studies indicate that the shear strength of unsaturated soil is composed of three parts, and the swelling pressure contributes to the matric suction. Unsaturated direct shear tests and swelling tests of undisturbed expansive soils in the Yanji Basin were performed in this study, and the relationship between the swelling pressure and water content, as well as between the total cohesion and initial water content, were analyzed. According to a data regression analysis, a variety of fitting functions were used for comparisons and a linear relationship between the swelling pressure and the matric suction was established. The study indicate that the exponential fitting function, power function, and linear function should be used and compared with one another to find the best fit. This research is significant for the study of the relationship between shear strength and the swelling pressure of unsaturated soil.     

The consolidation characteristics of an unsaturated compacted soil

The compacted soils are extensively employed as mineral liners or a sealing system, constructed under municipal solid waste and other containment hazardous materials to prevent or minimize the leakage of pollutant liquids and gases into ground water and sublayers. This article presents a detailed experimental study on settlement characteristics, which are required for the construction of a sealing system. For the experimental study where a compacted unsaturated soil taken from Adana in Turkey has been used, a special equipped consolidation cell has been designed and constructed. The matric suction adopted as independent stress-state variables has been controlled by using the axis translation technique. The consolidation tests have been performed under constant matric suction. Furthermore, the pressure plate tests for various net vertical stresses have been conducted. The test results have indicated that the settlement characteristics of a compacted soil as mineral liners and covers are highly affected by matric suction. The water retention capacity of mineral liners, an important factor for hydraulic conductivity, also changes with the vertical load. The compressibility decreases as the matric suction increases. It has been observed that there exists an exponential relationship between the compressive indexes (C _t, D _t) and matric suction.     

基质吸力对非饱和土抗剪强度的影响

在自然界和工程实践中遇到的土大多数是非饱和土,研究吸力对非饱和土抗剪强度的作用,对于工程实践具有重要的意义。通过压力板仪和直剪仪组合试验,探讨了击实土抗剪强度和基质吸力的关系。试验结果表明：凝聚力在饱和度为40%-60%时最大,而内摩擦角则随饱和度增加而有所减少。进一步对比土-水特征曲线与抗剪强度的关系,并整合前人研究成果,指出了非饱和土中吸力对其抗剪强度影响的规律。对于无黏性土,在边界效应区不产生假凝聚力,且内摩擦角不变;在过渡区与非饱和残余区,假凝聚力和基质吸力的关系存在峰值且变化较大,内摩擦角则随吸力增加而增加。对于黏性土,残余体积含水率所对应的最小吸力可能是影响抗剪强度的界限值,小于此吸力值,φb可近似为常数。但在非饱和残余区,凝聚力将随土状态路径的不同而变化。对于重塑土,凝聚力降低;而对于原状土,则凝聚力可能不变或增加。     

Dynamic soil properties and seismic ground response analysis for North Indian seismic belt subjected to the great Himalayan earthquakes

The paper highlights the importance of using site-specific shear modulus reduction (G/G_max versus shear strain, γ) curves and damping ratio (D versus shear strain, γ) curves for ground response analysis. In order to develop comprehensive G/G_max–γ and D–γ curves (i.e. over a wide range of strain level), two types of apparatus, viz. resonant column and cyclic simple shear, have been used. The case study considered the geological deposits from the river beds of Yamuna River originating from the Himalayan seismic zone of North India. The tests results have been analysed to develop G/G_max–γ and D–γ curves and compared with standard curves. It has been observed that upper and lower boundaries for the standard curves are remarkably different for the geological deposit under consideration. In order to assess the impact of using standard curves rather than site-specific curves, ground response analysis has been carried out at five sites along the Yamuna River using two types of curves (standard and site-specific developed in this study). The study showed that the amplification of shear waves at these sites based on the experimentally derived curves is much higher as compared to the standard curves. The proposed curves better represent dynamic behaviour of the soil deposits of the region and will provide a realistic response as far as practically possible, for the structures constructed in the states of Haryana and Delhi and nearby areas. It is anticipated that the data presented in this paper will have wide application and usage.

     

Modelling of unsaturated ground behaviour influenced by vegetation transpiration

Vegetation contributes to weak soil stabilisation through reinforcement of the soil, dissipation of excess pore pressure and increasing the shear strength by induced matric suction. This paper describes the way vegetation influences soil matric suction, shrinkage and ground settlement in the vadose zone through transpiration. A mathematical model for the rate of root water uptake, including the root growth rate considering ground conditions, type of vegetation and climatic parameters, has been developed. A finite element approach is employed to solve the transient coupled flow-deformation equations. The finite element mesh is built using partially saturated soil elements capable of representing the salient aspects of unsaturated permeability and the soil water characteristic curve. The model formulation is based on the effective stress theory of unsaturated soils. Based on this proposed model, the distribution of the ground matric suction profile adjacent to the tree is numerically analysed. Current field measurements of soil matric suction and moisture content collected from Miram site located in Victoria State, Australia by the authors are compared with the numerical predictions. The results indicate that the proposed root water uptake model incorporated in the numerical analysis can be used for prediction of ground properties influenced by tree roots.