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Effective stress paths in a sensitive clay

University of British Columbia

Results of drained and undrained triaxial compressions tests on a sensitive clay are presented in this thesis. Contours of water content from both drained and undrained tests are compared, and it appears that for the clay tested, there is not a unique relationship between effective stresses and water content as found by Rendulic and Henkel for remolded soil. The Roscoe concept of a state boundary surface, which is similar to the Rendulic concept is examined, and it also does not hold for the clay tested. The Roscoe energy equation is applied to the results of all tests and it appears to hold quite well. It indicates that for a soil which is yielding there is only one fundamental strength parameter, M, which is independent of both strain and strain rate. Methods of predicting stress-strain relationships are examined. The Roscoe method, which is based on the existence of a state boundary surface is not strictly applicable, but does yield results which are of the same order as the measured relationships. The Landanyi method does not appear to apply to the clay tested. A method for predicting residual pore pressures and or permeability in drained triaxial tests is derived. This enabled allowances to be made for the effect of residual pore pressures in drained tests. However, it is felt that the method may have more application in the examination of soil structure, since a comparison of the permeability of samples at the same void ratio and temperature yields a measure of structural difference.

Text

2011-09-26

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http://hdl.handle.net/2429/37641

Civil Engineering

University of British Columbia

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