• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2010.09c
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• pp.55-60
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• 2010

Rockfill zones in CFRD consist typically of large granular materials, usually the maximum particle size up to several meters, which makes laboratory testing to determine the mechanical properties of rockfill difficult. Commonly, the design strength of the rockfills is obtained by scaling down the original rockfill materials and performing laboratory strength tests for the reduced size materials. The objective of the present study is to investigate the effect of particle size on the shear behavior and the strength for granular materials. A series of large-scale triaxial tests was conducted on large granular materials with the maximum particle size varying from 20 to 50mm. The test results showed that overall shear behaviors were similar between the samples with different particle sizes while there were slight differences in the magnitudes of the peak shear stress between the samples. In addition, a simulation of the granular material with the max. particle size of 20mm was performed using DEM code, $PFC^{2D}$, and compared with the test results. The deviatoric stress versus strain behaviors of experimental and numerical tests were found to be matched well up to the peak stress state.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.483-490
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• 2017

This paper studies on the behavior of reinforced concrete (RC) pipes used in basic sanitation in the conduction of storm water and sanitary sewer. Pipes with 800 mm and 1200 mm in diameter were analyzed. The 800 mm pipes were built with simple reinforcement and the 1200 mm pipes with double reinforcement. For the two diameters of pipes the presence or absence of the pocket was evaluated, and the denomination of each one is spigot and pocket pipe (SPP) and ogee joint pipe (OJP), respectively. The 3D numerical models reproduce the three-edge-bearing test that provides information about the strength and stiffness of the reinforced concrete pipes. The validation of the computational models was carried out comparing the vertical and horizontal displacements on the springline and crown/invert and it was also evaluated the reinforcement strains and the crack pattern. As a main conclusion, the numerical models represented satisfactorily the behavior of the pipes and can be used in future studies in parametric analysis.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.1 no.4
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• pp.291-306
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• 2009

One-dimensional soil-column studies were carried out to understand the interaction of three industrial effluents namely amino acid ('highly acidic'), surfactant ('highly organic') and pharmaceutical ('organic and toxic') on the physicochemical behavior, index properties and shear strength of bentonite due to artificial contamination extending to nearly 300 days. Changes in inorganic and organic pollutants present in the effluents due to the interaction of the above effluents and soil were assessed to understand the physico-chemical behaviour. Batch and continuous modes of operation, 8 hrs and 16 hrs Hydraulic Retention Time [HRT] and 25%, 50% concentrations of effluents, were the parameters considered. Amino acid, surfactant and pharmaceutical effluents have shown a high variation in pH (7 to 8) after artificial contamination on bentonite that is their original characteristics of the above effluents have been completely reversed. Further, it is found that the shear strength of bentonite has reduced by about 20%, and with respect to liquid limit and plastic limit shows an increasing trend with time within the period of contamination.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.495-501
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• 2018

Geogrid application that has proved to be an effective and economic method of reinforcing particles, is widely used in geotechnical engineering. The discrete element method (DEM) has been used to investigate the micro mechanics of the geogrid deformation and also the interlocking mechanism that cannot be easily studies in laboratory tests. Two types of realistically shaped geogrid models with square and triangle apertures were developed using parallel bonds in PFC3D. The calibration test simulations have demonstrated that the precisely shaped triangular geogrid model is also able to reproduce the deformation and strength characteristics of geogrids. Moreover, the square and triangular geogrid models were also used in DEM pull-out test simulations with idealized shape particle models for validation. The simulation results have been shown to provide good predictions of pullout force as a function of displacement especially for the initial 30 mm displacement. For the granular material of size 40 mm, both the experimental and DEM results demonstrate that the triangular geogrid of size 75 mm outperforms the square geogrid of size 65 mm. Besides, the simulations have given valuable insight into the interaction between particle and geogrid and also revealed similar deformation behavior of geogrids during pullout. Therefore, the DEM provides a tool which enable to model other possible prototype geogrid and investigate their performance before manufacture.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.523-540
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• 2023

The failure of slope can cause remarkable damage to either human life or infrastructures. Stabilizing piles are widely utilized to reinforce slope as a slip-resistance structure. The workability of pile-stabilized slopes is affected by various parameters. In this study, the performance of earth slope reinforced with piles and the behavior of piles under static load, by shear reduction strength method using the finite difference software (FLAC^3D) has been investigated. Parametric studies were conducted to investigate the role of pile length (L), different pile distances from each other (S/D), pile head conditions (free and fixed head condition), the effect of sand density (loose, medium, and high-density soil) on the pile behavior, and the performance of pile-stabilized slopes. The performance of the stabilized slopes was analyzed by evaluating the factor of safety, lateral displacement and bending moment of piles, and critical slip mechanism. The results depict that as L increased and S/D reduced, the performance of slopes stabilized with pile gets better by raising the soil density. The greater the amount of bending moment at the shallow depths of the pile in the fixed pile head indicates the effect of the inertial force due to the structure on the pile performance.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.1-11
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• 2023

A growing trend of utilizing helical piles for soft soil strata to support infrastructure projects is currently observed in Saemangeum, South Korea. Recognized mainly due to its ease of installation and reusability proves to be far more superior compared to other foundation types in terms of sustainability. This study applies modified p-y springs to characterize the behavior of a laterally loaded helical pile with a shaft diameter of 89.1 mm affixed with 3 helices evenly spaced along its embedded length of 2.5 m. Geotechnical soil properties are correlated from CPT data near the test bed vicinity and strain gauges mounted on the shaft surface. A modification factor is applied on the p-y springs to adjust the simulated data and match it to the bending moment, soil resistance and deflection values from the strain gauge measurements. The predicted lateral behavior of the helical pile through the numerical analysis method shows fairly good agreement to the recorded field test results.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.453-462
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• 2023

Intermediate Geomaterials (IGMs) are natural formation materials that exhibit the engineering behavior (strength and compressibility) between soils and rocks. The engineering behavior of such material is highly unpredictable as the IGMs are stiffer than soils and weaker/softer than rocks. Further, the characterization of such material needs exposure to both soil and rock mechanics. In most conventional designs of geotechnical structures, the engineering properties of the IGMs are either aligned with soils or rocks, and this assumption may end up either in an over-conservative design or under-conservative design. Hence, many researchers have attempted to evaluate its actual engineering properties through laboratory tests. However, the test results are partially reliable due to the poor core recovery of IGMs and the possible sample disturbance. Subsequently, in-situ tests have been used in recent years to evaluate the engineering properties of IGMs. However, the respective in-situ test finds its limitations while exploring IGMs with different geological formations at deeper depths with the constraints of sampling. Standard Penetration Test (SPT) is the strength-based index test that is often used to explore IGMs. Moreover, it was also observed that the coefficient of variation of the design parameters (which represents the uncertainties in the design parameters) of IGMs is relatively high, and also the studies on the probabilistic characterization of IGMs are limited compared with soils and rocks. With this perspective, the present article reviews the laboratory and in-situ tests used to characterize the IGMs and explores the shear strength variation based on their geological origin.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.305-318
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• 2022

Permeable reactive barriers used for groundwater treatment require proper estimation of the reactive material behavior regarding the emplacement method. This study evaluates the dry emplacement of zeolite (clinoptilolite) to be used as a reactive material in the barrier by carrying out several geotechnical laboratory tests. Dry zeolite samples, exhibited higher wetting-induced compression strains at the higher vertical stresses, up to 12% at 400 kN/m². The swelling potential was observed to be limited with a 3.5 swell index and less than 1% free swelling strain. Direct shear tests revealed that inundation reduces the shear strength of a dry zeolite column by a maximum of 10%. Falling head permeability tests indicate decreasing permeability values with increasing the vertical effective stress. Regarding self-loading and inundation, the porosity along the zeolite column was calculated using a proposed 1D numerical model to predict the permeability with depth considering the laboratory tests. The calculated discharge efficiency was significantly decreased with depth and less than 2% relative to the top for barrier depths deeper than 20 m. Finally, the importance of directional dependence in the permeability of the zeolite medium for calibrating 2D finite element flow analysis was highlighted by bench-scale tests performed under 2D flow conditions.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.26 no.7
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• pp.49-58
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• 2010

This paper presents experimental results of a series of 1-g shaking table model tests performed on end-bearing single piles and pile groups to investigate the effect of particle size on the dynamic behavior of soil-pile systems. Two soil-pile models were tested twice: first using Jumoonjin sand, and second using Australian Fine sand. In the case of single-pile models, the lateral displacement was almost within 1% of pile diameter which corresponds to the elastic range of the pile. The back-calculated p-y curves show that the subgrade reaction of the Jumoonjin-sand-model ground was larger than that of the Australian Fine-sand-model ground at the same displacement. This phenomenon means that the stress-strain behavior of Jumoonjin sand was initially stiffer than that of Australian Fine sand. This difference was also confirmed by resonant column tests and compression triaxial tests. And the single pile p-y backbone curves of the Australian fine sand were constructed and compared with those of the Jumoonjin sand. As a result, the stiffness of the p-y backbone curves of Jumunjin sand was larger than those of Australian fine sand. Therefore, using the same p-y curves regardless of particle size can lead to inaccurate results when evaluating dynamic behavior of soil-pile system. In the case of the group-pile models, the lateral displacement was much larger than the elastic range of pile movement at the same test conditions in the single-pile models. The back-calculated p-y curves in the case of group pile models were very similar in both sands because the stiffness difference between the Jumoonjin-sand-model ground and the Australian Fine-sand-model ground was not significantly large at a large strain level, where both sands showed non-linear behavior. According to a series of single pile and group pile test results, the evaluation group pile effect using the p-multiplier can lead to inaccurate results on dynamic behavior of soil-pile system.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 1994.09a
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• pp.175-181
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• 1994

In order to accelerate the rate of consolidation settlement and to gain a required shear strength for a given soft clay deposit, the preloading technique combined with a vertical drainage system has been widely applied. In this study, the theory of axisymmetric concolidation, which considers the variation of compressibility and permeability during the consolidation process, has been developed. Smear and well resistance effects are also considered. Furthermore, several back-analysis schemes such as simplex method, BFGS method, and ADS have been adopted in the axisymmetric consolidation program(AXICON). The measured data in the first stage of consolidation are utilized to predict the subsequent consolidation behavior.