• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.115-129
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• 2018

This paper presents a set of results of plate load tests that imposed incremental cyclic loading to a sandy soil bed containing multiple layers of granulated rubber-soil mixture (RSM) at large model scale. Loading and unloading cycles were applied with amplitudes incrementally increasing from 140 to 700 kPa in five steps. A thickness of the RSM layer of approximately 0.4 times the footing diameter was found to deliver the minimum total and residual settlements, irrespective of the level of applied cyclic load. Both the total and residual settlements decrease with increase in the number of RSM layers, regardless of the level of applied cyclic load, but the rate of reduction in both settlements reduces with increase in the number of RSM layers. When the thickness of the RSM layer is smaller, or larger, settlements increase and, at large thicknesses may even exceed those of untreated soil. Layers of the RSM reduced the vertical stress transferred through the foundation depth by distributing the load over a wider area. With the inclusion of RSM layers, the coefficient of elastic uniform compression decreases by a factor of around 3-4. A softer response was obtained when more RSM layers were included beneath the footing damping capacity improves appreciably when the sand bed incorporates RSM layers. Numerical modeling using "FLAC-3D" confirms that multiple RSM layers will improve the performance of a foundation under heavy loading.

• Geotechnical Engineering
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.95-106
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• 1997

A pressuremeter is an expandable tube which is placed in the soil, and then expanded under controlled condition against the soil. From this test a pressure expansion curve of the soil can be obtained. However soil disturbance during the test has significant influence on the results of tests. A general governing equation for pressuremeter test can be theoretically derived on the basis of the hyperbolic soil model and the cavity expansion theory. The curve fitting technique was used to establish the pressure-strain curve without disturbance of soil during testing. This interpretation makes use of both the loading and unloading portions of the test. An interpretation methodology is described and illustrated with pressuremeter test data carried out in the weathered granitic soil to estimate initial shear modulus. Standard penetration test is a very common site investigation technique in Korea. Therefore the blow counts of standard penetration test are discussed by comparing them with initial shear modulus.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.37 no.5
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• pp.443-452
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• 2024

The use of sand-tire chip mixtures in construction industry is a sustainable and environmentally friendly approach that addresses both waste tire disposal and soil improvement needs. However, the addition of tire chip particles to natural soils decreases maximum shear modulus (G_max), but increases compressibility, which can be potential drawbacks. This study examines the effect of overconsolidation stress history on the maximum shear modulus (G_max) of rigid-soft mixtures with varying size ratios (SR) and tire chip contents (TC) by measuring the wave velocity through a 1-D compression test during loading and unloading. The results demonstrate that the G_max of tested mixtures in the normally consolidated state increased with increasing SR and decreasing TC. However, the tested mixtures with a smaller SR exhibited a greater increase in G_max during unloading because of the active pore-filling behavior of the smaller rubber particles and the consequent increased connectivity between sand particles. The SR-dependent impact of the overconsolidation stress history on G_max was verified using the ratio between the swelling and compression indices. Most importantly, this study reveals that the excessive settlement and lower G_max of rigid-soft mixtures can be overcome by introducing an overconsolidated state in sand-tire chip mixtures with low TC.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.93-104
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• 2003

The Disturbed State Concept (DSC) model, with simplified unloading/reloading formulation, is implemented in a nonlinear dynamic finite element program fur porous media named DSC_DYN2D. In this research, the DSC constitutive model is utilized using the HiSS model for relative intact (RI) part and the critical state model for the fully adjusted (FA) part in the material. The general formulation for implementation is developed. The cyclic loading tests from the field load test data on a pile segment were numerically simulated using the finite element program DSC_DYN2D and compared with field measurements and those from the previous analysis with the HiSS model. The DSC predictions show improved agreement with the field behavior of the pile compared to those from the HiSS model. Overall, the computer procedure with the DSC model allows improved and realistic simulation of the complex dynamic soil-structure interaction problems.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.341-358
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• 2024

This paper reports several plane-strain trapdoor tests conducted to investigate the effects of reinforcement on soil arching development under localized surface loading with a loading plate width three times the trapdoor width. An analogical soil composed of aluminum rods with three different diameters was used as the backfill and Kraft paper with two different stiffness values was used as the reinforcement material. Four reinforcement arrangements were investigated: (1) no reinforcement, (2) one low stiffness reinforcement R1, (3) one high stiffness reinforcement R2, and (4) two low stiffness reinforcements R1 with a backfill layer in between. The stiffness of R2 was approximately twice that of R1; therefore, two R1 had approximately the same total stiffness as one R2. Test results indicate that the use of reinforcement minimized soil arching degradation under localized surface loading. Soil arching with reinforcement degraded more at unloading stages as compared to that at loading stages. The use of stiffer reinforcement had the advantages of more effectively minimizing soil arching degradation. As compared to one high stiffness reinforcement layer, two low stiffness reinforcement layers with a backfill layer of certain thickness in between promoted soil arching under localized surface loading. Due to different states of soil arching development with and without reinforcement, an analytical multi-stage soil arching model available in the literature was selected in this study to calculate the average vertical pressures acting on the trapdoor or on the deflected reinforcement section under both the backfill self-weight and localized surface loading.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.157-169
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• 2022

Preloading of soft clays is a common ground stabilization method for improvement of compressibility and the undrained shear strength. The waiting period under preload is a primary design criterion controlling the degree of improvement obtained. Upon unloading the overconsolidation attained with respect to actual loads defines the long term performance. This paper presents a laboratory study for investigation of creep behavior of Famagusta Bay alluvial soft soil preloaded under various effective stresses for analysis of long term performance based on the degree of overconsolidation. Traditional one-dimensional consolidation tests as well as modified creep tests are performed on reconstituted soft specimens. Compressibility parameters are precisely backcalculated using one dimensional consolidation theory and the coefficient of creep is determined using the traditional Cassagrande method as well as two modified methods based on log cycles of time and the inflection of the creep curve. The test results indicated that the long term creep can be successfully predicted considering the proposed method. The creep coefficients derived as part of this method can also be related to the recompression index (recompression index, swelling index) considering the results of the testing method adopted in this study.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.19 no.5
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• pp.311-317
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• 2003

The swelling index of clayey soil was examined by constant rate of strain(CRS) consolidation test. Four kinds of strain rate were applied during unloading. The strain rates are l/l, l/5, 1/10, l/l 5 of loading. The strain rates during loading are 0.05%/min and 0.03%/min. From the test results using standard consolidometer, the swelling indexes were much similar values in case of 1/5 or 1/10 of the strain rate during loading stage. In the relation between effective stress and excess pore water pressure ratio, it was found that the existence of cross point and the stress level can be separated into two zones according to the swelling index.

• Magazine of the Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.101-110
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• 1996

The aim of the work described in this paper is to develope a constitutive model for the prediction of an unsaturated clayey soil and to confirm the application of the model. To this end a series of suction controlled isotropic and triaxial compression tests are conducted on clayey soils. Matric suction is controlled by the axis translation technique using high air entry ceramic disk. Total volume change, air and water volume changes are measured by the device made for the experiment. The specimens are compacted by dynamic compaction using a half of Proctor compaction energy with the water contents of 5% drier than the optimum moisture contents. From test results, volume changes and deviator stresses are analyzed at each state and their relationships are formulated. And the application of the model to clayey soils is confirmed by the comparison between test and predicted results. During drying-wetting and loading-unloading processes for isotropic states, the agreement between predicted and test results are satisfactory. And predicted deviator stresses are well agreed with the test results in shearing process, but volumetric strain is not well agreed with the test results in high suctions.

• Geotechnical Engineering
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.109-120
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• 1997

In the working stress conditions, the strain level in a soil mass experienced by existing structures and during construction is less than about 0.1-1%. In order to analyse the deformational behavior accurately, the in-situ testing technique which provides the reliable deformational characteristics at small strains, needs to be developed. The purpose of this paper is to measure the small-strain shear modulus of soils by using pressuremeter test(PMT). PMT is a unique method for assessing directly the in-situ shear modulus of soils with strain amplitude. For the accurate small strain measurements without initial disturbance effect, the unloading-reloading cycle was used and the measured modulus was corrected in view of the relevant stress and strain levels around the PMT probe during testing. Not only in the calibration chamber but in the field, PMT tests were performed on the cohesionless soils. The variation in shear modulus with strain amplitude ranging from 10-2% to 0.5% was reliably determined by PMT PMT results were also compared with other in-situ and laboratory test results. Moduli obtained from different testing techniques matched very well if the effect of strain amplitude was considered in the com pall son.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.21 no.8
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• pp.27-35
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• 2005

Several damages due to large displacement caused by liquefaction have been reported increasingly. Numerical procedures based on effective stress analysis are therefore necessary to predict liquefaction-induced deformation. In this paper, the fully coupled effective stress model called UBCSAND is proposed to simulate pore pressure rise due to earthquake or repeated loadings. The proposed model is a modification of the simple perfect elasto-plactic Mohr-Coulomb model, and can simulate a continuous yielding by mobilizing friction and dilation angles below failure state. Yield function is defined as the ratio of shear stress to mean normal stress. It is radial lines on stress space and has the same shape of Mohr-Columob failure envelope. Plastic hardening is based on an isotropic and kinematic hardening rule. The proposed model always causes plastic deformation during loading and reloading but it predicts elastic unloading. It is verified by capturing direct simple shear tests on loose Fraser River sand.