• Computers and Concrete
• /
• v.31 no.5
• /
• pp.395-403
• /
• 2023

The paper investigates the effect of two parameters - sand content (SC) and grain migration during shearing - on the mechanical properties of gravel-sand mixtures. Consolidated undrained (CU) triaxial tests were carried out on eight series of mixtures containing gravel (1<d<16 mm) and sand (0.1<d<1 mm). The prepared mixtures have sand contents of 0, 10, 15, 20, 40, 54, 94 and 100%, and a relative density of 60%. The transition sand content (TSC) is experimentally defined and marks the transition from gravel-driven to sand-driven behavior. For SC<TSC, the dry density of the mixture increases with SC. This induces an increase in undrained peak strength and dilative trend. The slope and position of the critical state line (CSL) are also deeply dependent on SC. At SC=TSC, the mixtures exhibit the largest dry density and yield the highest undrained peak strength and the largest dilative trend. During shearing, large internal migration of grains was observed at the TSC, causing heterogeneity in the sample. Analysis of the CSL deduced from the final points of the triaxial tests shows that, at the TSC, failure appears to correspond to the behavior of the coarsest fraction of the soil. This fraction is located in the upper part of the sample, where the sand particles had been eliminated by suffusion. On the other hand, in the more stable materials, the CSL is consistent with the bulk grain size distribution of the soil.

• Journal of the Korean Geosynthetics Society
• /
• v.22 no.3
• /
• pp.47-59
• /
• 2023

In this research, laboratory tests were conducted on clayey sand (SC) to analyze its physical properties, compaction/permeability characteristics, and stress-strain behavior. The main objective was to determine the transitional fines content at which the mechanical properties of sand transition to those of clay, resulting in a change in the geotechnical behavior of the material. Additionally, to assess the practical applicability of SC soil, field data from a soft ground improvement site with significant settlement issues were collected. The settlement characteristics derived from laboratory tests and numerical simulations were then compared and analyzed in relation to the actual settlement data obtained from the field, aiming to evaluate the suitability of the SC soil as a compaction target layer. The laboratory tests and compaction analysis showed that the SC soil exhibited a distinct change in mechanical properties, shifting from sandy behavior to clayey behavior when the fines content exceeded 25%. This transition in mechanical behavior was found to be closely correlated with the content of clay particles within the material. Through numerical simulations of the soft ground site, it was verified that the use of clayey sand with a fines content exceeding the transitional level as a compaction target layer resulted in settlements that closely aligned with the measured settlements, with an average agreement of 91.2%. Based on these findings, it is deemed advisable to incorporate clayey sand with a fines content exceeding the transitional level as part of the compaction target layer in the design of soft ground improvements.

• Advances in materials Research
• /
• v.5 no.3
• /
• pp.171-179
• /
• 2016

Fusion and characterization of bisphenol-A diglycidyl ether based thermosetting polymer mortars containing an epoxy resin, Fly ash and Rock sand are presented here for the Experimental study. The specimens have been prepared by means of an innovative process, in mild conditions, of commercial epoxy resin, Fly ash and Rock sand based paste. In this way, thermosetting based hybrid mortars characterized by a different content of normalized Fly ash and Rock sand by a homogeneous dispersion of the resin have been obtained. Once hardened, these new composite materials show improved compressive strength and toughness in respect to both the Fly ash and the Rock sand pastes since the Resin provides a more cohesive microstructure, with a reduced amount of micro cracks. The micro structural characterization allows pointing out the presence of an Interfacial Transition Zone similar to that observed in cement based mortars. A correlation between micro-structural features and mechanical properties of the mortar has also been studied.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
• /
• v.23 no.4
• /
• pp.91-100
• /
• 2007

In most design codes, soils are classified as either sand or clay, and appropriate design equations are used to represent their behavior. For example, the behavior of sandy soils is expressed in terms of the relative density, whereas consistency limits are often used for clays. However, sand-clay mixtures, which are typically referred to as intermediate soils, cannot be easily categorized as either sand or clay and therefore a unified interpretation of how the soil will behave at the transition point, i.e., from sandy behavior when fines are low to clay behavior for high fines content, is necessary. In this study, active natural clays are mixed with sand, and the fines content varied in order to produce different structures, ranging from one state where only sand particles form the soil structure to another where the matrix of fines make-up the structure. While paying attention to the granular void ratio in order to clarify the shear properties of sand-clay mixtures with increasing fines content monotonic, shear tests were performed on isotropically, and anisotropically consolidated specimens. From the test results, it was observed that the monotonic shear strength of sand-clay mixtures is dependent on the granular void ratio.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.22 no.3
• /
• pp.219-226
• /
• 2020

Unconfined compression test (UCT) is widely conducted in laboratories to evaluate the mechanical behavior of frozen soils. However, its results are sensitive to the initial conditions of sample creation by freezing as well as the end-surface conditions during loading of the specimen into the apparatus for testing. This work compared ice samples prepared by three-dimensional and one-dimensional freezing. The latter created more-homogenous ice samples containing fewer entrapped air bubbles or air nuclei, leading to relatively stable UCT results. Three end-surface conditions were compared for UCT on ice specimens made by one-dimensional freezing. Steel disc cap with embedded rubber was found most appropriate for UCT. Three frozen materials (ice, frozen sand, and frozen silt) showed different failure patterns, which were classified as brittle failure and ductile failure. Ice and frozen sand showed strain-softening, while frozen silt showed strain-hardening. Subsequent investigation considered the influence of fines content on the unconfined compression behavior of frozen soil mixtures with fines contents of 0-100%. The mixtures showed a brittle-to-ductile transition of failure patterns at 10%-20% fines content.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
• /
• v.27 no.3
• /
• pp.85-94
• /
• 2011

Mixtures of sand and rubber particles ($D_{sand}/D_{rubber}=1$) are investigated to explore their characteristics under different stain level. Mixtures are prepared with different volumetric sand fractions ($sf=V_{sand}/V_{total}$). Experimental data are gathered from a resonant column, an instrumented oedometer, and a direct shear tests. Results show that sand and rubber differently control the behavior of the whole mixture with strain level. Non-linear degradation of small strain stiffness is observed for the mixtures with $sf{\geq}0.4$, while the mixtures with low sand fraction ($sf{\leq}0.2$) show significantly high elastic threshold strain. Vertical stress-deformation increases dramatically when the rubber particle works as a member of force chain. The strength of the mixtures increases as the content of rubber particle decreases, and contractive behavior is observed in the mixtures with $sf{\leq}0.8$. Rubber particle plays different roles with strain level in the mixture: it increases a coordination number and controls a plasticity of the mixture in small strain; it prevents a buckling of force chain in intermediate strain; it leads a contractive behavior in large strain.

• Magazine of the Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.130-139
• /
• 1993

In order to evaluate the long-term permeability performace of the geotextiles, for five different combination of geotextiles and soils the long-term column test method The results obtained are as follows; 1.The gradient range of the initial stage of the long-term permeability curves varied with respect to the soil types, while that of the final stage varied according to the interaction of the soil/geotextile system. 2.The time required for a given soil/geotextile system to reach a interactive stable stage was measured ahout 100 hours for the standard sand and 150 to 600 hours for the silty content soils, respectively. 3.There were no differences between the plain woven geotextile and the non-geotextile in the long-term permeability performance. 4.As the silt content increased, the long-term performance of the geotextiles decreased, and the limiting silt content was about 15%. 5.The thickness and area density of the geotextiles did not influence on the variation of the seepage quantities. 6.The ayerage slope and the transition time of the long-time flow curve were calculated. 7.In order to evaluate the mechanism of soil/geotextile system more perfectly, the gradient ratio test or the hydraulic conductivity test is required.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
• /
• v.34 no.3
• /
• pp.268-278
• /
• 2001

To investigate sedimentary facies and environmental changes of the Nakdong River Estuary and its adjacent coastal area, the grain size analysis and measurement of organic matter, calcium carbonate, clay mineral and metallic elements were carried out for forty surface sediment samples. Based on regional distribution pattern and characteristics of the surface sediments, sedimentary facies in the study area can be divided into sand facies (TYPE I), mud facies (TYPE II) and sand-mud mixed facies (TYPE III). TYPE III is the transition of TYPE I and TYPE II in every aspects of sediment characteristics. It suggests that TYPE III may have been formed by the mixture of two different source of sediment : one derived from Nakdong River and the other resuspended fine-grained sediments from the Jinhae Bay by winnowing action during floods or storms. Among many aspects of environmental change after the construction of the Nakdong Barrage, the most significant is the increase of sand content off the sand barrier region. It could be explained by several reasons including decreased input of fine-grained sediment from river, increased hydrodynamic energy level off the sand barrier region and artificial effects such as dredging and dumping.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
• /
• v.22 no.8
• /
• pp.129-136
• /
• 2006

Engineered mixtures, which consist of rigid sand particles and soft fine-grained rubber particles, are tested to characterize their small and large-strain responses. Engineered soils are prepared with different volumetric sand fraction, sf, to identify the transition from a rigid to a soft granular skeleton using wave propagation, $K_{o}-loading$, and triaxial testing. Deformation moduli at small, middle and large-strain do not change linearly with the volume fraction of rigid particles; instead, deformation moduli increase dramatically when the sand fraction exceeds a threshold value between sf=0.6 to 0.8 that marks the formation of a percolating network of stiff particles. The friction angle increases with the volume fraction of rigid particles. Conversely, the axial strain at peak strength increases with the content of soft particles, and no apparent peak strength is observed in specimens when sand fraction is less than 60%. The presence of soft particles alters the formation of force chains. While soft particles are not part of high-load carrying chains, they play the important role of preventing the buckling of stiff particle chains.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
• /
• v.27 no.4
• /
• pp.343-352
• /
• 2016

It has been estimated that the Earth has nearly 1.688 trillion barrels of crude oil, which will last 53.3 years at current extraction rates. The organization of petroleum exporting countries (OPEC) group forecasted that the oil prices will not jump to triple-digit territory within a decade, but it can quickly increase as the political issue for reducing oil production appears. With the potential of serious shortage of conventional hydrocarbon resources, the heavy oil, one of unconventional hydrocarbon resources including oil sand and natural bitumen has attracted worldwide interest. The heavy oil contains heavy hydrocarbon compounds, commonly called as resins and asphaltenes, with long carbon chains more than sixty carbon atoms. The high content of heavier fraction corresponds with the high molecular weight, viscosity, and boiling point. Physicochemical properties of residues from vacuum distillation of conventional oil, referred to as vacuum residues (VR) were similar to those of heavy oil. For the development of heavy oil reserves, reducing the heavy oil viscosity is the most important. In this article, commercially employed aquathermolysis processes and their application to VR upgrading are discussed. VR contains transition metals such as Ni and V, but these metals should be eliminated in advance for further refining. Recent studies on demetallization technologies for VR are also reviewed.