Evaluation of Undrained Shear Strength of Fine-Grained Soils in Consideration of Soil Plasticity

Yıl 2015, Cilt: 36 Sayı: 3, 121 - 136, 11.01.2016

Kamil Kayabalı , Özgür Aktürk Mustafa Fener Ayla Bulut Üstün Orhan Dikmen Furkan Hamza Harputlugil

https://doi.org/10.17824/yrb.99784

Cited By: 1

Öz

Undrained shear strength (su) is one of the key geotechnical parameters for both natural and remolded soils. While it is basically a function of water content, it is also related to soil plasticity. There has been a long-lasting debate as to whether the su at the plastic and liquid limits are constant and whether the ratio of the su at the plastic limit to the su at the liquid limit is mostly fixed to 100. While this view is embraced by a great majority of researchers, some proclaim that the range of both the su at the plastic limit (PL) and the su at the liquid limit (LL) is rather wide; therefore, constant values of the su cannot be assigned for either the PL or the LL. Accordingly, the view that there is a constant ratio between the two shear strengths is invalid. The scope of this investigation is to reassess this problem using the laboratory vane shear test (VST) along with a new supplementary tool, the mud-press machine (MPM). Sixty remolded soil samples were employed as the study material. The variation of soil strength at both the plastic and liquid limit is investigated using the VST and MPM methods. While the VST method does not portray a distinctive relationship between the su and the two Atterberg limits, the newly introduced MPM method clearly shows that there is a meaningful relationship between the extrusion force, which is considered akin to the undrained shear strength, at the Atterberg limits and the two consistency limits, particularly the liquid limit. Concerning the constant ratio between the two shear strengths, namely the one at the plastic limit to the one at the liquid limit, it was found that this ratio is a constant, but it increases with the increase in soil plasticity.

Keywords: Undrained shear strength, soil plasticity, vane shear test, mud press method, remolded soils.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Drenajsız kesme dayanımı, zemin plastikliği, kanatlı kesme deneyi, çamur sıkıştırma yöntemi, yoğrulmuş zeminler

Kaynakça

• ASTM, 2000. Standard test method for labora- tory miniature vane shear test for satu- rated fine-grained soil. ASTM Standard D4648-00. American Society for Tes- ting and Materials (ASTM), West Cons- hohocken, PA.
• American Society for Testing Materials, 2001. Standard test methods for liquid limit, plastic limit and plasticity index of soils. ASTM D4318-00 West Conshohocken, PA.
• Arrowsmith, E. J., 1978. Roadwork fills – a ma- terial engineer’s viewpoint. Proc. Clay Fills Conf., ICE, London, 25-36.
• Belviso, R., Ciampoli, S., Cotecchia, V., and Fe- derico, A., 1985. Use of the cone penet- rometer to determine consistency limits. Ground Engineering, 18(5), 21-22.
• Bozozuk, M., 1972. Downdrag measurements on a 160-ft floating pipe test pile in ma- rine clay. Canadian Geotechnical Jour- nal, 9(2), 127-136.
• British Standards Institution, 1990. British stan- dard methods of test for soils for en- gineering purposes, BS 1377: Milton Keynes, British Standards Institution.
• Dennehy, J. P., 1978. The remoulded undrained shear strength of cohesive soils and its influence on the suitability of embank- ment fill. Proc. Clay Fills Conf., ICE, London, 87-94.
• Federico, A., 1983. Relationships (c–w) and u (c–s) for remolded clayey soils at high water content. Riv. Ital. Geotech., 17(1), 38-41.
• Houlsby, G. T., 1982. Theoretical analysis of the fall cone test. Geotechnique, 32(2), 111-118.
• Karlsson, R., 1977. Consistency limits. A Manu- al for the Performance and Interpretati- on of Laboratory Investigations, Part 6, Sweden Counc. Bldg. Res.
• Kayabali K. and Tufenkci, O. O., 2010. Undrai- ned shear strength of remolded soils at consistency limits: Canadian Geotech- nical Journal, 47(3), 259-266.
• Kvalstad, T. J., Farrokh, N., Kaynia, A. M., Mok- kelbost, K. H., and Byrn, P., 2005. Soil conditions and slope stability in the Or- men Large area. Marine and Petroleum Geology, 22(1-2), 299-310.
• Lee, L. T. and Freeman, R. B., 2007. An alter- native test method for assessing con- sistency limits. Geotechnical Testing
• Journal, 30(4), 1-8.
• Locat, J. and Demers, D., 1988. Viscosity, yield stress, remolded strength, and liquidity index relationships for sensitive clays. Canadian Geotechnical Journal, 25(4), 799-806.
• Medhat, F. and Whyte, I. L., 1986. An appraisal of soil index tests. Geological Society, Engineering Geology Special Publicati- on, 2, 317-323.
• Nagaraj, H. B., Sridharan, A. and Mallikarjuna, H. M., 2012. Re-examination of undra- ined strength at Attergerg limits water contents: Geotechnical and Geological Engineering, 30, 727-736.
• Norman, L. E. J., 1958. A comparison of values of liquid limit determined with appara- tus having bases of different hardness. Geotechnique, 8, 79-85.
• O’Kelly, B. C., 2013. Atterberg limits and re- molded strength-water content relati- onships: Geotechnical Testing Journal, 36&6), 939-947.
• Powell, J. J. M. and Lunne, T., 2005. Use of CPTU data in clays/fine grained so- ils. Studia Geotechnica et Mechanica, 27(3-4), 29-66.
• Prakash, K. and Sridharan, A, 2003. Critical appraisal of the cone penetration met- hod of determining soil plasticity. Cana- dian Geotechnical Journal, 43, 884-888.
• Seed, H. B., Woodward, R. J., and Lundgren, R.,
• Fundamental aspects of the At
• terberg limits. Proc. ASCE J. Soil Mech.
• Found. Div. 90(SM6), 7-105.
• Sharma, B. and Bora, P. K., 2003. Plastic limit, li- quid limit and undrained shear strength of soil – reappraisal. J. Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, ASCE, 129(8), 774-777.
• Skempton, A. W. and Northey, R. D., 1953. The sensitivity of clays. Geotechnique, 3, 30-53.
• Skopek, J. and Ter-Stepanian, G., 1975. Com- parison of liquid limit values determined according to Casagrande and Vasilev. Geotechnique, 25(1), 135-136.
• Sridharan, A. Nagaraj, H. B. and Prakash, K.,
• Determination of the plasticity in
• dex from flow index: Geotechnical Tes
• ting Journal, 22(2), 175-181.
• Sridharan, A. and Prakash, K., 1988. Charac- teristic water content of a fine-grained soil-water system. Geotechnique, 48(3), 337-346.
• Wasti, Y. and Bezirci, M. H., 1986, Determinati- on of the consistency limits of soils by the fall cone test. Canadian Geotechni- cal Journal, 23(2), 241-246.
• Whyte, I. L., 1982. Soil plasticity and strength
• – a new approach for using extrusion.
• Ground Engineering, 15(1), 16-24.
• Wood, D. M, 1985. Index properties and conso- lidation history. Proc. 11th Int. Conf. On Soil Mech. and Found. Eng., San Fran- cisco, 03-706.
• Wood, D. M., 1990. Soil behavior and critical state soil mechanics: Cambridge Uni- versity Press, New York.
• Wroth, C. P. and Wood, D. M., 1978. The corre- lation of index properties with some ba- sic engineering properties of soils. Can. Geotech. J., 15(2), 137-145.
• Yafrate, N. J. and DeJong, J. T., 2005. Consi- derations in evaluating the remolded undrained shear strength from full flow penetrometer cycling. Frontiers in Off- shore Geotechnics, ISFOG 2005 – Go- urvenec & Cassidy (eds). Taylor & Fran- cis Group, London.
• Youssef, M. F., El Ramli, A. H., and El Demery, M., 1965. Relationships between shear strength, consolidation, liquid limit and plastic limit for remolded clays. Proc. 6th Int. Conf. Soil Mech. Found. Eng., Montreal, 1, 126-129.