Implications of Interparticle Forces on Resilient and Shear Modulus of Unsaturated Compacted Kaolinite
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 147, Issue 12
Abstract
The mechanical behavior (strength, stiffness, and volume change) of soils depends on the stress state, which for unsaturated soils is controlled by interparticle forces in addition to the skeletal forces. The interparticle forces for an uncemented soil (i.e., adsorptive and capillary forces) are functions of saturation that are unique for each soil. Previous studies have quantified the contribution of interparticle forces to soil shear strength using the suction stress characteristic curve (SSCC) and demonstrated the initial evidence of transitions between the interparticle force components. This study quantifies the stiffness of uncemented kaolinite over a wide range of saturation in dry of optimum conditions using resilient modulus and shear modulus tests. The stiffness-saturation curves show two unique inflection points that mark (1) the transition between an adsorption-dominated water uptake regime to a capillarity-dominated water uptake regime at saturation; and (2) the onset of a reduction in capillary forces at saturation. The shape of stiffness-saturation curves is compared with the adsorptive and capillary components of SSCC and SWRC. The results provide further evidence on water uptake mechanisms and corresponding evolution in interparticle force components in compacted kaolinite, enhancing our understanding of the stiffness behavior of unsaturated soils.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code that supports the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Acknowledgments
Partial funding was provided by the Washington State University New Faculty Seed Grant. We would like to thank Dr. Amirmohammad Bahadori for his assistance with laboratory testing.
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Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 147 • Issue 12 • December 2021
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© 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers.
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Received: Mar 29, 2021
Accepted: Aug 4, 2021
Published online: Sep 28, 2021
Published in print: Dec 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Feb 28, 2022
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