Effect of Gradation on the Strength and Stress-Dilation Behavior of Coarse-Grained Soils in Drained and Undrained Triaxial Compression
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 149, Issue 5
Abstract
Geotechnical engineering practice commonly estimates the properties and behavior of well-graded soils using methods and relationships developed based on the behavior of clean, poorly graded coarse-grained soils. The influence of gradation on the strength and stress-dilatancy behavior of coarse-grained soils is complex because it depends on the soil state, which is complicated by the use of parameters that can bias and obscure the effects of gradation (i.e., void ratio versus relative density or state parameter). This study examines the effect of gradation and particle size on the drained and undrained triaxial compression behavior of pluviated poorly graded and well-graded soils sourced and sieved from a single deposit. A series of 69 triaxial tests were performed on soil specimens with a range of initial state parameters. Wider gradations resulted in a reduction in the slope and intercept of the critical state line (CSL), whereas increasing particle size for poorly graded soils resulted in an increase in the CSL slope and intercept. The results indicate an increase in peak friction angle and maximum dilation angle for soils with wider gradations for any given state parameter. The peak drained and undrained strengths at any given state parameter are shown to increase with range of particle sizes as a result of the increase in dilative tendencies. However, the contribution of the maximum rate of dilatancy to the difference between the peak and critical state friction angles appears to be unaffected by gradation. Finally, the Bolton framework was found to underpredict the difference between peak and critical state friction angles at any given relative density.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code generated or used during the study are available in a repository or online in accordance with funder data retention policies at DesignSafe-CI under PRJ-3732 at 10.17603/ds2-crtg-j217.
Acknowledgments
The National Science Foundation (NSF) provided the funding for this work under Grant No. CMMI-1916152 and also funded the Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI) shared use centrifuge facility at the University of California at Davis under Grant No. CMMI-1520581. The authors would also like to thank Katerina Ziotopoulou, Rachel Reardon, Francisco Humire, Mandeep Singh Basson, Nathan Love, Trevor Carey, and Anna Chiaradonna for their insights and recommendations.
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Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 149 • Issue 5 • May 2023
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© 2023 American Society of Civil Engineers.
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Received: Apr 14, 2022
Accepted: Jan 4, 2023
Published online: Feb 22, 2023
Published in print: May 1, 2023
Discussion open until: Jul 22, 2023
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