Effect of Viscoplasticity on Localization in Saturated Clays and Plastic Silts
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Volume 149, Issue 4
Abstract
A numerical study is presented of the effects of viscoplasticity on localization processes in sensitive, saturated clays and plastic silts. Numerical simulations of laboratory specimens of sensitive, viscoplastic soil subjected to monotonic, undrained, direct simple shear loading were performed using a viscoplastic constitutive model. Parametric analyses evaluated the effects of soil sensitivity, postpeak strain-softening rate, and strain rate dependency, as well as specimen size, mesh discretization, and loading rate. The numerical results showed that the global strain at which a localization forms primarily depends on the strain rate dependency of the soil’s shearing resistance relative to its rate of postpeak strain softening. A regression model is subsequently presented that relates the global strain at the onset of localization to the soil’s strain rate dependency and postpeak strain-softening rate. The results indicate that the inclusion of reasonable levels of viscoplasticity significantly increases the strain that can develop before a localization develops in clays and plastic silts with modest strain-softening rates. The consistency of the numerical results with available laboratory observations is discussed. Implications for practice and future research needs are discussed.
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Data Availability Statement
Data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Acknowledgments
The work described herein was supported by the California Department of Water Resources under Contract 4600009751. Any opinions, findings, or recommendations expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of this organization. The authors appreciate the support.
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Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 149 • Issue 4 • April 2023
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© 2023 American Society of Civil Engineers.
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Received: Apr 19, 2022
Accepted: Dec 7, 2022
Published online: Feb 10, 2023
Published in print: Apr 1, 2023
Discussion open until: Jul 10, 2023
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