Collapse of Saturated Soil Due to Reduction in Confinement
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical Engineering
Volume 121, Issue 2
Abstract
The potential for collapse due to a reduction in confinement is evaluated for two very different soils: a uniformly graded sand and an undisturbed clayey colluvial soil. Soil specimens were consolidated anisotropically and subjected to constant-shear-drained (CSD) tests. During the CSD test, the effective confining pressure is gradually reduced while the shear stress is held constant. Only for very loose specimens is collapse observed before the failure envelope or steady state is reached. In general, specimens subjected to the CSD stress path behave differently than specimens of similar initial density and confining pressure subjected to typical compression stress paths. This observation indicates that knowledge of the stress path is necessary to accurately predict the collapse potential, and thereby the potential for flow failure, of loose saturated soils.
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Information
Published In
Journal of Geotechnical Engineering
Volume 121 • Issue 2 • February 1995
Pages: 216 - 220
Copyright
Copyright © 1995 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Published online: Feb 1, 1995
Published in print: Feb 1995
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