TECHNICAL PAPERS
Jan 15, 2010

Neural Network Modeling of Resilient Modulus Using Routine Subgrade Soil Properties

Publication: International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 10, Issue 1

Abstract

Artificial neural network (ANN) models are developed in this study to correlate resilient modulus with routine properties of subgrade soils and state of stress for pavement design application. A database is developed containing grain size distribution, Atterberg limits, standard Proctor, unconfined compression, and resilient modulus results for 97 soils from 16 different counties in Oklahoma. Of these, 63 soils (development data set) are used in training, and the remaining 34 soils (evaluation data set) from two different counties are used in the evaluation of the developed models. A commercial software, STATISTICA 7.1, is used to develop four different feedforward-type ANN models: linear network, general regression neural network, radial basis function network, and multilayer perceptrons network (MLPN). In each of these models, the input layer consists of seven nodes, one node for each of the independent variables, namely moisture content (w) , dry density (γd) , plasticity index (PI), percent passing sieve No. 200 (P200) , unconfined compressive strength (Uc) , deviatoric stress (σd) , and bulk stress (θ) . The output layer consists of only one node—resilient modulus (MR) . After the architecture is set, the development data set is fed into the model for training. The strengths and weaknesses of the developed models are examined by comparing the predicted MR values with the experimental values with respect to the R2 values. Overall, the MLPN model with two hidden layers was found to be the best model for the present development and evaluation data sets. This model as well as the other models could be refined using an enriched database.

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Acknowledgments

The writers are thankful to Burgess Engineering and Testing, Inc. for assistance in laboratory testing of this study. The Oklahoma DOT provided some of the evaluation data. The writers are also thankful to StatSoft for providing helpful tips that improved the quality of this study. They are also thankful to their colleagues, Gerald Miller, Kianoosh Hatami, and Joakim Laguros for their technical comments.

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Information

Published In

Go to International Journal of Geomechanics
International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 10Issue 1February 2010
Pages: 1 - 12

History

Received: Dec 29, 2006
Accepted: Aug 28, 2009
Published online: Jan 15, 2010
Published in print: Feb 2010

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Authors

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Musharraf Zaman [email protected]
David Ross Boyd Professor, Aaron Alexander Professor, Associate Dean for Research, College of Engineering, Univ. of Oklahoma, 202 W. Boyd St., Rm. 107, Norman, OK 73019 (corresponding author). E-mail: [email protected]
Pranshoo Solanki [email protected]
Doctoral Candidate, School of Civil Engineering and Environmental Science, Univ. of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019. E-mail: [email protected]
Ali Ebrahimi [email protected]
President, Burgess Engineering and Testing, Inc., 2603 N. Shields Blvd., Moore, OK 73160. E-mail: [email protected]
Luther White [email protected]
Professor, Dept. of Mathematics, Univ. of Oklahoma, 601 Elm Ave., Norman, OK 73019. E-mail: [email protected]

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