Liquefaction

Liquefaction, the term was originally coined by Mogami

and Kubo(1953) describes the behaior of loose saturated cohesionless soils, i!e!
loose sands, which transforms from a solid state to hae the consistency of a
heay liquid, or reach a liquefied state as a consequence of increasing "ore
water "ressures, and thus decreasing effectie stress, induced by their tendency
to decrease in olume when sub#ected to cyclic undrained loading li$e
earthqua$e! %he generation of e&cess "ore "ressure under undrained loading
condition is a hallmar$ of all liquefaction "henomena or sim"ly saying
liquefaction is more li$ely to occur in loose to moderate granular soils with "oor
drainage, such as silty sands or sands and graels ca""ed or containing seams of
im"ermeable sediments! 'ome e&am"les of liquefaction include quic$sand,
quic$ clay, turbidity currents, and earthqua$e liquefaction!
Liquefaction "henomena that results from this "rocess can be
diided into two main grou"s!
1) (low liquefaction
)) *yclic mobility
%hese two are ery im"ortant, and any ealuation of liquefaction ha+ards should
be carefully consider both!
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Flow Liquefaction
(low liquefaction "roduces the most dramatic effects of all
liquefaction related "henomena, causing tremendous instabilities $nown as flow
failures! ,t occurs when the static shear stress e&ceeds the shear strength of the
soil in liquefied state! -nce triggered, large deformations "roduced by flow
liquefaction will be drien by static shear stress and the cyclic stress li$e
earthqua$es which will "ush the soil to unstable state where soil looses its shear
strength! (low liquefaction failures can be charteri+ed by the sudden nature of
their origin, s"eed with which it deelo" and large distance oer which the
liquefied material moes!
Cyclic Mobility
*yclic Mobility is another "henomenon that also "roduces
large "ermanent deformations during earthqua$e sha$ing! .ere in this case
static shear stress is less than shear strength of liquefied soil but deformations
are caused by cyclic mobility failure deelo" incrementally during earthqua$e
sha$ing! %hese deformations are termed as lateral s"reading can occur on ery
gentle slo"e or flat ground surface near to water bodies!
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Liquefaction susceptibility
/ll soils are not susce"tible to liquefaction, thus the soil at
the construction site must be chec$ed for liquefaction susce"tibility! %here are
seeral factors that affect the liquefaction susce"tibility which are
1) .istorical criteria
)) 0eological criteria
3) *om"ositional criteria
1) 'tate criteria
Historical criteria
(rom "ast earthqua$e studies and field inestigations, it is
obsered that liquefaction recurs at same location when soil and ground water
conditions remain unchanged! %hus liquefaction case histories can be used to
identify the s"ecific sites or general site conditions that may susce"tible to
liquefaction! 2ost earthqua$e inestigation inestigations also suggest that
liquefaction effects were "ertain to a +one which is at a "articular distance from
seismic source! 3istance to which liquefaction can be e&"ected increases
dramatically with increasing magnitude as shown gra"hically below!
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(4elationshi" between limiting e"icentral
distance of site at which liquefaction occurs and moment magnitude for shallow earthqua$e)
Geological criteria
'oil de"osits that are susce"tible to liquefaction are formed
within a narrow range of geological enironment! Liquefaction susce"tibility is
influenced by
1) 3e"ositional enironment
)) .ydrological enironmental
3) /ge of soil de"osit
0eological "rocess that sorts soil into uniform "article si+e distribution and
de"osit them in loose state, "roduces soil de"osit with high liquefaction
susce"tibility! Liquefaction is also affected by de"th of ground water table! ,f
the ground water table is at larger de"th, liquefaction susce"tibility will be less!
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Compositional criteria
'ince liquefaction requires the deelo"ment of e&cess "ore "ressure,
liquefaction susce"tibility is influenced by the com"ositional characteristics that
influence olume change behaior! *haracteristics associated with high olume
change "otential li$e grain si+e, sha"e, distribution will result will result in high
liquefaction susce"tibility! *oarser silts with bul$y "article sha"e that are non
"lastic and cohesionless are fully susce"tible to liquefaction! (ine grained soil
with following characteristics is generally susce"tible to liquefaction!
(raction finer than 5!555mm6 (or equal) 157
Liquid limit6 (or equal to) 357
Liquidity inde& 6 (or equal to) 5!85
9ell graded soil are generally less susce"tible to liquefaction since there oid
will be less! Moreoer "article sha"es can also influence liquefaction! 4ound
sha"ed "articular soils are generally less susce"tibly against liquefaction
com"ared to angular grained!
State criteria
Liquefaction susce"tibility also de"ends on the initial state of soil (i!e!
its stress and density characteristics at the time of the earthqua$e)! %his is
because the tendency to generate e&cess "ore "ressure of a "articular soil is
strongly influenced by both density and initial state of stress condition!
Critical void ratio
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,n 193:, *assagrande, "reformed many drained strain controlled tria&ial test
on initially loose and initially dense sand s"ecimen and following results were
obtained! /ll the soil sam"les are tested at same confining "ressure and they
a""roach the same density when sheared at large strain, ie for loose soil, as
stress increased oid ratio decrease and after reaching a "articular leel there
will be no increase in the oid ratio for the stress increase! 'imilarly for dense
sand, at first oid ratio decrease with stress increment and at large strain alue
as stress increases oid ratio will also try to increase till it reaches a "articular
oid ratio thereafter no increased will occur in oid ratio! %his oid ratio
corres"onding to constant density is called critical void ratio (ec)! 2ositie
e&cess "ore "ressure will deelo" in loose sand while negatie "ore "ressure
will deelo" in dense sand when sub#ect stress!

*ritical oid ratio for a soil aries with confining
"ressure, and locus of these "oints (ec corres"onding to each confining "ressure)
will gie a cure called *ritical oid ratio (*4;) line!
%hese *4; line mar$s boundary between contractie and dilatie behaior so
generally saturated soil with high initial oid ratio "lotted aboe the *4; line
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are susce"tible to liquefaction, and soils below are generally not susce"tible!

Steady state deformation
,n 19:9 *astro "erformed static and cyclic tria&ial tests on
istro"ically consolidated s"ecimen and seeral static tests on anisotro"ically
consolidated s"ecimen! ;ery loose s"ecimen (s"ecimen /), "ea$ strength is
attained at small shear strain and the sam"le colla"sed suddenly which can be
referred to flow liquefaction! 3ense s"ecimen ('"ecimen <) initially contracts
but then after dilates until constant effectie confining "ressure and larege strain
is attained! /n intermediate s"ecimen (s"ecimen *), the e&ceedance of a "ea$
strength at low starin, then limited "eriod of strain softening behaior and end
with on a set dilation at intermediate strain! =ow a gra"h is "lotted with oid
ratio against confining "ressure at large strain which is roughly "arallel to *4;
line obtained from drained strain controlled test, showing the deelo"ment of
flow structure under stress controlled condition which is called steady state line
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(''L)! %he state in which the soil flowed continuously under constant effectie
confining "ressure at constant olume and elocity was defined as steady state
of deformation> corres"onding shear stress is called steady state strength.
'aturated soil falling aboe ''L will susce"tible to liquefaction when static
shear stress e&ceeds steady state strength!

Initiation of Liquefaction
'oil susce"tible to liquefaction does not sim"ly undergo liquefaction when an
earthqua$e occurs! ,t requires a disturbance strong enough to initiate or trigger
it! Many "reious studies of initiation of liquefaction hae im"licitly lum"ed
flow liquefaction and cyclic mobility together, but has to be studied se"arately!
?nderstanding the initiation of liquefaction requires identification of the state of
the soil when liquefaction is triggered!
Flow liquefaction surface
Liquefaction initiation can be effectiely studied using stress "ath! %he
effectie stress condition at which initiation of flow liquefaction can be
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described in a stress "ath s"ace, by a 33 surface as flow liquefaction surface
((L')! @en it is difficult to measure, but it "roides useful frame wor$ for
understanding relationshi" between arious liquefaction "henomena!
Monotonic loading
,nitiation of flow liquefaction can be seen most easily when soil is sub#ect to
monotonically increasing stress! /s the stress increased, since the s"ecimen is
loose saturated sand which has initial state well aboe the ''L, tends to show
the contractie behaior! 9hen stress reaches the steady state strength alue
(2oint <), s"ecimen tends to flow i!e! flow liquefaction ta$es "lace! %ill "oint <
"ore "ressure increases at faster rate and then after the increment is slow! 9hen
'teady strength state strength is reached, the s"ecimen tends to flow to a steady
state of deformation i!e! "oint *! .ere after increase in confining "ressure there
will not significant ariation in "ore "ressure!

Cyclic loading
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Liquefaction study by (L' can be a""lied to both cyclic and monotonic loading!
,tAs said that the liquefaction to initiate, the effectie stress "ath should cross
oer (L' but in actual e&"eriment itAs shown that stress "ath can go further
beyond for initiating liquefaction for both cyclic and monotonic loading! (or
case of monotonic loading (under undrained condition) shearing resistance will
built u" to a "ea$ alue when stress "ath reaches (L' ("oint <)! %here it
becomes unstable and strain to steady state of deformation ("oint *)! 'imilarly
the s"ecimen is cyclically loaded (under undrained condition) stress "ath moes
to "oint 3 on (L' and strains toward the steady state deformation "oint *! ,t
can be seen that for initiating liquefaction, required stress under cyclic load will
be less com"ared to monotonic loading een though "oint < and 3 are on (L'
Development of flow liquefaction
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%he flow liquefaction occurs in two stages! %he first stage ta$es "lace at lower
strain leel, inoles generation of sufficient e&cess "ore "ressure to moe the
stress "ath from initial "osition to (L'! 0eneration of e&cess "ore "ressure can
be either due to monotonic or cyclic loading! 9hen effectie stress "ath reaches
(L', second stage begins! %he second stage inoles strain softening and
additional e&cess "ore "ressure generation, which is drien by shear stress
called driing stress! Large strain deelo"ed in second stage as effectie stress
"ath moes from the (L' to steady state deformation
Influence of ecess pore pressure
%he generation of e&cess "ore "ressure is the $ey to initiate the liquefaction!
9ithout it neither flow liquefaction nor cyclic mobility can occurs!
Flow liquefaction
,t initiate by cyclic loading when shear stress required for static
equilibrium is greater than steady state strength! %his shear stress is caused due
to graity loading when large deformation deelo"s! %he occurrence of flow
liquefaction requires undrained disturbance strong enough to moe effectie
stress "ath from initial "oint to (L'! ,f the initial state stress condition is closer
to (L', only small "ore "ressure increase is enough to trigger flow liquefaction!
%hus $nowing the "ore "ressure ratio at a "articular oid ratio, it can be
assessed that at high initial stress ratio the flow liquefaction can be triggered
with ery small dynamic disturbance
Cyclic mobility
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,t can occur when shear stress is smaller than steady state strength and
een soil is dense or loose! %here are 3 initial and cyclic conditions which
generally "roduces cyclic mobility!
Case ! when ( B static > B cyc ) (no shear stress reersal) and (no e&ceedance of
steady state strength)
'tress will not cross the failure enelo" and hence flow deformation will not
occur! %he effectie confining "ressure has decreased significantly resulting in
low stiffness and significant "ermanent strains deelo" with each loading!
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Case " ( B static 6 B cyc ) when (no shear stress reersal and steady state
strength is e&ceeded momenterly)
%he effectie stress "ath, when touch (L', momentary "eriod of in stability
occurs resulting in "ermanent strain will occur!
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Case # when ( B static C B cyc ) (shear stress reersal occurs and no e&ceedance
of steady state strength)
,n this the shear stress reersal will induces both com"ression and e&tension!
%he rate of generation of "ore "ressure increases with increase in the stress
reersal! @ach cyclic loading the stress "ath cross origin resulting +ero effectie
stress but do not cause initial liquefaction! 'ignificant strain will accumulate but
no flow failure will occur!

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$ffect of liquefaction
Liquefaction "henomena can affect building, bridges, buried "i"es and other
structures! ,t also influences the nature of ground surface motion! (low
liquefaction can "roduces massie flow slides and contribute in sin$ing or
tilting of heay structures! *yclic mobility causes slum"ing of slo"es,
settlement of building and failure of retaining walls! %he effects of liquefaction
can be listed as
!% &lteration of ground motion
%he abru"t increase in the e&cess "ore "ressure causes stiffness to decrease
during an earthqua$e! %hus the am"litude and frequency content of the
surface motion may change considerably during earthqua$e! %he occurrence
of liquefaction at de"th beneath a flat ground surface can decou"le the
liquefied soil from the surficial soil to "roduce large transient moement
ground oscillations! %he surficial soils are often bro$en into bloc$ se"arated
by fissures that can o"en and close during earthqua$e!
"% Development of Sand 'oils
Liquifaction is accom"anied by the deelo"ment of sand boil! 3uring
sha$ing, 'eismically induced e&cess "ore "ressure are dissi"ated
"redominantly by the "roduces an u"ward force if the hydraulic gradient
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e&ceeds a critical alue the ertical effectie stress will the +ero, which is
$nown as quic$ condition! 3uring this "eriod the water can carry sand
"artical and gushes out firm crac$s with high elocity called sand boil!
#% Settlement
9hen sands sub#ected to earthqua$e, it generally has "ro"erty to get
densify! 'ettlement behaior of snad is also de"ends on condition of
saturation! 3ry snad densifies ery quic$ly com"are to saturated sand!
(% Settlement of Dry Sand
%he densification of dry sands sub#ected earthqua$e loading de"ends on
density of sand and am"litude of the cyclic shear strain induced in the
sand and number of cycles of shear strain a""lied during the earthqua$e!
*yclic shear strain can be estimated by using realtion
cyc = 0.65 amax
!"
g #
cyc
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'ince shear modulus aries with (cyc) and hence seeral iterations are
equired to calculate a alue of (cyc$ which is consistent with the
shear modulus! Knowing and '2% = alue olumetric strain i!e
'ettlement can be estimated!
)% Settlement of Saturated Sand
%he densification of saturated sand is not a quic$ "rocess! ,t is influenced
by the density of sand ma&imum shear strain induced and the amount of
e&cess "ore "ressure generated during earthqua$e! Large time ta$en for
settlement is due to slow dissi"ation of e&cess "ore "ressure and it
de"ends u"on gradation and "ermeability! %hus the settlements of
saturated sands are "ost earth qua$e settlements!
*% Flow failures
Liquefaction induced flow failure occurs when the shear stress required to
maintain static equilibrium is greater than the shear strength of liquefied
sil! %hese are different mechanism for flow failure!
1! (low liquefaction failures(=!4!* Mechanism /)
(low liquefaction occurs when the static shear stress e&ceeds the shear
strength of the soil in liquefied state! -nce triggered, large
deformations "roduced by flow liquefaction will be drien by static
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shear stress and the cyclic stress li$e earthqua$es will "ush the soil to
unstable state where soil looses its shear strength!
)! Local Loosening (low failure (=!4!* Mechanism <)
%his mainly occurs when sand layer is oer lain by a less "ermeable
material that does not "ermit drainage during earthqua$e! %hus during
earth qua$e liquefaction, instead of whole sand mass, sand mass at
bottom and get densifies while to" layer of sand will undergo local
loosening and flow failure at to" occurs!
1! 0lobal Loosening (low failure (=!4!* Mechanism *)
.igh e&cess "ore "ressure generated at de"th will cause "orewater to
flow toward drainages boundries during and after earthqua$e! 'hallow
soils may be loosened by this flow to the e&tent that their steady state
strength dro"s below the shear stress required to maintain the
equilibrium! ,n contrast with the local loosening case, this loosening is
not com"ensated for by densification at a different location! 'ince the
steady state strength is not reduced until the water flows into the
shallower soil, failure may not occur until well after earthqua$e!
*rac$ing of the surficial soils may also contribute to the failure!
5! ,nterface (low failure (=!4!* Mechanism 3)
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(low ty"e failure can also occur when the shear strength of the
interface between a liquefiable soil and a underground structure
becomes smaller than the shear stress required for equilibrium!
2lunging failure of friction "iles is an e&am"le interface flow failure!
,f the interface is smooth, as with steel or "recast concrete interface
flow failure does not require olume change of soil and therefore can
occur in contractie or dilatie sands!
Deformation failure
=ot all liquefaction related failure inoles large dis"lacements!
*yclic mobility "roduces to small incremental "ermanent
deformations, which sufficient enough to "roduce large deformation!
%hese are deformation failure e!g! lateral s"reading of ground! Lateral
s"reading causes the surficial layer to brea$ into bloc$ and
deelo"ment of crac$s and fissure!
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Conclusion
Liquefaction is one of the most im"ortant, interesting, com"le&
and conterersial to"ics is geotechnical engineering! /ll mentioned aboe are
#ust basic frame wor$ to analy+e the liquefaction "henomena!

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