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Laboratory
Tests
to
Determine
Shear
Strength
of
Soils
Geotechnical
Engineering
II
(ENGI
6723)
Presented
by
Rodney
P.
McAffee,
Ph.D.,
P.Eng.
Laboratory
Tests
to
Determine
Shear
Strength
of
Soils
• Lecture
Topics
o Brief
overview
of
direct
shear
test
o Determine
soil
shear
strength
parameters
from
triaxial
tesNng:
• Unconsolidated
–
Undrained
• Consolidated
–
Undrained
o Triaxial
test
setup
and
behaviour
o Use
of
results
in
engineering
pracNce
o Examples
of
triaxial
test
results
Shear
Strength
• Shear
strength
of
soils
is
required
to
solve
problems
of
stability
o Bearing
capacity,
earth
pressures,
slope
stability,
etc.
• Shear
strength
is
a
funcNon
of
effecNve
normal
stress
Laboratory
Tests
to
Determine
Shear
Strength
of
Soils
• Direct
Shear
Test
• Triaxial
Tests
o Pore
water
pressure
measurement
o TesNng
under
back
pressure
• Types
of
Triaxial
Tests
o Unconsolidated
–
Undrained
o Consolidated
–
Undrained
o Consolidated
–
Drained
Direct
Shear
Test
Direct
Shear
Test
• Disadvantages
o Failure
plane
is
forced
to
be
horizontal
o Cannot
control
drainage
o Stress
concentraNons
at
the
sample
boundaries
o Uncontrolled
rotaNon
of
principal
planes
and
stresses
• Advantages
o Test
in
inexpensive
o Fast
and
simple
o Easy
to
prepare
for
cohesionless
samples
Triaxial
TesNng
• Casagrande
developed
triaxial
tesNng
in
the
1930s
• More
complicated
than
direct
shear
tesNng
o But
more
versaNle
• Drainage
can
be
controlled
• No
rotaNon
of
principal
stresses
o Some
small
shear
stresses
do
act
on
the
boundaries
• Stress
concentraNons
are
limited
• Failure
plane
can
occur
anywhere
• Stress
paths
to
failure
can
be
controlled
Triaxial
Test
Apparatus
and
assumed
Stress
CondiNons
• Load
frame
with
stepper
motor
drive
• Triaxial
cell
• Data
acquisiton
system
• Electronic
measurement
transducers
o Load,
displacement,
pressure,
and
volume
change
• Computer
SoZware
for
triaxial
tesNng
• Control
panel
and
de‐aired
water
control
system
• Control
Panel
to
regulate
pressure
and
flows
during
tesNng
Drainage
Paths
in
Triaxial
TesNng
• The
3
permissible
drainage
paths
are:
Q-Test
(for “quick” test)
S-test
(for “slow” test)
Consolidated
–
Undrained
(CU)
Test
Behaviour
• Sample
is
first
consolidated
under
desired
stresses
• AZer
consolidaNon
complete,
drainage
valves
closed
• Typically,
pore
water
pressures
are
measured
o Calculate
total
and
effecNve
stresses
• Excess
pore
water
pressure
(Δu)
can
either:
o Increase
(+ive):
specimen
contracts
or
consolidates
o Decrease
(‐ive):
specimen
expands
or
swells
• Axial
stress
increased
incrementally
or
at
constant
rate
of
strain
Back
Pressure
during
TesNng
• To
ensure
100%
saturaNon
(necessary
to
give
accurate
pore
water
pressures),
a
back
pressure
is
applied
to
the
pore
water
• Cell
pressure
also
increased
by
same
amount
to
maintain
the
same
effecNve
consolidaNon
stresses
Typical Stress-Strain
Curves for CU Tests
• Soils
are
fully
consolidated
and
at
equilibrium
with
the
exisNng
stress
system
• Then,
addiNonal
stresses
are
applied
quickly
• Example
Test
for
NC
Clay:
o Consolidated
under
a
stress
of
150
kPa
o Then
sheared
undrained
in
axial
compression
o Principal
stress
difference
at
failure
=
100
kPa
o Induced
pore
water
pressure
at
failure
=
88
kPa
• φu
=
0
when
results
are
ploged
with
respect
to
total
stress
Use
of
UU
Strength
in
Engineering
PracNce
• Engineering
loading
is
assumed
to
take
place
so
rapidly
that
Δu
cannot
dissipate
or
for
consolidaNon
to
occur
• Change
in
total
stress
does
not
affect
the
in
situ
undrained
shear
strength
• Scope
• Test
Specimens
• Terminology
• Procedure
• Significance
of
use
• CalculaNon
• Apparatus
• Report
ASTM
D
2850:
Unconsolidated
‐
Undrained
• Terminology
o Failure
is
defined
as
the
maximum
principal
stress
difference
or
that
measured
at
15%
axial
strain
• Test
Specimens
o Minimum
diameter
of
3.3
cm
o Height
to
diameter
raNo
between
2
and
2.5
o Procedures
to
prepare
undisturbed
and
compacted
samples
• Procedure
o Axial
strain:
1%/min
for
plasNc
and
0.3%/min
for
brigle
o Test
should
last
approximately
15
to
20
minutes
ASTM
D
2850:
Unconsolidated
‐
Undrained
• CalculaNons
o Axial
strain,
ε
=
ΔH/H0
o Average
cross‐secNonal
area,
A
=
A0/(1
‐
ε)
o Principal
stress
difference,
σ1
–
σ3
=
P/A
o CorrecNon
equaNons
for:
• If
all
around
pressure
changes
specimen
length
• CorrecNon
for
sNffness
of
the
rubber
membrane
• Report
o Index
properNes
of
material
being
tested
o IniNal
H0,
Diam.,
γd,
void
raNo,
w.c.,
saturaNon,
etc.
o Rate
of
axial
strain,
strain
and
stresses
at
failure
o Stress
–
strain
curve
and
failure
sketch
ASTM
D
4767:
Consolidated
‐
Undrained
• Terminology
o Failure
is
defined
as
the
maximum
principal
stress
difference
or
that
measured
at
15%
axial
strain,
or
o Maximum
stress
obliquity,
σ’1/σ’3
• Test
Specimens
o Same
as
for
UU
test
• Procedure
o SaturaNon
procedure
to
ensure:
Pore
Pressure
Parameter,
B
>
0.95
(B
=
Δu/Δσ3)
o ConsolidaNon
procedures
to
ensure
specimen
reaches
equilibrium
in
a
drained
state
at
the
effecNve
consolidaNon
stress
required
ASTM
D
4767:
Consolidated
‐
Undrained
• Procedure
o Axial
loading
to
produce
equalizaNon
of
pore
water
pressures
throughout
the
sample
at
failure
o Assuming
failure
will
occur
at
4%
axial
strain
• Rate
of
strain
=
4%
/
(10
x
t50)
o Details
for
measuring
pore
water
pressures
• CalculaNons
o EquaNons
for
height
and
area
aZer
consolidaNon
(Hc
&
Ac)
o Axial
strain,
ε
=
ΔH/Hc
o Average
cross‐secNonal
area,
A
=
Ac
/(1
‐
ε)
o Principal
stress
difference,
σ1
–
σ3
=
P/A
ASTM
D
4767:
Consolidated
‐
Undrained
• CalculaNons
o Calculate
effecNve
stresses
based
on
Δu
measured
o CorrecNon
equaNons
for:
• CorrecNon
for
filter
paper
strips
• CorrecNon
for
sNffness
of
the
rubber
membrane
• Report
o Index
properNes
measured
for
material
being
tested
o EffecNve
consolidaNon
stress,
t50
o Hc
,
Ac
,Diam.,
γd,
void
raNo,
w.c.,
saturaNon
aZer
consolidaNon
o Rate
of
axial
strain,
strain
and
stresses
at
failure
o Stress
–
strain
curve
and
failure
sketch
Interpreting Scatter in Test Results
• US
Army
Corps
of
Engineers
Procedure:
Draw
strength
envelope
in
a
posiNon
such
that
data
from
two‐thirds
of
the
tests
lie
above
the
failure
envelope
• Primary
References:
o A.W.
Bishop
and
D.J.
Henkel,
1962.
The
Triaxial
Test
o R.D.
Holtz
and
W.D.
Kovacs,
1981.
Introduc:on
to
Geotechnical
Engineering
o US
Army
Corps
of
Engineers:
Engineering
and
Design
Manual:
Slope
Stability,
Appendix
D
Shear
Strength
Characteris:cs
(EM
1110‐2‐1902,
Oct
31,
2003)
o ASTM
D2850
and
D4767
Standard
Test
Methods