Rapid testing and prediction of soil–water characteristic curve of subgrade soils considering stress state and degree of compaction

The subgrade soil is generally in saturated or unsaturated condition. To analyze complex thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemical (THMC) behaviors of subgrade, it is essential to determine the soil–water characteristic curve (SWCC) that represents the relationship between matric suction and moisture content. In this study, a full-automatic rapid stress-dependent SWCC pressure-plate extractor was developed. Then, the influences of overburden stress and degree of compaction on the SWCC of subgrade soil such as high liquid limit silt (MH) and low liquid limit clay (CL) were analyzed. Accordingly, a new model taking into account the influences of overburden stress and degree of compaction based on the well-known Van Genuchten (VG) SWCC fitting model was presented and validated. The results show that with the increase of the degree of compaction and overburden stress, the saturated moisture content of subgrade soil decreases, while the air-entry value increases and the transition section curve becomes flat. The influences of the degree of compaction and overburden stress on the SWCC of MH is greater than that of CL. Meanwhile, there was a satisfactory agreement between the prediction and measurement, indicating a good performance of the new model for predicting the SWCC.

Degree of compaction and compression strength of Nigerian Alfisol under tilled condition and different machinery traffic passes

Information on the effect of soil compaction on soil mechanical properties such as degree of compaction,compression and shear strength of tropical soils of Nigeria under different machinery traffic passes is very scarce.Field experiment was conducted in a tilled and compacted sandy clay loam(Alfisol)in Akure,Nigeria,under different machinery traffic passes to determine compaction effects on bulk density,compression strength,degree of compaction and the shear strength of soil.Four plots,A,B,C and D of area 20 m×50 m each were used for the field experiment.Treatment plot A was tilled with a tractor-mounted disc plough,and the remaining three plots:B,C and D were subjected to 5,10 and 15 to and fro passes,respectively,using heavy duty Mercy Fergusson tractor model 4355(3.82 Mg).The treatments were replicated three times in a randomized complete block design.Compacted plots progressively increased the bulk density from 1.63 g/cm^(3) to 1.90 g/cm^(3),but the highest bulk density was observed in plots under 15 traffic passes with the value of(1.90±0.23)g/cm3.The percentage of soil compaction varies from 90.5%to 97%at the 0-10 cm soil layer.The compression strength of soil increased from 31.00 kPa to 42.05 kPa and from 29.68 to 65.44 kPa at the 0-10 cm and 10-20 cm soil layers,respectively,which resulted in the increased shear strength from 15.79 kPa to 21.03 kPa and 14.8 kPa to 32.72 kPa at the 0-10 cm and 10-20 cm in plots under 5 and 15 traffic passes,respectively.Plot A(tilled soil)had the lowest bulk density,degree of compaction and compression strength with values(1.51±0.19)g/cm^(3),88.2%,and(12.15±0.37)kPa,respectively,and consequently the lowest shear strength of(6.02±1.23)kPa,which enhanced air movement and microbial activities in the soil.Soil under 15 traffic passes,especially at the 10-20 cm soil layer,may result in poor root penetration when cropped but can be very reliable and consistent when used for structural purposes.

Influence of soil density on gas permeability and water retention in soils amended with in-house produced biochar

Biochar has been used as an environment-friendly enhancer to improve the hydraulic properties(e.g.suction and water retention)of soil.However,variations in densities alter the properties of the soil ebiochar mix.Such density variations are observed in agriculture(loosely compacted)and engineering(densely compacted)applications.The influence of biochar amendment on gas permeability of soil has been barely investigated,especially for soil with different densities.The major objective of this study is to investigate the water retention capacity,and gas permeability of biochar-amended soil(BAS)with different biochar contents under varying degree of compaction(DOC)conditions.In-house produced novel biochar was mixed with the soil at different amendment rates(i.e.biochar contents of 0%,5%and 10%).All BAS samples were compacted at three DOCs(65%,80%and 95%)in polyvinyl chloride(PVC)tubes.Each soil column was subjected to dryingewetting cycles,during which soil suction,water content,and gas permeability were measured.A simplified theoretical framework for estimating the void ratio of BAS was proposed.The experimental results reveal that the addition of biochar significantly decreased gas permeability kg as compared with that of bare soil(BS).However,the addition of 5%biochar is found to be optimum in decreasing kg with an increase of DOC(i.e.k_(g,65%)>k_(g,80%)>k_(g,95%))at a relatively low suction range(<200 kPa)because both biochar and compaction treatment reduce the connected pores.

Study on mechanical properties of soil-rock mixture of various compactness subjected to freeze-thaw cycles

The soil-rock mixture,a collection of soil particles and rock blocks,is inherently heterogeneous and anisotropic due to significant particle size and material strength differences.This study conducts triaxial tests on soil-rock mixture samples of various compactness subjected to varying freeze-thaw cycles.A mesoscopic simulation is carried out by particle flow code(PFC)to analyze the effects of freeze-thaw cycles on the mechanical properties of soil and rock particles.The results show that the mechanical properties of the soil-rock mixture under freeze-thaw cycles are greatly affected by the initial compaction.In general,when the degree of compaction is higher,the influence of freeze-thaw cycles on the soil-rock mixture is greater.The stress-strain curves of the samples with different compactness demonstrate strain-softening behavior.The freeze-thaw cycles greatly influence the failure strength of the samples with a higher degree of compaction but have little impact on the samples with a lower degree of compaction.On the microscopic level,during freeze-thaw cycles,the pore volume in the highly compacted sample is too small to accommodate the volume expansion from ice crystal formation,causing significant strength loss among the soil and rock particles and deterioration of the macroscopic properties of the soil-rock mixture.

Comprehensive tests on rising height of capillary water for coarse grained soil

According to the comprehensive tests on the rising height of capillary water for seven kinds of differ- ent coarse grained soil by use of the method of standpipe, the relationship between the rising height of capillary water and time was obtained, and the influencing factors and rules were analyzed. The data of the steady rising height of capillary water were obtained, and the regression equation of coarse grained soil on steady height and physical indexes （effective grain dl0 and porosity n） was found. Compared with Hazen＇s and other expressions that could estimate the steady height of capillary water of coarse grained soil, the proposed method is satisfactory and the defects of the latter were pointed out.