Episodic simple shear tests to measure strength changes for whole-life geotechnical design
Episodic simple shear tests to measure strength changes for whole-life geotechnical design
This technical note describes a set of direct simple shear (DSS) tests that characterise the evolving geotechnical properties of a soft soil, through a loading history that represents episodic loading and consolidation periods as encountered by some offshore infrastructure. The interpretation uses a critical state soil mechanics (CSSM) framework. CSSM provides the necessary building blocks to quantify the balance between undrained cyclic loading and the associated increases in pore pressure, and drainage and consolidation, leading to strength regain. The results show how DSS tests can characterise the through-life response of soft clays. The measured responses showed the changing strength of the clay due to consolidation effects following loading, and match predictions from simple models. The results show how DSS tests can characterise the types of behaviour also seen in centrifuge models and field penetrometer tests related to the long-term response of soft clays under offshore infrastructure.
Offshore engineering, Whole-life, Geotechnics, Direct simple shear tests, Clays
103-111
Laham, Noor
d4af2376-9e9c-4b89-aa76-972f2b78fb0e
Kwa, Katherine
18faee0d-75d9-4683-a2c8-604625eecbb0
White, David
a986033d-d26d-4419-a3f3-20dc54efce93
Gourvenec, Susan
6ff91ad8-1a91-42fe-a3f4-1b5d6f5ce0b8
March 2021
Laham, Noor
d4af2376-9e9c-4b89-aa76-972f2b78fb0e
Kwa, Katherine
18faee0d-75d9-4683-a2c8-604625eecbb0
White, David
a986033d-d26d-4419-a3f3-20dc54efce93
Gourvenec, Susan
6ff91ad8-1a91-42fe-a3f4-1b5d6f5ce0b8
Laham, Noor, Kwa, Katherine, White, David and Gourvenec, Susan
(2021)
Episodic simple shear tests to measure strength changes for whole-life geotechnical design.
Géotechnique Letters, 11 (1), .
(doi:10.1680/jgele.20.00124).
Abstract
This technical note describes a set of direct simple shear (DSS) tests that characterise the evolving geotechnical properties of a soft soil, through a loading history that represents episodic loading and consolidation periods as encountered by some offshore infrastructure. The interpretation uses a critical state soil mechanics (CSSM) framework. CSSM provides the necessary building blocks to quantify the balance between undrained cyclic loading and the associated increases in pore pressure, and drainage and consolidation, leading to strength regain. The results show how DSS tests can characterise the through-life response of soft clays. The measured responses showed the changing strength of the clay due to consolidation effects following loading, and match predictions from simple models. The results show how DSS tests can characterise the types of behaviour also seen in centrifuge models and field penetrometer tests related to the long-term response of soft clays under offshore infrastructure.
Text
jgele.20.00124
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 2020
e-pub ahead of print date: 8 December 2020
Published date: March 2021
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
This study was supported through the Royal Academy of Engineering chair in Emerging Technologies in Intelligent & Resilient Ocean Engineering, the EPSRC Supergen Offshore Renewable Energy Hub (EP/S000747/1) and the Erasmus Mundus Scholarship Programme. The authors are also grateful to Mr Harvey Skinner, Geomechanics Laboratory manager at the National Infrastructure Laboratory, University of Southampton, and Dr Fernando Alvarez Borges, for their technical assistance during the laboratory testing.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 IOS Press. All rights reserved.
Keywords:
Offshore engineering, Whole-life, Geotechnics, Direct simple shear tests, Clays
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 445441
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/445441
PURE UUID: fb31533e-a114-4918-8c6e-dbc7816eb077
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 09 Dec 2020 17:30
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 03:57
Export record
Altmetrics
Download statistics
Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.
View more statistics
