Two-dimensional analysis of soil behaviour around a penetrating object

Richards, D.J., Farhangi, S and Clayton, C.R.I. (2010) Two-dimensional analysis of soil behaviour around a penetrating object. Preprint. (Submitted)

Record type: Article

Abstract

Many geotechnical processes, for example pile driving, penetration testing, sampling and various in-situ stress measurement techniques, involve the penetration of an object into the soil. This paper presents the results of two-dimensional numerical analyses carried out to determine the stress-strain response of a soil caused by the penetration of an idealised push-in pressure cell geometry, termed the ‘simple wedge’. The numerical methodology used to analyse soil penetration is described, together with results from strain path method analyses used to validate various aspects of these analyses. The method was used to investigate the influence of various soil and interface parameters on the stress-strain changes that occur within the soil adjacent to the penetrating ‘simple wedge’. The results of these analyses indicate that the stress-strain behaviour of the soil is sensitive to the shear modulus and undrained shear strength of soil. The results also illustrate that the incorporation of interface adhesion leads to significant changes in strain paths close to penetrating objects, and an increase in horizontal total stress.

This record has no associated files available for download.