Cyclic shear strength of a loose glacial till

The liquefaction potential of a loose glacial till is assessed by laboratory cyclic tests and by comparison with test results obtained on a clean sand, using the same testing procedures. The laboratory testing program of both soils included cyclic triaxial tests on saturated specimens and constant volume cyclic simple shear tests on dry specimens. The till and the sand exhibited very similar behaviour during cycling and mobilized nearly identical cyclic shear strengths in the triaxial as well as in the simple shear tests. The 28% fines content in the till did not make it more resistant to liquefaction than a clean sand. Key words: liquefaction, sand, silty sand, cyclic simple shear test, cyclic triaxial test.