The Effect of Temperature on Dynamic Characteristics of Frozen Clay under Principal Stress Rotation

The foundation soil is always subjected to complex stress, including continuous rotation of the principal stress caused by traffic and earthquake loads. To comprehend the dynamic characteristics of frozen clay under complex stress sate, including continuous rotation of the principal stress, this study investigates the effect of temperature on the dynamic characteristics of frozen clay under principal stress rotation using a frozen hollow cylinder apparatus (FHCA-300). The test results reveal that the cumulative plastic strain of frozen clay samples exponentially increases with the rising of temperature under principal stress rotation. The influence of temperature is more profound with a high cyclic stress ratio (CSR). A decrease in temperature can improve the stiffness of the frozen clay, reduces its energy dissipation, and enhances its ability to resist dynamic loading. However, the principal stress rotation phenomenon may aggravate the damage of frozen clay and increase the energy dissipation and reduces its ability to resist dynamic loading. Based on the experimental data, an empirical expression was proposed to describe the coupling influence of CSRs and temperature on the axial resilient modulus of frozen clay, which can predict the development of axial resilient modulus under different thermal-mechanical conditions.

Earth Pressure on Retaining Wall with Surface-Inclined Cohesive Fill Based on Principal Stress Rotation

When considering the friction and bonding force between the back of the retaining wall and the horizontal fill behind the wall, the principal stress of the soil element near the vertical back of the retaining wall is no longer vertical and horizontal but deflects to a certain extent. When the surface of the backfill becomes inclined, the principal stress of the soil behind the wall deflects in a more complicated way. In this paper, the cohesion of the soil element in the fill with an inclined surface is assumed, and the formulas for calculating the active and passive earth pressures of the retaining wall with inclined cohesive backfill are derived by rotating the principal stress of the soil element behind the wall. The proposed method is compared with the existing algorithm, and the influences of the inclination and the cohesion of the fill are analyzed. The results show that the proposed method is more universal. Both the active and passive earth pressures increase rapidly with the increase of the inclination of the fill. The active earth pressure and its horizontal component decrease with the increase of the cohesion of the fill, while the passive earth pressure and its horizontal component increase with the increase of the cohesion of the fill.

Deformation Behavior of Saturated Soft Clay under Cyclic Loading with Principal Stress Rotation

Under long-term traffic loading, the soil elements in subgrade are subjected to continuous principal stress rotation. In order to study the deformation properties of soft clays under traffic loading with principal stress rotation, a series of cyclic torsional shear tests were conducted on Wenzhou soft clays under different torsional cyclic stress ratios and degrees of principal stress rotation. The test results showed the stiffness softening of soil under long-term traffic loading. In addition, the principal stress rotation induced by traffic loading aggravated the deformation of clay samples and pore pressure accumulation. A modified dynamic pore pressure model was applied to consider the effect of principal stress rotation on undrained cumulative pore pressure, predicting the growth of cumulative pore pressure at different cycles. Considering loading cycles and the principal stress rotation, a modified Hardin–Drnevich (H-D) backbone curve model under traffic loading with principal stress rotation was proposed, and the predictive values of this model agreed well with the experimental values. Compared with the traditional H–D model, this model better reflects the cyclic deformation of soft clays under long-term traffic loading with principal stress rotation.

The Mechanism of Rock Mass Crack Propagation of Principal Stress Rotation in the Process of Tunnel Excavation

Rock excavation has experienced complex stress paths. The development of the original crack under the path of principal stress magnitude and principal stress direction is a key scientific problem that needs to be solved in rock underground engineering. The principal stress magnitude dominates the initiation and propagation of the crack and increases rock damage under the action of principal stress rotation. In this study, the theoretical calculation and numerical analysis method have been combined with the crack propagation conditions to study the stress-driven mechanism of brittle rock crack propagation under principal stress rotation. The results show that the “relative initial angle” of crack angle is being updated in time during the principal stress rotation process; once the stress is rotated, it will become the next initial crack angle; the crack propagation direction is deviated under the applied shear load, and it is always in the direction of minimum shear load, leading to a certain degree of inhibition of crack propagation depth in the initial direction. According to the results of numerical simulation, the effect of principal stress rotation caused by mining excavation is obvious and has a certain range of influence depth, the stress of surrounding rock of roadway is the highest within the depth range of 1∼2 m, and the maximum principal stress is as high as 26.89 MPa. The rotation of principal stress direction on the roadway surrounding rock surface is the strongest, which makes the surrounding rock more fragmented, and the middle principal stress and the maximum principal stress rotate about 90° counterclockwise along the Ox axis. Studying the action mechanism of principal stress rotation on fractured rock masses can provide scientific basis for geotechnical engineering design and rock mass surrounding support.