Mechanical properties and stress–dilatancy relationships of unsaturated soil under various cyclic loading conditions

Most studies investigating the effect of cyclic loading on soil properties have been conducted for saturated soils. Embankments such as fill dams, roads and railways are usually constructed by unsaturated geo-materials and retained under unsaturated conditions during their in-service periods. Then when the stabilities of the embankments against dynamic motions such as earthquakes and traffic loads are evaluated, it is necessary to account for the cyclic properties of unsaturated soils. However, there are few studies investigating mechanical properties of unsaturated soils under cyclic loadings. There are two objectives in this paper. One objective is to investigate cyclic properties of an unsaturated silt under various cyclic loading conditions, while the other is to investigate the stress–dilatancy relationships; the relation of plastic strain increment ratio, − dεvp/dγp, versus stress ratio, q/p′; and to derive the plastic potential function of the unsaturated silt. Cyclic triaxial compression tests under various loading conditions were performed using the unsaturated silt. The material used is an artificial silty soil named DL clay. It was found from the series of the tests that the stiffness of the soil increased with an increase in suction and the number of cyclic loadings. The total volume reductions in the specimens decreased with an increase in suction. When the numbers of cyclic loadings and suction increased, the dilation also increased. Each unique stress–dilatancy relationship could be found in both loading and unloading processes. The relationships were similar to those of saturated soils under cyclic loadings. A unique plastic potential function could also be derived from the stress–dilatancy relationships.

Review of Proposed Stress-dilatancy Relationships and Plastic Potential Functions for Uncemented and Cemented Sands

Stress-dilatancy relationship or plastic potential function are crucial components of every elastoplastic constitutive model developed for sand or cemented sand. This is because the associated flow rule usually does not produce acceptable outcomes for sand or cemented sand. Many formulas have been introduced based on the experimental observations in conventional and advanced plasticity models in order to capture ratio of plastic volumetric strain increment to plastic deviatoric strain increment (i.e. dilatancy rate). Lack of an article that gathers these formulas is clear in the literature. Thus, this paper is an attempt to summarize plastic potentials and specially stress-dilatancy relations so far proposed for constitutive modelling of cohesionless and cemented sands. Stress-dilatancy relation is usually not the same under compression and extension conditions. Furthermore, it may also be different under loading and unloading conditions. Therefore, the focus in this paper mainly places on the proposed stress-dilatancy relations for compressive monotonic loading. Moreover because plastic potential function can be calculated by integration of stress-dilatancy relationship, more weight is allocated to stress-dilatancy relationship in this research.

An Elastoplastic Model for Coarse Grained Soils Obeying Lade's Dilatancy Rule

This paper discussed the mechanism of dilatancy in coarse grained soils. Large-scale triaxial tests were also conducted to study the dilatancy law of coarse grained soils. Based on the results of the previous studies, it is found that plastic potential function proposed by Lade can fit the test results well. Lades dilatancy rule was then applied to a practical two-yield-surface model. Elastoplastic formula of the two-yield-surface model was also deduced in detail. The new model was verified with several groups of different materials. Results showed that this model could predict the behaviors of coarse grained soils well.