Assessment of liquefaction potential and applicability of excess pore pressure generation model for gravelly soil

Abstract

For undrained test results involving coarse materials where membrane penetration is inevitable, several correction methods have been proposed. In this study, the applicability of a pore pressure generation model, which is based on volumetric strain evolution under constant cyclic stress ratio and elastic modulus of the soil, is validated to directly estimate the liquefaction strength of gravelly soil without conducting undrained tests and applying empirical corrections. The results show that the elastic modulus of the gravelly soil can be estimated by obtaining the volumetric strain due to membrane penetration, and that volume of membrane penetration has no effect on the evolution of plastic volumetric strain. The estimated pore pressure buildup and liquefaction strength curve by the model agreed well with the undrained test results.