BEHAVIOR OF SAND PARTICLES AROUND RIGID RIBBED INCLUSIONS DURING SHEAR

Abstract

The behavior of cohesionless soil around rigid plane ribbed inclusions during shear was investigated. The experimental program included monitoring of individual sand grain movements during plane strain shearing and mapping of zones of dilation, contraction aud maximum shear strain. The parameters of study included rib geometry aud spacing, soil density, grain shape, grain size and number of shearing cycles. The rib spacing proved to be a particularly important parameter as it controlled the development or lack of development of a passive soil zone ahead of an advancing rib. The initial soil density determined the volumetric straining and the peak load transfer. Beyond the first half-cycle of shearing, both dense and loose sands exhibited similar behavior. Carbowax solidification techniques were also employed to characterize the failure surfaces and to determine localized changes in void ratio in the intrarib region.