Title: Characterization of subgrade soils at simulated field moisture
Abstract: It is important to assess the strength characteristics of subgrade soils at equilibrium moisture content (EMC), generally a few percentage points wet of optimum moisture content (OMC). Investigation of the effect of saturation-degree and mode-above OMC on the resilient modulus (M R ) of laboratory compacted subgrade soils is the topic of this paper. Three modes of saturating (wetting) are investigated : (a) capillary saturating, (b) vacuum saturating, and (c) molding wet of optimum. EMC and 96 percent saturation are the two different degrees of saturation considered. The M R of soil samples, both coarse- and fine-grain, are evaluated for different combinations of degree of saturation and saturating mode. The test results indicate that the degree of saturation above OMC has a nominal effect (20 percent) on M R of coarse-grain soils, whereas it has a severe effect (50 to 75 percent decrease) on the M R of fine-grain soils. Another finding is that both degree of saturation and saturating mode affect the M R of fine-grain soils. For interpretation of the results, particularly how M R is affected by saturation, the four-phase concept for unsaturated soils is used.
Publication Year: 1995
Publication Date: 1995-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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Cited By Count: 26
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