Search results for " Shear strength"
showing 10 items of 23 documents
The Residual Shear Strength of the Shaly and Sandy Facies of the Opalinus Clay
2018
The paper presents a comprehensive laboratory campaign carried out with the aim to asses the residual strength of the Opalinus Clay. Ring shear tests with vertical effective stress up to 1 MPa were performed on remoulded samples of two different facies of the Opalinus Clay. Test results show that the «Shaly» facies is characterized by a low range of variation of residual strength while the strength of the «Sandy» facies is very sensitive to the variation of grain size distribution. Microstructural analyses (SEM) suggest that the difference in the observed mechanical behavior of the two facies can be related to different particles arrangements along the shear surfaces.
Experimental study of a naturally weathered stiff clay
2016
Studying the shear strength of a naturally weathered clay is important to understand rain-induced slope failures in weathered soils. However, experimental studies on naturally weathered soils are limited. The paper focuses on the laboratory experimental investigation carried out to analyse the shear strength of a naturally weathered stiff clay that can be found in unsaturated conditions in situ. This has an important practical relevance in the evaluation of the stability conditions of natural slopes at clay outcrops. Different experimental techniques of suction measurement were used to obtain the soil-water retention curve of the clay over a wide range of suctions. Scanning electronic micr…
Seismic behavior of exterior RC beam-column joints without code-specified ties in the joint core
2021
Abstract Beam-column joint design for reinforced concrete (RC) buildings is a critical issue for modern earthquake engineering, because for these structural elements, the current codes provide several geometrical constraints and reinforcement provisions, which may be very complex to implement during the construction phase. To investigate how a construction error might influence the joint behavior, two identical full-scale exterior beam-column joints specimens are built, according to Italian Building Code specifications for the high ductility class, but without the required horizontal ties inside the joint panel. This construction error could be plausible because, according to the design dra…
Shear Strength of a Compacted Scaly Clay from Suction-Controlled Triaxial Tests
2012
The paper presents the results of an experimental research aimed at investigating the shear strength characteristics of an unsaturated compacted scaly clay. Shear strength was investigated by suction-controlled triaxial compression tests on dynamically compacted samples. Collected results point out that suction effects on stiffness and shear strength can be very different for suction values applied lower or greater than air entry value (AEV), corresponding to the material void ratio.
Influence of Cross-Section Shape and FRP Reinforcement Layout on Shear Capacity of Strengthened RC Beams
2022
The evaluation of the shear capacity of an FRP-strengthened reinforced-concrete beam is challenging due to the complex interaction between different contributions provided by the concrete, steel stirrup and FRP reinforcement. The shape of the beam and the FRP inclination can have paramount importance that is not often recognized by the models that are suggested by codes. The interaction among different resisting mechanisms has a significant effect on the shear capacity of beams, since it can cause a reduction in the efficiency of some resisting mechanisms. A comparative study of the performance in the shear resistance assessment provided by three models with six different effectiveness fact…
Analysis of thin film cracking and buckling on compliant substrate by fragmentation test
2007
Application of coating fragmentation test for determination of coating properties is considered. A probabilistic model of coating fragmentation under uniaxial tensile loading is applied for coating and interface property identification of thin brittle coating/polymer substrate system. A finite element model is developed to simulate the process of buckle formation in coating strips during fragmentation test. The measured buckle geometry parameters and buckle density evolution as a function of the applied strain is used to estimate the interface toughness.
Systems for evaluating the correlation between soil cone penetrometer resistance and shear strength
2008
The aim of this research is to study possible correlations between soil compaction (and related soil cone penetrometer resistance measurements) and shear strength normal to the field plane, required to cut the soil with a subsoiler. A measurement system for sensing the soil cone penetrometer resistance was built mounting, on a frame fixed to the front part of a tractor, a rod and a penetration cone with a load cell. A load cell, mounted on the tractor drawbar, pulling a subsoiler, allowed to measure the shear strength normal to the field plane, required to cut the soil. Both load cells were connected, through a display, to a portable computer, where a software was used for acquiring the dat…
Collapsible intact soil stabilisation using non-aqueous polymeric vehicle
2020
Abstract This paper presents the results of an experimental study that had the goal of understanding the effects of treatment with polyethylene glycol (PEG)/nanolime mixtures on collapsible soil behaviour. In a previous study, the use of pure PEG offered a good improvement in the stability of collapsible soil, but the stabilisation effect only lasted for a limited time. To investigate the stabilisation potential of PEG/nanolime systems for collapsible sand, different mixtures were prepared at increasing nanolime weight ratios. The suitability of the stabilised soil was examined on the basis of collapsibility, oedometer, shear, and water vapour permeability tests, and through optical microsc…
On the reactivation of a large landslide induced by rainfall in highly fissured clays
2018
Abstract The paper discusses the field investigations, geotechnical characterization and time evolution of horizontal displacements in a wide landslide. The latter, triggered by an earthquake occurring in September 2002, is located in Sicily and involves a thick body of stiff and highly fissured clays belonging to a Varicoloured Clay formation. In order to characterise the reactivation of landslide mechanisms induced by rainfall, a three-year monitoring programme (2008–2011) was implemented to measure rain, pore water pressures, and deep and superficial displacements. The monitoring data made it possible to recognize three distinct landslides, which evolve at variable rates in different dir…
Il calcestruzzo poroso per il miglioramento delle condizioni di stabilità dei pendii sede di falda idrica
2022
Reduction of pore water pressures is a useful strate-gy to improve the stability conditions of slopes. Deep draining trenches can be used for this scope. For the realisation of deep trenches, the usual con-ventional construction techniques are not adequate and the use of adjacent vertical panels, built by means of the methods well established for dia-phragm walls, is necessary. However, unbonded ma-terials (i.e. gravels) cannot be used, since the excava-tion of a panel adjacent to already built ones will cause instability. For this scope a bonded material such as the pervious concrete can be used. It must have high permeability, filtering capacity in order to prevent the internal erosion of…