Shear behaviour of a geogrid-reinforced coarse-grained soil based on large-scale triaxial tests

摘要

In China, weathered mudstone geogrid-reinforced coarse-grained soil is used extensively for road embankments. However, the microstructure and disintegration process of weathered mudstone remain unclear. Furthermore, few studies have investigated the shear behaviour of this kind of geogrid-reinforced fill through large-scale triaxial tests against grain size effects. To bridge this gap, this study reports results from large scale consolidated undrained (CU) and consolidated drained (CD) triaxial tests as well as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX), and disintegration tests on weathered mudstone geogrid-reinforced coarse-grained soil. EDX spectrograms and SEM images show that coarse grains disintegrate rapidly mainly owing to the high clay mineral content and loose microstructure. Therefore, a suitable disintegration time (～ 15 days) is recommended for embankment sits. The shear behaviour of this geogrid-reinforced fill is investigated in detail through large-scale triaxial tests. The shear deformation tends toward strain hardening behaviour with an increase in the number of geogrid layers and the confining pressure. Geogrids significantly improve the apparent cohesive strength of coarse-grained soil. The pore water pressure is found to develop rapidly in the 0% -4% axial strain phase but dissipate slowly in the 4%-12% axial strain phase. During shear, the pore pressure coefficient A values of 0.2-0.4 are indicative of the partial saturation of specimens. Consequently, pore water pressure development is mainly attributed to the movement and rearrangement of coarse particles in coarse-grained soil. Experimental data show that the geogrid-reinforcement coefficients increase with the number of geogrid layers, and a 20-cm separation between geogrid layers is recommended for embankment construction sites. The number of geogrid layers influences the geogrid -soil interface's mobilization and the slip surface type. Test results revealed three types of slip surfaces related to the failure shapes of specimens. Then, based on CU experimental data, the parameters of the Duncan-Chang constitutive model are discussed.