Static Fatigue at Grain Contacts: A Key Cause of Time Effects in Sand

Behavior of disturbed sand deposits is known to be time dependent, but the nature of this dependency is still the subject of research. A hypothesis is suggested, which considers delayed fracturing of the micromorphological features on grain surfaces in contact as the primary cause of time effects in sand. Investigation of micromorphology was carried out first, followed by grain-to-grain load tests and modified consolidometer tests. Experimental evidence is consistent with the suggested hypothesis.