EFFECTS OF CEMENTATION ON STRESS-STRAIN AND STRENGTH CHARACTERISTICS OF SANDS

This paper presents a series of tests performed on uncemented and cemented sands along conventional and unconventional stress paths using a true (or cubical) triaxial testing device. The tests were planned such that the influence of cementation on constitutive behavior of sands could be comprehended. The true triaxial device used for this study was a flexible boundary type that could allow testing of a 4 in. (10.2 cm) cubical soil specimen under any stress path in the first octant of stress space. The stress paths considered in this investigation included hydrostatic compression, conventional triaxial compression, and tests along different directions on different octahedral planes. All the tests were stress controlled, and performed under drained condition. The specimens were prepared by the method of undercompaction using Monterey No.0 sand and portland cement type I. The test results show that the effect of cementation on failure, shear strength, stress-strain, and volume change behavior of sands is significant and depends strongly on the stress path.