Triaxial Test

(GDS instruments)

◦ Facts of triaxial test:

◦ Most versatile and common test in geotechnical engineering
◦ Provide convenient control of total stress (c) and pore pressure (ub)
◦ Displacement control or load control for shearing
◦ Alternative procedures available to simulate field condition

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 Shear failure in Triaxial Tests

◦ Normal stresses are applied in three directions (with 1’> 2’= 3’)
◦ Shear stress is induced in other directions
◦ Shear failure occurs in a certain plane of .

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 Principle Stresses at Failure
From the Mohr circle:
sin  '
1
2  1
'
  3' 
1
2  1
'
  3'   c ' cot  '

 1  sin  '  '  cos 

'

     2c 
' '
'  ' 
 1  sin    1  sin  
1 3


However,
2
 1  sin  '   cos  '  2 ' 
 ' 
  ' 
 tan  45    Kp
 1  sin    1  sin    2
It can be shown that: 2  90   '

'
Inclination of failure plane:   45   '   ' 
    tan  45    2c tan  45  
' ' ' 2
2 1 3
 2  2

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 Mohr-Coulomb Failure Criterion
Failure criteria expressed in different ways：

◦ Original failure criterion in terms of (, ’):

 ff  c'   'ff tan  '

◦ failure criterion in terms of (1’, 3’):

 '   ' 
1'   3' tan 2  45    2 c '
tan  45  
 2  2

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 Basic types of Triaxial tests
Types Drainage valve to specimen Strength parameters
consolidation shearing
UU – (Q)uick Closed Closed Total: cu or Su
CU – R Open Closed c’, ’ and c, 
CD – (S)low Open Open Effective: c’, ’

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 Why different types of Triaxial tests?

◦ Soil responses are different in different tests

◦ To simulate different field conditions

◦ To test for different materials

◦ To obtain different parameters for analysis and design

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 Application of UU Tests
 Loading is applied rapidly.

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 Application of CU Tests
 Loading is applied rapidly with
consolidation allowed.

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 Application of CD Tests
 Loading is applied slowly.

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 Unconsolidated-Undrained
Triaxial Test (UU Test)
Steps of a UU test:
◦ Consolidation (valve closed)
◦ Shearing (valve closed)

Confining stress: 3

Deviatoric stress: Dd

Axial stress: 1=3  Dd

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 Typical results of a UU test
◦ Stress-strain curves

Only undrained shear

strength cu is obtained

Note: cu=1/2 (Dd)f (Dd)f

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 Notes on UU tests:
◦ Objective is to obtained the in-situ undrained shear strength

◦ Undisturbed samples taken from the field has initial negative pore pressure

◦ Initial effective stress   uo  0

'
’ and  are not used.

◦ No saturation is required

◦ Pore pressure is usually not measured.

◦ Strength is obtained based on u=0

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 Unconfined Compression Test
◦ It is an UU test without confining pressure
◦ It can be performed with a common compression
machine without triaxial cell
◦ It is common used for saturated clay specimens

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 Typical values of unconfined
compression strength, qu

1
qu
 f  cu  
2 2
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 Undrained Shear Strength of Clays
Why is it important?
◦ Soft clay is commonly found under construction site.
◦ Loading is usually in undrained condition due to low permeability
of clay.
◦ cu is used for total stress analysis.
◦ In-situ (in-place) shear strength can be altered due to
construction process.
◦ Undrained shear strength of soft clay is usually critical for short
term stability of construction.

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 Vane Shear Test (VST)

Notes:
◦ Carried out in the borehole at depth during site investigation
◦ the most accepted method to determine in-situ undrained shear strength
◦ different sizes and shapes of vanes for different soil and borehole
◦ correction between measured and design value of undrained shear strength

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 Determination of undrained shear
strength, Su (cu)
T Ms  2M e
cylindrical surface two ends

d 
M s   dh  cu  
2
d3
M e   cu
8
1
 2 triangular

2
  uniform (usually =2/3)
 3
3
 5 parabolic

T
cu 
 d 2h d3 
  
 2 4
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 Correction of cu from VST
◦ In general, the undrained shear strength is affected by the rate of
shearing. Bjerrum (1974) suggested the correction for the cu
obtained from vane shear test as follows:

cudesign    cu vane shear 

Where:

  1.7  0.54log  PI 

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 Other methods for determining
undrained shear strength
◦ Torvane Pocket penetrometer

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 Empirical Relationships
between Cu and ’o
◦ Empirical relationship of the form is used in practice:
cu
 f  soil type, stress history 
 '
o
◦ For NC clay: cu
 0.22 (Mesri, 1989)
 o'
cu
 0.23  0.04 (Jamiolkowski et al., 1985)
 o'
 cu  (Skempton, 1957)
 '   0.11  0.0037 PI
 o 
◦ For OC clay:  cu 
 '   0.11  0.0037 PI (Chandler, 1988)
 c 
 cu   cu 
 '    '  OCR (Ladd et al., 1977)
0.8

  o OC   o  NC
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  cu 
 '   0.11  0.0037 PI
 o 
 0.11  0.0037  28  0.2136
cu  0.2136 160=34.2kPa
cu  0.2136  (160  3.2)=109.4kPa

 cu   cu 
 '    '  OCR
0.8

  o OC   o  NC
 0.22  3.20.8  0.5579
cu  0.5579 160=89.3kPa
Comment: The two empirical equations give very different cu.
In general, the equation based on PI is more conservative than
that based on OCR in which stress history taken into consideration.

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 Sensitivity of Clay
qu undisturbed 
◦ Sensitivity St 
qu remolded 

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 Thixotropy of Clay

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 Strength Anisotropy in Clay

Notes on Anisotropy:
◦ Caused by structure of clay particles during deposition (inherent)
◦ Caused by subsequent loading (stress induced)

◦ Casagrande and Carrillo (1994): cu   cu 0   cu 90  cu 0  sin 2 
 
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