Effect of Intermediate Microfabric on Shear Strength and Strain Localization Response of Kaolin Clay Under Compression and Extension Loading

Abstract

The present paper evaluates the role of microfabric in strain localization patterns observed in soil specimens during its shear deformation in compression and extension triaxial testing. A series of compression and extension lubricated end triaxial tests are performed on Kaolin clay with extreme as well as intermediate microfabrics, which are obtained using slurry consolidation technique by varying calagon content from 0 to 3 %. Intermediate microfabric is the geometric arrangement of particles within the soil mass, which lies in between the particle orientation during two extreme microfabrics; flocculated and dispersed. Flocculated has random orientation of particles with face-to-edge particle contacts and dispersed has parallel orientation of particles with face-to-face particle contacts. When the specimen is subjected to large stress levels in triaxial testing, the particle orientation and geometric arrangement get affected due to the force acting on the clay platelets. In this experimental research, the variation in clay’s stress–strain and pore pressure response and initiation, propagation and formation of shear bands at different levels of compression and extension shearing is evaluated using digital image analysis setup associated with triaxial system.