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Laboratory and in situ tests on dynamic shear modulus of granite residual soil

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Abstract

It is widely accepted that residual soils (RSs) form very differently from sedimentary soils. While there have been extensive advances regarding sedimentary soil, little is known about the strain stiffness decay in RS. This study considers granite residual soil (GRS) from Taishan in China, where stiffness behaviors are established using in situ and laboratory investigations. Variability in the soil stiffness is due to its current state, including the depth, test method, and strain. This is established via systematic resonant-column and in situ tests. In situ tests include the seismic dilatometer Marchetti test (SDMT) and the self-boring pressuremeter test (SBPT). The degree of weathering of the test soil varies significantly along the depth direction, and the top layer of the soil has a hardening shell due to severe weathering. The laboratory G-γ decay curves of GRS were determined from the resonant column. A comparison of the shear modulus (from SBPT) obtained by different analysis methods gives the shear modulus from nonlinear analyses. An approach is proposed to properly describe the trends in typical in situ G-γ decay curves based on data from the tests. The G-γ curve obtained from the resonant-column test of GRS was compared with the in situ curves. The shear modulus G, as obtained from laboratory tests, is smaller than the curves of the in situ tests, which reflects the processes of sampling, transportation, and preparation of soil specimens.

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All of the data that support the findings of the study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully think the financial support of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51709290 and 41972285), the Open Research Fund of State Key Laboratory of Geomechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. Z0190202), the Young Key Teachers in Colleges and Universities of Henan Province (No. 2020GGJS136), the Key Research Projects of Higher Education Institutions in Henan Province (No. 22A580008), the Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars of Hubei Province (No. 2020CFA103), and the strength improvement plan of the advantageous disciplines of Zhongyuan University of Technology (No. GG202218).

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Yin, S., Huang, J., Kong, L. et al. Laboratory and in situ tests on dynamic shear modulus of granite residual soil. Bull Eng Geol Environ 81, 480 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-022-02978-4

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